Spring awakening: Storks surprisingly return to Rhineland-Palatinate earlier

Spring awakening: Storks surprisingly return to Rhineland-Palatinate earlier

This year, the storks returned to Rhineland-Palatinate earlier than usual. Jessica Lehmann from the Rhineland-Palatinate Storchen Center reports that the nests in the region are largely occupied. This early return could be due to the weather conditions in their wintering areas in Spain or Portugal. Breeding in Rhineland-Palatinate has been in Rhineland since the beginning of March. It is particularly noteworthy that many old storks and first -breeders used to be on the way than in previous years.

The situation in certain counties is worrying. All nests are already occupied in the Birkenfeld, Bad Kreuznach and Rheinhessen district. However, some -established pairs of stork are missing, which could stagnate or even decline the number of stork nests. However, the location of the first breeders could improve the situation, since storks usually become sexually mature at two to three years. In this phase, however, aggressive struggles between young storks and old tapes can occur if they compete for nesting places.

uncertain development of the stork stock

The observers are dependent on reports from the population to identify new nests. The stork population in Rhineland-Palatinate was considered expired from 1974 to 1996, which represents a dramatic history of the return of species. In 1997 a successful resettlement project was launched, which was based on the “Pfalzstorch campaign”. Nevertheless, the development of the inventory remains uncertain, especially after the previous year, when many young storks died due to adverse weather conditions.

An additional problem could be a very dry spring that could lead to a lack of food for the young storks and other bird species. This food problem is worrying because storks are opportunists who eat a variety of animals. They are particularly at risk from electricity, collisions, road traffic and garbage in their nesting sites. In 1991, 85 pairs of white stork were still counted in Baden-Württemberg, while the number in 2011 had already grown to 518 couples.

project for the resettlement of the storks

An example of effective efforts to resettlement is the NABU group in Vaihingen/Enz, which has been working on it since 1995 to locate white storks in Horrheim. Two wooden masts were installed with special nest basket constructions to offer the storks a safe breeding area. In 2014, a couple of stork was sighted that began with the nest building despite initial concerns about their behavior.

The return of storks is not only a sign of nature, but also a story of revival and hope. The life expectancy of the white storks is 20 to 30 years old and they move from Germany to Africa every year, with their routes vary depending on the region. During the long -term protection, it can be seen that the number of storks in Switzerland is also growing steadily. In the winter of 2023/2024, almost half of the storks in Switzerland, which confirmed a new maximum value.

The successful measures and the increase in populations indicate that the storks can adapt to changed living conditions. Despite the challenges, the hope that the early return and the ongoing resettlement projects will lead to a stable population of the storks in Rhineland-Palatinate and beyond.