Drought slows crane stopover in Linum, Brandenburg

Due to a lack of water, only about 10,000 birds were counted at the resting site near Berlin by late September.

By Miriam Ostrowski, Nature & Land Editor
Linum / Rügen · 3 October 2026, 08:45 CEST · 2 min read

At a glance

Around 10,000 cranes counted in Linum in late September
Lack of water on resting areas seen as main factor
No signs of avian influenza in the current season

Significantly fewer cranes are resting in Linum, Brandenburg, early this fall than in the previous year. In the region, part of the municipality of Fehrbellin roughly 55 kilometers from Berlin, just over 10,000 birds were counted by Sept. 29, compared with more than 55,000 at the same point a year earlier.

Fehrbellin Mayor Mathias Perschall cited persistent drought as the primary reason for the decline. The mayor told Deutsche Presse-Agentur that cranes need wet feet to rest, but there is currently too little water on the designated areas. Although selected plots are intentionally flooded, limited regional water resources restrict these efforts. Perschall estimated that the next two to three weeks will reveal how many more migratory birds will reach the area this season.

Situation on the Baltic coast

According to official information, there are currently no indications of avian influenza in Linum this season. In October 2025, numerous cranes died of the virus at the Brandenburg stopover site.

Another major resting area for the birds is located along the Pomeranian Baltic Sea coast between Barther Bodden and Rügen-Bock. Up to 90,000 cranes stop there on their flight from Scandinavia to southern Spain.

Temporary access bans are in place in Western Pomerania Lagoon Area National Park to protect the birds: Access to the Sundische Wiese is restricted between 3 p.m. and 8 a.m. from Sept. 7 to Nov. 1, 2026. For daytime observations, visitors can use the Kranorama observation station at Lake Günz.