Birds and dragonflies in Germany

This video shows a sea eagle, and a mute swan, on Rügen island in the Baltic sea in north-east Germany.

On 4 October 2016, we were supposed to be on Rügen.

However, a storm which caused flooding meant we could not sail on the sea, but had to stay in the interior near Kamp village.

After seeing the cranes and the rest of our early morning walk, we started a longer walk.

Songbirds are migrating to the south this month. We see scores of goldfinches.

We walk on an old railway track. In Adolf Hitler’s days, trains here went to Peenemünde V2 missile base. After the war, the rails were removed, and a footpath remained.

Many great cormorants sitting in leafless trees. And hundreds of them fishing together in the water.

An edible frog jumps.

A meadow pipit flies.

In the bushes, various dragonflies rest. Like this male emperor dragonfly.

And also smaller species. I think this is a male Sympetrum dragonfly. I am not sure which species, as quite some related species look rather similar.

And of this small dragonfly I am not even sure which genus it is.

We pass some cranes which stayed in this wetland after most others flew away to feed on fields.

Beavers live there, as trees with obvious traces of gnawing show.

We pass great cormorant nests. They are empty now; the young birds have fledged.

Birch trees. A great spotted woodpecker flies to one of them.

On another tree, a nuthatch.

A flock of barnacle geese.

Shoveler ducks.

A water vole crosses the footpath.

We arrive back on the road. Not many cars, but still they are dangerous for the many caterpillars crossing. They are pale tussock caterpillars. The Dutch name for this species is meriansborstel, Merian’s brush; named after famous seventeenth century naturalist and painter of insects Maria Sibylla Merian.

We arrive back in Kamp.

At 18:05, to the cranes again. Many arrive for sleeping; including juveniles. Behind them, barnacle geese.

Black-bellied plovers in winter plumage.

Dunlin.

A juvenile Caspian tern cleanses its feathers.

At 18:30, 670 cranes have arrived for sleeping.

Gadwall ducks land on the water.