The first week of March, previously to the worsening of the Coronavirus situation, we spent some few days in Berlin. We were in the German capital to join the ITB tourism fair which, unfortunately, at the last minute, was cancelled. Being already in Germany we decided to take advantage of it to explore the city and its surroundings from a naturalistic point of view.
Berlin is known by all for several reasons related to its history, its musical and artistic scene and so on. Few people do know that Berlin is a very lively city, not only from in an anthropological perspective, but also in a naturalistic one. Urban biodiversity here is extremely well represented and there are numerous animal species that thrive in the city. Among the many vertebrates that have adapted well to live with man (in city parks, avenues, uncultivated areas), there is one that deserves particular attention: the Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis). This majestic bird of prey – widespread in many temperate countries of the northern hemisphere and famous for its ability to juggle in flight in tight spaces (we recommend the BBC video that shows, in slowmotion, a trained specimen flying through very small openings) – is a fairly common presence in many European forests, but not in cities.
In Berlin however, for some years now, this bird of prey has moved permanently. In many cities of our continent there are several species of raptors, some of which have perfectly adapted to urban life. A classic example is the Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), a cosmopolitan species – which inhabits almost the entire globe – which has found in the metropolises a perfect substitute for its more classic natural habitat, so much so that, in Italy as in other countries of the world, has become one of the most emblematic protagonists of urban fauna. Peregrine Falcons have been nesting for years on skyscrapers in different cities on the planet and, some of these couples, are constantly monitored, also via webcam. We advise you to look at this link to observe the Peregrine Falcons of Milan very closely https://mediaportal.regione.lombardia.it/portal/watch/live/17. Another example of a European bird of prey perfectly adapted to urban life is the Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni); famous among enthusiasts are the crowded colonies of this species that during the spring and summer liven up the skies of cities such as Seville and Matera.
Other raptors inhabit the centres of European cities, including Buzzards (Buteo buteo), Sparrowhawks (Accipiter nisus) and Kestrels (Falco tinnunculus), while others, such as the Booted Eagle (Aquila pennata), can be spotted flying over the cities in a more discontinuous way.
The Goshawk, on the other hand, usually tends to prefer old forests and therefore, among all European birds of prey, it is one of the least expected to see flying between skyscrapers and buildings.
The populations of Goshawks that colonized urban areas – in this article the focus is on those of Berlin but there are also in Cologne, Hamburg, Helsinki – have benefited from the increase in these areas of Wood Pigeons, Crows and Trushes, fundamental to the diet of this bird of prey. Furthermore, the role played by the presence of large trees, and therefore perfect for nesting, present in the aforementioned cities should not be underestimated.
Let’s go back to talk about our Berlin Accipiter, one of our main target species of the trip to Germany. While in the first days we dedicated ourselves mainly to the exploration of peri-urban areas and areas outside the city (of which we will talk about you in the next blog articles), we had decided to dedicate the last day to urban birdwatching hoping to be able to add this species to our check list.
We therefore decide to explore the Tiergarten, a huge park located between the Brandenburg Gate and the Zoo, even if the rain was pouring. We were able to immediately contact several species of interest including Bramblings (Fringilla montfringilla) – busy on feeding on the ground together with Finches (Fringilla coelebs)- and Great Spotted Woodpeckers (Dendrocopos major), regardless of our presence, and it did not take long (but enough to soak us in the rain that, ungenerous, continued to fall) before finding our goal!
A fantastic specimen of Goshawk flies, on two occasions, a few meters from our head, letting itself be observed, photographed and filmed while peering at us on one of the park’s centuries-old trees.
Admiring such a majestic bird always gives very strong emotions and doing it in the heart of one of the main cities in the world adds a little more satisfaction to the experience.
Our day continued at the Berlin Zoo where we had gone not only to observe the captive animals but also to look for free ones. In many zoos, in fact, it is possible to observe species of wild birds, such as Gray Herons (Ardea cinerea) and Cormorants (Phalacrocorax carbo) which have benefited of these areas’ conditions and that here installed real urban heronries.
The meeting with the Goshawk in the first place, together with the bird diversity present in this magnificent city and its surroundings, convinced us to organize, when it will finally be possible, an urban birdwatching weekend (and not) between Berlin and Brandenburg!
Urban birding, a practice to which, as you probably know, we are very fond of, has allowed us to observe numerous species in Berlin that are as interesting as, at least for us southern Europeans, unusual. Below are some photos of the most interesting ones and the checklist of the species contacted in the city.
- Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
- Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)
- Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea)
- Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo)
- Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis)
- Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
- Common Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus)
- Common Crane (Grus grus)
- Feral Pigeon (Columba livia var. domestica)
- Wood Pigeon (Columba palumbus)
- Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major)
- European Robin (Erithacus rubecula)
- Common Blackbird (Turdus merula)
- Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla)
- Common Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita)
- Goldcrest (Regulus regulus)
- Great Tit (Parus major)
- European Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus)
- Long-tailed Tit (Aegithalos caudatus europaeus)
- Eurasian Nuthatch (Sitta europaea)
- Common Magpie (Pica pica)
- Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius)
- Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix)
- Rook (Corvus frugilegus)
- Common Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
- House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)
- Brambling (Fringilla montifringilla)
- Common Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs)
- European Greenfinch (Chloris chloris)