canonical: https://jentic.com/apis/pdok.nl/pdok-habitatrichtlijn-wfs

# Pdok Nl Habitatrichtlijn verspreiding van habitattypen WFS

Jentic publishes the only available OpenAPI specification for Habitatrichtlijn verspreiding van habitattypen WFS, keeping it validated and agent-ready. This WFS (Web Feature Service) provides geographic distribution data for habitat types within Natura 2000 areas in the Netherlands, covering the 2007-2012 reporting period. The API exposes 208 endpoints representing individual habitat type distributions and their geographic extent, enabling spatial queries on dry heathlands, wet forests, dune vegetation, salt marshes, pioneer communities, and dozens of other habitat classifications defined under the EU Habitats Directive.

## For AI agents

Query geographic distribution data for EU Habitats Directive habitat types across Dutch Natura 2000 areas. Access spatial features for over 100 habitat classifications.

## Scope

Does not handle water body data, topographic mapping, or cadastral boundaries - use for EU Habitats Directive habitat type distribution queries only.

## Capabilities

- Query geographic distribution of specific habitat types across Dutch Natura 2000 sites
- Retrieve individual habitat feature records by ID for detailed spatial data
- Access distribution extent polygons for pioneer vegetation communities
- Fetch spatial data for dune, heathland, and forest habitat classifications
- List habitat features across salt marsh, river, and wetland categories
- Retrieve verspreiding (distribution) and verspreidingsgebied (extent) data separately

## Use cases

### Environmental Impact Assessment

Query habitat distribution data to assess potential impacts of development projects on protected habitat types. The API provides spatial polygons showing where each habitat type occurs within Natura 2000 areas, enabling GIS overlay analysis with proposed development zones. Covers over 100 habitat classifications from the EU Habitats Directive Annex I.

Example prompt: GET /verspreidingdrogeheiden/ to retrieve all dry heathland distribution features, then filter by geographic bounds overlapping with a proposed development area

### Conservation Reporting

Access standardized habitat distribution data for Habitats Directive Article 17 reporting. The API provides the official Dutch dataset for habitat type distribution and extent across the 2007-2012 period, structured for integration with national and EU reporting tools.

Example prompt: GET /verspreidingsgebiedruigtenenzomen/ to retrieve the geographic extent of tall-herb fringe communities for inclusion in an Article 17 conservation report

### Ecological Research and Mapping

Download habitat distribution features for ecological research, species-habitat correlation studies, or map production. Each endpoint provides GeoJSON-compatible spatial features for a specific habitat type, ready for import into GIS software or spatial databases.

Example prompt: GET /verspreidingvochtigealluvialebossen/ to retrieve wet alluvial forest features and GET `/verspreidingvochtigealluvialebossen/{id}`/ to access a specific feature by ID

### AI Agent Spatial Data Retrieval via Jentic

AI agents query Dutch habitat distribution data as part of environmental analysis workflows. Through Jentic, the agent discovers the specific habitat type endpoint it needs, loads the schema, and retrieves spatial features without understanding the full WFS structure or Dutch naming conventions.

Example prompt: Search Jentic for 'Dutch habitat distribution data', load the endpoint schema for the relevant habitat type, and execute a GET request to retrieve spatial features

## Key endpoints

| Method | Path | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| GET | `/verspreidingdrogeheiden/` | List dry heathland distribution features |
| GET | `/verspreidingdrogeheiden/{id}/` | Retrieve a specific dry heathland feature by ID |
| GET | `/verspreidingvochtigealluvialebossen/` | List wet alluvial forest distribution features |
| GET | `/verspreidingziltepionierbegroeiingen/` | List salt pioneer vegetation distribution features |
| GET | `/verspreidingsgebiedruigtenenzomen/` | Get extent of tall-herb fringe communities |
| GET | `/verspreidingduindoornstruwelen/` | List dune thorn shrub distribution features |

## Key resources

- **Verspreiding (Distribution)** — Geographic distribution features for each habitat type
- **Verspreidingsgebied (Extent)** — Geographic extent polygons defining the range of each habitat type

## Why Jentic

- **Setup:** Wiring this PDOK habitat-distribution WFS by hand means learning its Dutch-named feature endpoints and matching each habitat type to its own path yourself, even though the service is open and needs no key. Through Jentic you install once, import the Habitatrichtlijn habitat-type distribution WFS from the API Directory, and your agent calls it with no credential to manage.
- **Permission scoping:** This WFS carries the feature id in the URL path (for example `/verspreidingdrogeheiden/{id}`/), so a rule can pin your agent to one habitat-type feature collection: it reads that distribution and nothing else. You choose the operations it may call, all read-only queries here, so only the ones you allow run.
- **Credential handling:** This PDOK WFS is public open data and needs no authentication, so there is no credential to store; Jentic handles endpoint discovery and schema access at execution time.
- **Discovery method:** Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'dry heathland distribution in the Netherlands', and Jentic returns the matching Dutch-named operation like /verspreidingdrogeheiden/ with its input schema so the agent calls the right endpoint without browsing the reference docs.

## Related APIs

- **PDOK Mossel- en Oester Habitats** — Mussel and oyster habitat data from Dutch tidal flats
- **PDOK Oppervlaktewaterlichamen** — Dutch surface water body spatial data for Water Framework Directive
- **OpenStreetMap API** — General geographic and mapping data for context layers

## FAQ

### Why is there no official OpenAPI spec for the PDOK Habitat Distribution WFS?

PDOK does not publish an OpenAPI specification for this WFS service. Jentic generates and maintains this spec so that AI agents and developers can call the Habitatrichtlijn WFS via structured tooling. It is validated against the live API and kept up to date. Get started with Jentic One, the self-hosted execution layer.

### What authentication does this PDOK WFS require?

This PDOK WFS service requires no authentication. It is a public Dutch government open data service. All endpoints are freely accessible without API keys or tokens.

### What time period does this habitat distribution data cover?

The dataset covers habitat type distribution and extent for the 2007-2012 reporting period under the EU Habitats Directive. It represents the official Dutch submission for Article 17 conservation status reporting.

### How are the 208 endpoints organized?

Each habitat type has two endpoints: a collection endpoint (e.g., /verspreidingdrogeheiden/) returning all features for that type, and an individual feature endpoint (e.g., `/verspreidingdrogeheiden/{id}`/) for retrieving a specific feature by ID. The naming follows Dutch habitat type classifications.

### How do I query specific habitat types through Jentic?

Install with pip install jentic, search for 'Dutch habitat distribution' or a specific type like 'dry heathland distribution'. Jentic maps your intent to the correct Dutch-named endpoint and returns the schema. Execute to retrieve GeoJSON spatial features.

### What spatial data format do the responses use?

The WFS returns feature data compatible with GeoJSON, including geometry polygons defining habitat distribution areas and attribute fields describing the habitat classification and reporting metadata.

### Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the PDOK Habitat Distribution WFS?

Yes. Jentic One runs self-hosted, so your own rules decide which of this WFS's operations your agent may call, and every operation here is a read-only GET. Because each feature id sits in the URL path, such as `/verspreidingdrogeheiden/{id}`/, you can pin the agent to a single habitat-type distribution collection so it reads that data and nothing else. Only the endpoints you allow will run, and since the service is public open data there is no credential for the agent to touch.