Record number of cranes have crossed Switzerland
Published: Tuesday, Oct 29th 2024, 13:00
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A crane migration of around 800 individuals recently flew over Switzerland. According to the Swiss Ornithological Institute in Sempach, never before have so many individuals been counted at once in this country.
The start of this year's bird migration season is therefore looking promising. Several very large flocks of cranes have already been observed, the Swiss Ornithological Institute wrote on Tuesday. Record numbers of migrating cranes have also been reported in neighboring Bavaria. However, the crane migration season has only just begun.
If you look carefully at the sky these days and prick up your ears, you might be lucky enough to see these impressive birds, according to the ornithological station. With their loud, trumpeting calls, they are very conspicuous when they fly south in the typical V formation.
Cranes are known for their traditional migration routes, as the ornithological station further explained. The westernmost migration route leads from Scandinavia and north-eastern Europe in a very narrow corridor to the south-west and ends in Spain. Another route leads from Finland via Hungary and Italy to North Africa. This means that Switzerland is not actually directly on a "crane highway".
This makes the current spectacle over the Swiss sky all the more remarkable.
©Keystone/SDA
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