Starling is no longer number 1 in bird census - Ruddy shelduck as "invasive species"

Created: 06/14/2022, 05:00 p.m

By: Stephanie Uehlein

This time the star took second place in the "Hour of the Garden Birds".

© Sarah Beer/LBV

In the counting campaign "Hour of the Garden Birds" there has been a change in the top position in the district.

A total of 72 species have been sighted.

These include shelduck geese, which the State Association for Bird Protection describes as an invasive species.

District

- This year, the house sparrow made it to first place at the "Hour of the Garden Birds" in the district of Weilheim-Schongau.

He pushed the frontrunner from the previous year, the Star, to second place.

The blackbird took third place, followed by the great tit, tree sparrow, common swift, blue tit, magpie, chaffinch and carrion crow.

This top ten list was determined by having 164 volunteers register the number of birds they saw at 128 locations for one hour.

The campaign was organized by the State Association for the Protection of Birds (LBV) and its partner NABU from May 13th to 15th.

Almost 11,400 people took part across Bavaria.

The house sparrow is the front runner this year.

© Dieter Hopf/LBV picture archive

"Unfortunately, the number and diversity of birds in the Free State continues to decrease," said the LBV in a press release on the campaign.

"With an average of just over 28 birds per garden, around two birds fewer than in previous years were reported this year." In the Weilheim-Schongau district, there were an average of around 30 animals per garden/counting location (2021: around 32).

A total of 3858 birds counted

A total of 3858 birds of 72 species were registered there.

Among the animals counted were 561 house sparrows, 538 starlings and 358 blackbirds.

In the previous year, a total of 7422 birds were reported.

At that time, the number of participants was 340, significantly higher than this year.

The corona situation at the time with its restrictions encouraged people to get involved, explains Brigitte Wegmann from the LBV regional office.

The swift moved up from seventh to sixth place.

© Ralph Sturm/LBV picture archive

Eleven redstarts, eight shelducks, eight jackdaws and two peregrine falcons as well as a nightingale and a crossbill were also counted in this year's campaign in the district.

The LBV Group Weilheim-Schongau/Garmisch-Partenkirchen particularly emphasizes this in its balance sheet.

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But not all of these sightings are judged positively.

"In the last few years, more and more shelducks have been seen," says the LBV.

"This non-native goose is a so-called invasive species, which, for example, drives away our native tower breeders such as jackdaws and kestrels."

More about the counting campaign at https://www.lbv.de/mitmachen/stunden-der-gartenvoegel/.

In winter there was also a bird count: the "Hour of the Winter Birds".

(By the way: everything from the region is now also available in our regular Weilheim-Penzberg newsletter.)