Larger image Konik in de Oostvaardersplassen

The konik (the word may be translated as "horsie") is a small Polish horse, kind of wild pony. As it is not only genetically really close to the extinct tarpan, the original European wild horse, it is introduced in many nature reserves in the Netherlands like the Oostvaardersplassen. Together with deer, the Wisent and the Heck Cattle, the konik are big grazers. They keep the landscape open and when kept without supplemental winter feeding a natural forest will evolve.