Protection of birds: Everyone can contribute

Created: 03/15/2022, 16:00

The paths shown in yellow should not be walked on, as the meadow breeders then have a better chance of raising their offspring.

© Wildland Foundation

County - The lapwings are returning and the breeding season is beginning.

All citizens can protect the birds if they follow certain rules.

With the return of the lapwings to the Isental, the breeding season is also approaching.

In order for the breeding of the rare birds to be successful, they need a lot of rest during the sensitive breeding season.

The Dorfener Moos is also a popular place to visit.

Here the lapwing is dependent on the help of everyone, says Monika Graßl from the Wildland Foundation Bavaria, regional office in the Isental.

The first lapwings have been seen in the Isental since mid-February.

They are back from their long journey from France and Spain.

Many are just migrating, but some will stay in the Isental to breed here.

The breeding pairs prefer areas with short vegetation and wet areas without woody structures or visual barriers.

Originally, lapwings were mainly found on wet meadows and moors, such as the Dorfener Moos.

Today they avoid the change in landscape with moderate success and also breed in open ground areas in fields.

Avoid breeding area and leash dogs

According to the Bavarian Red List, the lapwing is now endangered.

Measures have been initiated in the Dorfener Moos in recent years to preserve and improve the habitat of the lapwing.

These were tackled by farmers, hunters, landowners and interested parties.

For example, damp soil was created, bushes pushed back, meadows rich in species maintained and restored.

But for the efforts to be successful, the area needs to be quiet during the breeding season.

Because wild animals and especially ground breeders react very sensitively to disturbances during the breeding season.

In addition to natural enemies such as foxes, martens and crows, humans also endanger the nest with the eggs or the young birds of the lapwing family that have just hatched.

For ground breeders consider men and dogs,

as soon as they come close to the clutch they are dangerous and therefore leave the nest.

If the birds are disturbed during their incubation for a long time or frequently, the eggs left behind threaten to cool down.

In the worst case, the clutch is even abandoned.

In order to find a solution for people and nature, a path concept for the breeding season with special entry rules was developed and publicly approved in the Dorfener Moos.

Avoiding the breeding area is the safest option for the lapwing family.

If the meadow breeding area is entered, it helps the lapwing to stay on the designated paths (see map), not to enter the green areas and to leash the dogs.

These entry rules are even mandatory in the Dorfener Moos.

This also applies to the Mühl- and Kreuzänger - in the west to the sewage treatment plant or to the Birkenhof.

The city, the local groups of the state association for bird protection and the association for nature conservation, the hunters' association and the Wildland Foundation Bavaria call on the citizens to observe the special entry rules in the Dorfener Moos during the sensitive phase of the breeding season from March 15th to July 15th .

Flyers at City Hall

As part of the Nature.Diversity.Isental project, the project supervisors have created a flyer that explains why and how nature in the Isental can be protected.

It is available for collection in the foyer of the town hall.

If you have any further questions or suggestions, please do not hesitate to contact the environmental office in Dorfen or the support team for the Natur.Diversity.Isental project.