„Gru,Gru“, „Gru, Gru“. In between, a hoarse whistle. Their calls and their wedge-shaped flight formation are as much a part of autumn as the colorful foliage on the trees. Every year the migration of the Common Cranes (Grus grus) is an unmistakable sign that the cold season is approaching.
Despite the frost and snow, several thousand cranes could still be seen in Germany. On last Sunday, at maximum temperatures of 2°C, about 900 cranes flew over Rangsdorf to their resting site in Lake Rangsdorf.
Currently, the calls of the cranes can still be heard, especially in North Rhine-Westphalia and Saarland. Around 3,500 birds even defied the weather in Saxony-Anhalt up until last week.
This is quite unusual for the Common Cranes, whose migration usually starts in early September. This actually seemed to be largely over. But unexpectedly the sky was once again full of swarms of Common Cranes.
The Crane’s migration is now slowly coming to an end. However, due to the approaching onset of winter, the birds are now rapidly migrating south-west to warmer regions. Thousands of these birds, also known as “birds of luck”, could also be observed this year in Brandenburg on their way to the southern wintering areas with distinctive and loud trumpet calls. The unforgettable nature experience is offered every year in September and October. Thousands of cranes fly into the blue sky with their legendary trumpet calls, circle in the thermals, fly to their resting places. All of this is in preparation for the long onward flight south.
During the day, the birds can be observed primarily at the feeding grounds on harvested corn fields. The evening flight to the rest areas is particularly impressive.
The loud trumpet calls let the heads of the visitors and residents of Brandenburg rise by themselves. The crane breeds in large numbers in Brandenburg. Now they are soon gone towards their winter quarters in southern France and Spain.
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