Field station De Herdershut

Field station De Herdershut (the shepherd’s hut) of the University of Groningen on the Wadden Island of Schiermonnikoog is the Netherlands' northernmost scientific research station and the home base for research in the eastern Wadden Sea.

From De Herdershut research is carried out, sometimes on a long-term basis, on everything related to the ecology of the mud flats. It is also used as a base for biology and ecology courses for bachelor and master students, and provides facilities for master and PhD students conducting longer-term research projects.

Research topics 

Mud flats; salt marsh; vegetation; fauna; grazing; mussel beds; migratory birds; climate change. 

References 

N/A

Running period 

1958-undetermined 

Equipment/facilities 

De Herdershut has 13 sleeping quarters (can host up to more than 30 people) as well as a living room, a modern kitchen and good sanitary facilities, providing a comfortable place to stay with good access for people with disabilities. For teaching and research, there is a modern teaching room of over 65 m2 and a wet lab and dry lab that together total almost 87 m2, which enables small-scale laboratory research. 

Data management 

N/A

Available datasets 

N/A

Condition for access 

The Herdershut is a facility of the University of Groningen and is mainly used to facilitate courses and researchers from within the University of Groningen. However the field station also accommodates guest researchers, but clear affiliation and collaboration with the University of Groningen is required. For questions please send an email to herdershut@rug.nl.