A Birdwatching Guide to Brandenburg and Berlin: a new field guide

The east of Germany, especially Brandenburg and Berlin is one of the »hotspots« for birdwatching in Germany with a rich variety of birds and many rare species.

Until recently, trips has to be fully based on the birding guide for North-east Germany (Vögel beobachten in Ostdeutschland; Wagner and Moning 2009, Franckh-Kosmos Verlag). This splendid book with clear maps and numbered stake-outs brought already many birdwatchers to several good birding sites you might not have heard of before.

If you try bird-lens.com as a guidance, a good intro for the spring visitor you will find here: http://www.bird-lens.com/2017/04/11/observation-site-for-spring-migration-on-the-river-oder/

In the meantime, a new field guide was published: White: A Birdwatching Guide to Brandenburg and Berlin. Roger White has created an outstanding field guide for his English-speaking compatriots in English. In comparesion to the field guides in german, this makes reading for non-Germans much easier.

In addition to detailed hints and maps of the best birdwatching areas in Brandenburg – which are nowhere to be found in this multitude – the author provides information concerning accommodations and useful websites for each region along with directions to travel by car or public transport. The book contains many color photos, with depictions of habitats and a list of about 250 regular species occurring.

Sometimes, it is recommended to visit areas as far as near Wolfsburg in Lower Saxonia. Honestly, I would skip the Droemling.

This area is too far away and other birdwatching sites like the Nuthe-Nieplitz-area south of Berlin with the Blankensee and the Ungeheuerwiesen are a perfect substitute. See the relevant blogs on bird-lens.com as http://www.bird-lens.com/2018/01/02/ungeheuerwiesen-in-winter/ , http://www.bird-lens.com/2016/07/18/young-whinchat-on-summer-morning/ , http://www.bird-lens.com/2016/04/18/waterfowl-spring-migration-on-the-flooded-meadows-of-the-river-oder-germany/ , http://www.bird-lens.com/2016/02/07/lake-tegel-as-a-winter-birding-destination-in-berlin/ , http://www.bird-lens.com/2016/01/24/great-grey-shrikes-in-winter-in-brandenburg/ , http://www.bird-lens.com/2015/05/29/pallid-harrier-first-summer-individual-in-post-juvenile-moult-in-havelland/ , http://www.bird-lens.com/2014/12/10/birding-around-berlin-former-lignite-mining-lakes-in-southern-brandenburg/

A special would be to go for downtown Berlin. Birding in Berlin the park of the Charlottenburg palace can be very rewarding: Northern  Goshawk!! (http://www.bird-lens.com/2015/11/20/birding-berlin-charlottenburg-palace/ or http://www.bird-lens.com/2015/06/26/female-northern-goshawk-at-nestsite-near-tegel-airport/ ). For spring birding even April might be a bit too early. Later in the year you should not miss the areas of heath mainly on the old military training areas, where the Eurasian Nightjar is quite common following the month of May. http://www.bird-lens.com/2015/07/22/a-night-in-brandenburg-heath-the-eurasian-nightjar/

Interesting Links for up-to-date information are 1st: www.Ornitho.de. But also in

• Birdnet
• Birdnet Forum
• Naturgucker
• Club300
• DDA – Meldungen seltener Vögel
• Nachweise besonders seltener Arten
• Checkliste deutscher Arten

you might find recommodations where and when to look for birds.

Accommodation and eating out in the countryside is generally easy, and, like in most parts of Germany, not expensive.

So my recommodation is, Keep on a feasible birding itinary. Brandenburg is a low-populated state. Distances can be long and often you have to drive on country roads. Overall: spring time is really the best.

There are many airlines which use the Airport of Berlin. An alternative is to take a flight to Frankfurt/ Main, the international hub for Germany, and drive with a rented car in roughly half a day to Berlin and enjoy the landscape while almost flying over the autobahn.

Access to the different areas described are in principal not difficult. But there are other places in the nearer surroundings where access is a bit tricky. Please contact via the contact form if I can give further directions or even guide you!