The Mating Song of the Great Snipe
in the Swamps of Poland (1987)
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List of species:
Weißflügelseeschwalbe, Chlidonias leucopterus, White-winged Black Tern
Kampfläufer, Philomachus pugnx, Ruff
Rohrweihe, Circus aeruginosus, Marsh-Harrier
Kiebitz, Vanellus vanellus, Lapwing
Wasserschlauch, Utricularia vulgaris
Kreuzkröte, Bufo calamita, British Toad
Schachtelhalm, Equisetum arvense
Uferschnepfe, Limosa limosa, Black-tailed Godwit
Schelladler, Aquila clanga, Spotted Eagle
Kornweihe, Circus cyaneus, Hen-Harrier
Rohrweihe - Kornweihe (Revierkampf!), Circus aeruginosus, Marsh-Harrier – Circus cyaneus, Hen-Harrier
Hahnenfuß, Kuckuckslichtnelke, Orchidee, Wollgras
Feldlerche, Alauda arvensis, Skylark
Doppelschnepfe, Gallinago media, Great Snipe
About the film:
One has to return to a time several decades ago in order to imagine the large swamps and wetlands, which used to exist in Central Europe. Today these areas have been reduced to puny pieces of land, fighting for their further existence. The situation in the 1000 square kilometer flood plain of the Biebrza and Narev Rivers in northeast Poland now looks very different. Today, many Snipes, Black Terns and Birds of Prey still breed here in large numbers.
The Ruff, no longer native to us, with their splendid and quite varied feather colors are a particularity in this eastern European swampy area – and the Great Snipes, which perform their jittering and chirping mating calls and play fight from sunset until late into the night. This strange mating ritual of these rare Snipes is the focus of this documentary film.
Furthermore, we can view an extremely rare air fight between the two different sized birds of prey, the Marsh-Harrier and the Hen-Harrier.
Images for film:
