Plague of crows in Günzburg: Danger to people and agriculture!

Plague of crows in Günzburg: Danger to people and agriculture!

In recent weeks, the increasing population of crows in the Günzburg district has caused a lot of excitement. An urgent warning reached citizens via the city of Burgau's WhatsApp channel, urging residents to be careful as the crows nest near the municipal cemetery and fiercely defend their territory. Augsburger Allgemeine reports that this remarkable increase in crows is also having serious impacts on agriculture.

The Bavarian Farmers' Association (BBV) has already determined that the rooks are causing damage to the district's agricultural areas. Nature is showing its merciless side here and farmers are facing serious challenges because the harvest is being jeopardized.

Insight into the situation in Erding

If you look a step further towards Erding, you can see that this problem is particularly pronounced there. Erding has the largest colony of rooks in all of Bavaria, with over 1000 breeding pairs in the city park. Although there are efforts to reduce the number of crows, they appear to have had no significant success so far. A pilot project by the Bavarian state government, which is coordinated by the State Office for the Environment (LfU), is now intended to provide a remedy. In several cities including South German newspaper, measures such as removing eggs from nests and even the planned shooting of 80 crows are under discussion.

A project meeting took place at the Erding district office at the beginning of April to discuss specific measures to combat agricultural damage. Thomas Schreder, environmental officer and chairman of the district hunting association, made it clear that the hunters in Erding are not willing to hunt crows, which makes the situation even more difficult. When hunting, it is often not clear whether the crows are breeding or non-breeding crows, which causes confusion.

Economic damage and challenges

The economic damage to farmers in the region cannot be underestimated. According to the BBV, the damage caused by the crows in Erding in 2023 amounts to an impressive 76,500 euros. So the challenges facing agriculture are not just a hidden threat, but an immediate economic concern.

The pilot project is intended to investigate payment options and test various deterrence measures, with animal welfare being the top priority during the bird's rearing period. One of the methods could be the use of drones in Dachau, for example to check the nests and specifically drive away the crows. But the topic remains sensitive - no matter what the solution looks like, it must be effective and at the same time ethically responsible.

The problem surrounding keeping crows shows how complex dealing with nature and agriculture is - a balancing act that still requires a lot of sensitivity and cannot be ignored by the affected population and the authorities. In these challenging times, it is important to show a good hand in finding solutions and to promote a constructive dialogue between environmentalists and farmers.