The young birds climbed to the edge of their nests to escape the heat inside—and fell. During the heat wave at the end of June, hundreds of young wild birds in Saxony found themselves in distress this way.
Since then, Corinna Heinrich’s phone hasn’t stopped ringing. Swifts that have fallen from their nests and other weakened young birds are filling the bird and hedgehog rescue center in Bad Elster in the Vogtland region. The animals must be fed every few hours during the day. Heinrich reports that many wildlife rescue centers across Germany are at full capacity or on the verge of having to stop accepting new animals.
The recent extreme heat has “been the last straw,” Heinrich explains. She has taken in around 50 swift chicks in the past few days. These wildlife rescue centers—most of which are privately run and funded almost exclusively by donations—were already at their limit. “More and more are giving up.” For many, the time-consuming care was no longer manageable alongside work, family, and health issues.
