The great crested grebe, coot and greylag goose breed here. Woodlark, goldeneye, little ringed plover, redwing, marsh harrier, reed bunting, reed warbler, teal, shoveler, pintail, wigeon and tufted duck can all be observed here; on rare occasions, osprey may be seen. Sand martins have created nesting holes in the banks. Today Oldendorf is dominated by agriculture and tourism. Oldendorf Manor (Rittergut Oldendorf) 400 m north of Oldendorf lies the Oldendorf manor. In 1788 Field Marshal Johann Wilhelm von Reden was given the fief of Hermannsburg-Oldendorf by George III, prince-elector of Hanover and King of England, for his service as a soldier. He secured the field marshal's services particularly during the Seven Years' War (1756 to 1763) during which he was promoted from lieutenant colonel to lieutenant general. Johann Wilhelm von Reden died childless. He had, however, willed the fief during his lifetime to his two nephews, Friedrich Otto and Franz. On 5 November 1840 his heirs divided the fiefdom of Hermannsburg and Oldendorf between them. Each property was then about 500 ha in size. The estate is still owned by the von Redens today. Beutzen Farm (Hof Beutzen) The parish of Oldendorf also includes the farmstead of Beutz. It is 1.5 miles south and was once owned by Julius Kothe and his wife, née Hartung. This Kothe family also owned the corn mill in Scharnebeck, where they also lived. Scharnebeck Mill lies to the north halfway between Oldendorf and Hermannsburg, on the Örtze. When the son and heir Traugott Kothe fell in the First World War, his father sold Beutz Farm in 1917 for 440,000 marks to a judge, Wilhelm Meyer, from Hanover. Judge Meyer was head of the Ilsede Ironworks (Ilseder Hütte) and Peine Mills (Peiner Walzwerke). He designated his wife, Anna Meyer, née Glenck, an actress, as the owner. In 1926, a turbine house was built on her premises which produced electricity for her own use from a water-driven turbine until the 1950s. The mill, that had previously been working, was closed. In 1933, Judge Meyer died and his wife sold the farm to Mr. Bertram, the Director of Hannover-Döhren Wool Washing, for 350,000 marks. In 1945 a children's home was established in the manor house of the farm by the Lobetal Institute, in which children, mainly orphans, of school and pre-school age, some seriously handicapped, were taught. In 1954 the orphanage closed in Beutz and moved to