Record numbers of cranes are flying over Switzerland this spring

More cranes are currently flying over Switzerland than ever before in spring. Groups of over 500 birds have been spotted in the last few days. This has never happened before on this scale, said Livio Rey, spokesman for the Swiss Ornithological Institute Sempach, to the Keystone-SDA news agency. According to the ornitho.ch observation platform, groups of 150 birds have already been recorded today. + Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox Larger groups have so far only been observed in autumn. Generally, more cranes are spotted over Switzerland in autumn than in spring. According to Rey, this is partly because the population is larger after the breeding season. On the other hand, the birds increasingly choose a migration route through Switzerland in autumn. Geography is responsible for this, explained Rey. The Swiss Central Plateau region acts like a funnel. Their route in autumn leads the birds into the wider part of this funnel. On their return flight in spring ...