Birds in Berlin. Birds in Berlin. An interactive guide to the birds most commonly seen in the city of Berlin. By Adrienne Eaton.

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1 Birds in Berlin An interactive guide to the birds most commonly seen in the city of Berlin By Adrienne Eaton

2 Birds found... all around town Sparrows, Pigeons and Crows in parks and gardens Blackbirds, Starlings, Tits, Magpies, Finches and many more... near waters Swans, Ducks, Gulls, Coots, Geese, Herons and more... in the skies Swifts, Swallows and Birds of Prey It s not a bird! Bats, Squirrels, Rabbits, Rodents and Foxes 1

3 Birds Found All Around Town At the S-Bahn station, in the Biergarten, on the roof and in the Hof, you re sure to see these birds wherever you go. Click on the bird to learn more. House Sparrow She s probably trying to steal the Kuchen off your plate. Pigeon (Rock Dove) The universal urban classic. Hooded Crow You ve likely seen them picking through the trash. 2

4 Parks and Gardens: The Large and Obvious These are likely to be the first large birds you will notice in a typical Berlin park or garden, year round. Blackbird Males are black with an orange beak, females are entirely brown. Starling Black with iridescent spots and a yellow beak. Wood Pigeon Jay Shaped like a standard pigeon, with a white spot on the neck. Magpie Black, white and blue, with a long tail and a loud cry. Large and tawny with a bright blue spot on the wing. 3

5 Parks and Gardens: Small and Quick These are smaller common birds that you are likely to spot in the park. Blue Tit Small and lively, with a blue head and yellow body. Great Tit Loud and lively, with a black head and yellow body. Long-tailed Tit Small, brown and cute, a tiny body with a long tail. Green Finch A yellow-green finch, whizzing around in the tree-tops. Chaffinch A common, but shy and less colorful finch. 4

6 Parks and Gardens: On the Tree Trunk You ll see these birds clinging close to trunks and branches.v Great Woodpecker Black and white and busy, our most common woodpecker. Green Woodpecker Green and large with a bright red head. Nuthatch Striped like a bandit and keeping close to the tree. Treecreeper Small and brown, creeping upwards around the trunk. 5

7 Near Waters: Floating Around Mute Swan www Mallard Canada Goose Tufted Duck Mandarin Duck 6

8 Near Waters: Floating, Flying and Diving Black-headed Gulls www Grey Heron Coot Moorhen Cormorant 7

9 In the Skies Swifts www Barn Swallow Northern Goshawk 8

10 It s not a Bird! Red Squirrel www European Rabbit Greater Mouse-Eared Bat Red Fox 9

11 House Sparrow Birds in Berlin All Around Town smaller than a Blackbird House Sparrow Passer domesticus 5.5 in 14 cm Males have black mark on throa Females have light stripe behind Reddish-brown back larger than a Blue Tit der Haussperling (der Spatz) The House Sparrow is small, streaked brown, and just about everywhere you look. YouÕll find them enjoying Kuchen in the Biergarten and living in numbered little houses in the Tiergarten. They chatter in the bushes, take dust baths in the paths, and make their homes in nooks and crannies all over the city. Males have black patches on their necks, larger patches being a sign of dominance, and can be seen calling and defending from posts and prominent branches. Because sparrows arenõt shy, you can learn a lot about bird life by observing them. Watch them feeding their yellow-mouthed chicks in warmer months or gathering nesting materials year Year Round 10

12 Pigeon (Rock Dove) Birds in Berlin All Around Town smaller than a Crow Pigeon (Rock Dove) Columba livia in cm Grey body Purple-green shimmer on nec Markings and color can vary wid larger than a Blackbird die Stadttaube Rats of the air is what a friend of mine calls these ubiquitous birds. And while they can certainly be messy, unruly, and annoying, they are also fun to watch. If your train is delayed, you can while away the time looking for odd colorations, or morphs, or for other oddities like feathered legs. Males can often be seen with puffed feathers, attempting to impress a nearby female. Don t confuse them with the Wood Pigeon, which prefers parks and quiet gardens, has a smaller head and more consistent coloration. Year Round 11

13 Hooded Crow smaller than a Hawk Birds in Berlin All Around Town Hooded Crow Corvus cornix in cm Grey body Black head, wings and tail larger than a Pigeon die Nebelkr_he Yes, the crows here are partially grey! The Hooded Crow is predominant in central Europe, although there are areas where interbreeding with the all-black Carrion Crow occur. Take a short train ride to Dresden and you ll see black crows again. Our Hooded Crows are large, bold, and smart. Watch a few of them fish some Döner out of a trash can and you ll be impressed. Crowds of these cawing crows will gather on tall buildings and cranes in the cooler months, then fly off en-masse to roost at sundown, imparting a suitably eerie and gloomy atmosphere to the short and dark winter days in Berlin. Year Round 12

14 Copyright page, add some stuff here. 45