Overview
- The Alster swans, which were escorted back Tuesday by “Schwanenvater” Olaf Nieß and his team, are again on the Alster and its canals.
- About 90 birds left the winter quarters for the Außenalster and nearby waterways to search for nesting spots.
- The release ran weeks late because avian influenza spread in northern Germany, so the flock stayed in a sealed, covered shelter for protection.
- The city’s Schwanenwesen, founded in 1674, housed the birds this winter at its Ohlsdorf wildlife station while work continued at the usual Eppendorfer Mühlenteich site.
- The managed flock now numbers about 100 birds, and staff say it is too soon to know how the late start will affect breeding.