The Altmühlwiesen with their extensively managed, periodically flooded, species-rich wet, wetland and smooth oat meadows have a great structural richness and thus represent one of the most important wetland areas in southern Germany.

Particularly noteworthy is the largely complete spectrum of species in the meadow bird coenosis, including particularly demanding species such as redshank, curlew, snipe and black godwit. However, the wet meadows and the Altmühlsee also play a decisive role as resting areas for migratory birds.

The primary goal of the project is the preservation of the large-scale extensively used meadow landscape along the Altmühl, in particular the protection of the meadow breeding birds, which are declining rapidly throughout Europe, as species with high demands on habitat quality and size.

Of great concern are the very low rates of offspring of meadow-nesting birds that have been observed for years. This is mainly due to the increasing intensification of agriculture, the loss of moist to wet grassland due to drainage, and disturbance by leisure activities and predators.

The conservation of this area is to be ensured by maintaining and promoting large-scale extensive management in conjunction with measures for water pollution control, predator control and visitor guidance.