16.08.2007

The "Internet-Storks" bid Vetschau farewell

The three Vetschau Internet young storks roamed through the immediate surroundings of the Stork Centre until the beginning of August, visited nearby properties and inspected the camera (see photo by Bernd Rosien). In the late afternoon of August 2nd the time had come for the last of the three youngsters to leave the eyrie not to be seen again. Chess, Mila and Gwen had spent the night to August 1st at the eyrie together for the last time. The parent storks still return regularly for a few hours to the eyrie. They "recuperate" from the strain of raising their young and will leave no later than the end of August, separately in fact. Only in spring, should they survive, will both return to their former nesting place and, as a rule, pair up for another year. Now the storks will embark on the long flight to Africa. All good wishes from thousands of stork fans from around the world accompany them. The countless stork friends followed from March onward the events of the Vetschau storks on the Internet as well as directly at the Stork Centre. The young storks and also the parent storks join stork troops and start the flight during good thermal lift conditions to their winter quarters in Africa. Often, surprisingly, the young ones leave earlier than the parent storks. They find the way without the parents' help. Firstly the flight heads toward the southeast. All storks from Eastern and Central Europe follow the airway across the Straits of Bosporus, then over Turkey along the Mediterranean coast to Israel, finally over the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt and along the Nile River to Central Africa. At the beginning of December many will even continue all the way to South Africa - a total distance of more than 6,250 miles (10,000 km).

Winfried Boehmer
NABU Project Leader

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