COLUMN. Avocets hatch from their eggs in Natuurhulpcentrum (Oudsbergen)

Sil Janssen gives us a weekly look behind the scenes of the Natuurhulpcentrum in Opglabbeek.

Sil Janssen

Today at 03:00

In recent years we have specialized more and more in hatching eggs from meadow birds. These birds get into trouble because the meadows are often mowed or plowed while they are still nesting there. Last week we urgently had to go to Veurne. In an area that was still very wet a few weeks ago, several rare avocets laid their nests. But now, a few weeks later, all the puddles had dried up and the eggs were about to hatch. That meant there would be no puddles of food for the young avocets. Since the parents do not bring food and the young cannot fly, this would irrevocably mean the death of the young. Through the people of the INBO and some friends of nature we received the request for urgent help. And so it is that we drove back to Opglabbeek in our car with 24 eggs and two newly hatched little ones. The eggs went into our incubators and in the meantime 12 extra eggs have hatched. With the masses of young lapwings and a series of black-tailed godwits and curlews, our emergency shelter for eggs of rare birds is running at full speed.

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