The Local Germany

Swan Late: Mourning bird holds up German trains

Tue, 29 Dec 2020 10:13:05 +0100

A swan mourning the death of its companion on a German railway track held up 23 trains for almost an hour and had to be removed by firefighters using special equipment, police said.

Number of partridges, other birds have dropped by 80 percent: report

Thu, 04 May 2017 14:37:08 +0200

Germany and Europe overall have seen a "dramatic" drop in bird populations since 1990, largely due to farming practices, according to new government figures.

German scientists prove birds can sleep while flying

Wed, 03 Aug 2016 17:59:32 +0200

This odd habit by our feathered friends has long been theorized, but now German scientists say they have definitive proof for the first time ever.

German city says ‘nein’ to woman’s nine parrots

Wed, 17 Feb 2016 17:36:15 +0100

It appears that an animal lover’s hopes of keeping a parrot menagerie have shuffled off its mortal coil - after their squawking ruffled a few too many feathers.

Unusual refugees flee to east Germany

Tue, 07 Apr 2015 14:07:57 +0200

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania may not be the ideal destination for refugees threatened with extinction in their own land. But one distinctive feathered flock has found a home in the north-eastern state despite the disgruntled locals.

German macaws go forth and multiply in Brazil

Wed, 04 Mar 2015 10:02:11 +0100

A pair of endangered blue macaws of the kind made famous by the hit animated "Rio" movies arrived in Brazil from Germany on Tuesday as part of a drive to ensure the bird's survival.

Munich customs find 200 dead birds in a suitcase

Wed, 29 Oct 2014 11:58:00 +0100

Customs officers at Munich Airport found 200 dead songbirds in a passenger's suitcase, officials said on Wednesday.

Bird brains 'can solve monkey puzzles'

Thu, 28 Nov 2013 16:50:00 +0100

Calling someone a bird brain may no longer work as an insult. German scientists have discovered that crows' brains work in very similar ways to those of primates, even though they are built differently.

Court: No payout for bird strike passengers

Tue, 24 Sep 2013 18:53:00 +0200

Passengers will not be compensated by airlines for delays caused by bird strikes, Germany’s top court ruled on Tuesday.

Problem geese deposits frustrate German mayor

Tue, 23 Jul 2013 14:05:00 +0200

A frustrated German mayor has called in the hunters after a gaggle of Canada geese messing up his little lakeside town failed to show him any respect. "They just looked at me," he said of his attempts to persuade them to leave.

Unique baroque feather room opens for visitors

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 16:33:00 +0200

Historians have put the finishing touches to one of Germany's more unusual curiosities – a Baroque castle room with wallpaper made from feathers. Visitors will be able to look, but not touch, from Wednesday.

German tackles bird deaths with cat tax idea

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 17:48:00 +0200

German cat owners could be hit with a special bird-kill tax to compensate for the damage their felines inflict on bird populations - if a leading ornithologist has his way.

New sandy bird island rises off North Sea coast

Sat, 05 Jan 2013 10:43:00 +0100

A brand new island of sand dunes has risen out of shallow waters off the German North Sea coast, creating a new sanctuary for breeding birds, say wildlife experts.

Finding grace in Alpine avian acrobatics

Tue, 25 Sep 2012 17:04:00 +0200

Germany has lynxes and even wolves, as well as dramatic bird life such as red kites. But Patrick Howse went up a Bavarian mountain to revisit some crow relatives – and found himself again dazzled by their acrobatics.

Town pigeon numbers hit hard by renovation

Sun, 05 Aug 2012 15:17:00 +0200

The number of town pigeons in Germany’s towns and cities has fallen dramatically over the past decade, with the Berlin population down by two thirds from its 2001 level.

Speed trap turned into bird house

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:28:00 +0100

Officials in southern Germany whose speed trap was smashed into by a car turned it into a bird house – and say it is now home to a family of great tits.

Fears grow of deadly tropical virus killing blackbirds

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 16:40:00 +0200

Fears are increasing in Germany that blackbirds are being wiped out by a tropical disease, while tests are being conducted on a number of cadavers to try to find out why they died.

City invasion of 'wallpeckers' a boon for tradesmen

Thu, 22 Apr 2010 18:28:00 +0200

Berlin is suffering a rash of damage to housing walls, though not from the usual grafitti artists but from a handsome, and protected, bird – the woodpecker.

Tidy wilderness rule blocks vultures’ return to German Alps

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 16:57:00 +0200

Vulture sightings in the Alps are becoming more common some 150 years after they were wiped out of the area, but experts say an EU policy keeping the hillsides clear of animal carcasses deprives them of enough food to repopulate.