The gray heron colony Metzingen

Nowhere else in the country meet in the middle of a city so many people on so many so large birds - our blue heron - as in the Outlet City Metzingen. This is reason enough for some evidence - because most visitors ignore this Heron, unsuspectingly. Fortunately, so do the up to 50 herons compared to more than 3 million visitors per year - and go blithely at a safe altitude after their breeding business.

Take the chance and pick up the view into the tops of the birch in front of you, which is located in the old cemetery at the other bank of the river. You will discover some very large nests out of twigs that are populated in the breeding season from January to early summer of gray herons. The best time of observation is before the leaves come until early May.

• The animals like to breed in colonies. Our blue heron are currently represented with up to 13 pairs since about the turn of the millennium here.
• Soon after the pairing 3-5 eggs are laid. Both sexes incubate day over 25 days alternately.
• The newly hatched young are another 2 weeks covered by the body of one parent warming and protective and are still barely visible.
• After a month, you can already see young birds nest beyond the balance. After 50 days they are airworthy and leave the nest in June / July, after 2-3 months after hatching.