migration 2025

Number of juvenile birds

32

days of migration

KM to Andalusia

2600
km

A human-led migration to Andalusia is planned again this year. Hand-raising of the chicks began on April 4th. Around 32 chicks will be raised, trained, and guided to their wintering grounds in Vejer de la Frontera, Andalusia.

This year, Andalusia is the destination for the third time. Instead of flying to the wintering area in Tuscany, as in the years before 2023, the human-led migration in 2025 will again head to southern Spain to release the young Northern Bald Ibises there  into the wild. The partner project Proyecto Eremita has been building a sedentary population of Northern Bald Ibises in Andalusia for 20 years. Our birds will also overwinter there.

 

Why Andalusia?

Global warming is also becoming a challenge for the Northern Bald Ibis. The birds of the colonies in the northern foothills of the Alps are having increasing problems flying over the Alpine barrier in autumn. A new migration corridor to Andalusia should enable them to reach a suitable wintering area without being hindered by the barrier of the Alps.

 

Click here for the latest pictures and information:

 

Visit to the Northern Bald Ibis Training Camp in Taching am See

From June 1st to July 27th, you are welcome to visit our training camp every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM.                                                     Advance registration is only required for larger groups.

On site, you will have the opportunity to learn more about the project and observe the young Northern Bald Ibises with their foster parents in the aviary from a respectful distance.

Please note that no training flights will take place during visiting hours. The birds are currently in a sensitive phase of training and require a calm and familiar environment to focus fully on the aircraft and their foster parents.

Later in the season, we plan to offer a public training session for visitors to observe, once the birds have reached a more advanced stage of training. As soon as a date is set, the information will be available here.

Address:
Schröckenbauer 1
83373 Taching am See

Note:
Please leave your dogs at home and avoid wearing yellow clothing. Thank you for your understanding!

 

Timetable for human-led migration 2025

KW 14 - 15

Collection of approximately 32 Northern Bald Ibis chicks at Rosegg Zoo (Carinthia).

KW 14 - 18

The chicks are hand-raised for the first few weeks in Rosegg (Carinthia).

KW 18 - 33

The birds are being raised and trained at the training camp in Taching (Bavaria).

 

Address:
Schröckenbauer 1
83373 Taching am See

 

Camp management: 
Clara Renner 

camp@waldrappteam.at

+49 1525 2424697

KW 33 - 40

Human-led migration through Germany, France, and Spain to Vejer de la Frontera:

The migration will start in mid-August, and we plan to reach the wintering area by the end of September.

 

KW 50

Release of the HLM 2025  birds in Andalusia.

Migration Diary  2025

July 1st 2025

The first flights with the microlight took place yesterday and today and were a complete success. Already today, 31 Northern Bald Ibises followed the aircraft to a meadow in the neighbourhood. Only one was not quite confident enough. However, we are very optimistic that he will soon be flying with all the others. He waited patiently until the others returned and rejoined the group.
 
📷: C. Renner

June 27th 2025

In the meantime, the microlight is already moving up and down on the meadow with the parachute and the birds are following the calls of the foster mother, who is sitting in the microlight with our pilot. As the training is going really well, there are only a few days left until the microlight takes off and the training in the air can begin!
 
📷: C. Renner

June 19th 2025

The 1st free flight took place last Saturday. The gates of the aviary were opened and all the Northern Bald Ibises took off immediately, flying off in all directions. By the evening, 31 birds were back, only one was sorely missed. The following day we searched tirelessly for him, we were even able to see him briefly but he was immediately attacked by a buzzard and disappeared from our field of vision. On Monday morning he actually returned to the aviary on his own and the relief in the team was absolutely palpable.

The following two free flights were very good, the birds did not fly so far away and always followed the instructions of the foster parents.

📷: B. Steininger

June 12th 2025

The first free flight is coming up soon!
They are currently training hard for this. Initially, the flying machine was only shown to the Northern Bald Ibises and pushed in front of the aviary. In the meantime, the engine has already been started and the foster mothers drove it along in front of the
aviary so that the birds can get used to the sound of the engine.
We are very excited to see what the first free flight will be like and hope for the best.

📷: M. Batzdorf

May 22nd 2025

Would you like to visit us in Taching am See, get a short guided tour and observe the Northern Bald Ibises from a distance?
Then come and visit us!
From 1st of June until the 27th of July, you can visit us every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 3-5 PM.
Address:
Schröckenbauer 1
83373 Taching am See
Germany

We look forward to welcome you!

Note: please leave your dogs at home and do not wear yellow clothing.

📷: C. Renner

May 13th 2025

On May 7th, the 32 juvenile Northern Bald Ibises relocated together with their foster parents and the rest of the hand-raising team from Rosegg (Carinthia) to Taching (Bavaria).
In the picturesque landscape of a farm where we were already able to pitch our tents in 2024, the birds will now be raised and trained until the start of migration.
The first Northern Bald Ibises have been fledged in their new home a few days ago and they are exploring their new surroundings in the aviary in the most beautiful sunshine!
 

📷: M. Batzdorf

April 29th 2025

All of our 32 Northern Bald Ibis chicks are now eating with a good appetite, which is why our two foster parents Johanna and Marie have now started the famous “Komm komm Waldi komm komm” song during feeding. The Northern Bald Ibises thus associate the song with something positive, which means that the birds always listen to and pay particular attention to their foster parents during the song. This is very important for the migration this summer so that the birds follow the call during the flight.
Our youngest Northern Bald Ibis chick “Fasabi” is now 19 days old, which means that the foster mothers can finally enjoy their first coffee.
The weeks before all foster parents have a strict caffeine, nicotine, medicine and alcohol ban as they enrich the birds food with their own saliva to add digestive enzymes. This is because Northern Bald Ibises naturally feed their offspring with digested food mash.

📷: J. Haas and C. Renner

April 14th 2025

After the third and final collection, our group of birds is now complete:
32 chippy Northern Bald Ibis chicks are currently being cared for around the clock by their two foster parents in the hand rearing container, located in the backstage area of Rosegg Zoo.
Thanks to the good weather over the past week, the chicks had an excellent start to their adventure – all of them were well-fed and in good health when they were handed over to their foster mothers.

📷: B. Steininger

April 4th 2025

The first chicks are collected at Rosegg Zoo and given into the care of this year’s foster-parent team, Marie-Luise Batzdorf & Johanna Haas.

📷: B. Steininger