If you can trust the statements, the problem animals seem to be everywhere in Bavaria. Sometimes problem wolves attack the alpine pastures and problem bears lumber across the border, sometimes problem otters fish ponds empty and problem beavers cut down orchards. And even problem storks are already soaring up, at least from the point of view of those who shoot at the protected animals with a shotgun. This is what happened in April in the district of Rottal-Inn; one bird was so badly injured that it had to be put down.
How problematic does it only become when the problem animal has a problem itself. In fact, for the stork chick, which is currently sitting in its eyrie on the old town hall of Höchstadt, it was already pointing on the button: its father (called Gerome by local stork experts) had brought something to eat last Sunday that looked like a long snake. But when trying to gulp it down in one piece, the young bird overreached itself. He choked and choked, threatening to choke.
Luckily, if not Gerome, then the internet was paying attention. A webcam is aimed at the eyrie. Users recognized the dangerous situation and dialed the emergency call, firefighters moved up with the turntable ladder and saved the little ball of feathers. The supposed snake turned out to be a pork belly rind. The young stork had already half devoured it, according to the “Storchencam” website: Because there was no “forward or backward”, “further food intake would no longer have been possible” – and the young birds ” starved with a full stomach”.
You can see the rind liberation campaign watch on the web, the YouTube clip has now had more than 47,000 views. Quite a lot for a stork. So a problem animal? Or maybe a pound that could be used even more in tourism advertising, as the online participation from all over the world shows? In any case, in Alsace and its stork metropolis Strasbourg, black and white plush birds have long been available en masse in the souvenir shops. Such animal potential would also be available in Bavaria, although: Due to the election campaign, people are currently more inclined towards banging.