2023-08-28 17:00:34
It is the most well-known voice of the native bird world, well represented in song and poetry: Outside, however, the characteristic call of the cuckoo is heard less and less. The cuckoo is on the Red List of Threatened Species for good reason. In Great Britain it is also one of the formerly common birds that are becoming increasingly rare. Not just because this brood parasite can hardly find any food in today’s agricultural landscapes, just like many other bird species whose eggs it smuggles into their nests. Apparently, the cuckoo also finds it difficult to adapt to the fact that spring in Central Europe is starting much earlier than it did a few decades ago.
Migratory birds that overwinter in tropical Africa do not realize how drastic climate change is affecting Europe. Actually, one thinks, evolution should do it by synchronizing the arrival in the European summer quarters with the beginning of spring. After all, it pays off for the cuckoo if it arrives on time, because it then has a particularly large number of bird’s nests to choose from to accommodate its offspring.
#climate #change #affecting #birds