Germany Special Protection Area for birds
Ostfriesische Meere
130 bird species recorded; the most in May.
Matthias Süßen · CC BY-SA 4.0
This month here
71 species in January.37 species in February.33 species in March.38 species in April.93 species in May.50 species in June.36 species in July.37 species in August.56 species in September.31 species in October.41 species in November.4 species in December.
The birds you are most likely to see in the month you choose, those that come for the season first. It opens on today's month.
NT
NT
NT
NT
NT
NTNT
VU
NTNT
NTNT
VU
NT
NTNT
VU
VU
NTVUNTNTVUNT
NT
NTNT- Resident all year
- Summer visitor comes to breed
- Winter visitor comes for the winter
- Passage migrant in spring and autumn
In numbers
130 species, counted.
Our own rating, from the records only: species (50 points), threatened species (20), migrants (20) and protected status — Ramsar, IBA, SPA, observatory (10).
- 130Speciesrecorded more than once
- 58Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
- 3ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
- 2,331Recordsopen records within 6 km
- 8Raptors
- 1Owls
- 26Waders
- 7Gulls & seabirds
- 17Ducks & geese
- 4Herons, ibises & grebes
- 1Storks & cranes
- 1Flamingos
- 51Songbirds
- 14Other birds
From open records (eBird and others, through GBIF, licensed for any use). More birdwatchers mean more records: a quiet place may have more birds than it shows.
The checklist
All 130 species.
By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.
Raptors8 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common BuzzardButeo buteo
- Western Marsh HarrierCircus aeruginosus
- Eurasian SparrowhawkAccipiter nisus
- Common KestrelFalco tinnunculus
- Montagu's HarrierCircus pygargus
- European HobbyFalco subbuteo
- Hen HarrierCircus cyaneus
- Eurasian GoshawkAccipiter gentilis
Owls1 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Western Barn OwlTyto alba
Waders26 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Pied AvocetRecurvirostra avosetta
- Northern LapwingVanellus vanellusNT
- RuffCalidris pugnax
- RedshankTringa totanus
- Common SandpiperActitis hypoleucos
- Green SandpiperTringa ochropus
- Wood SandpiperTringa glareola
- Black-tailed GodwitLimosa limosaNT
- Common SnipeGallinago gallinago
- Common Ringed PloverCharadrius hiaticula
- Curlew SandpiperCalidris ferrugineaVU
- European Golden PloverPluvialis apricaria
- DunlinCalidris alpinaNT
- Temminck's StintCalidris temminckii
- Little StintCalidris minuta
- Eurasian WhimbrelNumenius phaeopus
- Spotted RedshankTringa erythropus
- Common GreenshankTringa nebularia
- Eurasian CurlewNumenius arquataNT
- Eurasian OystercatcherHaematopus ostralegusNT
- Grey PloverPluvialis squatarolaVU
- Ruddy TurnstoneArenaria interpresNT
- Marsh SandpiperTringa stagnatilis
- SanderlingCalidris alba
- Red KnotCalidris canutusNT
- Red-necked PhalaropePhalaropus lobatus
Gulls & seabirds7 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus
- Common GullLarus canus
- European Herring GullLarus argentatus
- Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscus
- Common TernSterna hirundo
- Great Black-backed GullLarus marinus
- Little GullHydrocoloeus minutus
Ducks & geese17 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Greylag GooseAnser anser
- Eurasian TealAnas crecca
- Northern ShovelerSpatula clypeata
- Greater White-fronted GooseAnser albifrons
- Barnacle GooseBranta leucopsis
- GarganeySpatula querquedula
- Tufted DuckAythya fuligula
- Common ShelduckTadorna tadorna
- Egyptian GooseAlopochen aegyptiaca
- Mute SwanCygnus olor
- Eurasian WigeonMareca penelope
- GadwallMareca strepera
- Common EiderSomateria mollissimaNT
- Canada GooseBranta canadensis
- GoosanderMergus merganser
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
Herons, ibises & grebes4 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Grey HeronArdea cinerea
- Great White EgretArdea alba
- Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carbo
- Great Crested GrebePodiceps cristatus
Storks & cranes1 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- White StorkCiconia ciconia
Flamingos1 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Lesser FlamingoPhoeniconaias minorNT
Songbirds51 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Great titParus major
- Eurasian BlackbirdTurdus merula
- Eurasian ChaffinchFringilla coelebs
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- European RobinErithacus rubecula
- Eurasian Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus
- Eurasian WrenTroglodytes troglodytes
- Common StarlingSturnus vulgaris
- Eurasian MagpiePica pica
- Eurasian Tree SparrowPasser montanus
- Song ThrushTurdus philomelos
- Carrion CrowCorvus corone
- European GreenfinchChloris chloris
- Western JackdawColoeus monedula
- White WagtailMotacilla alba
- Eurasian JayGarrulus glandarius
- Common House MartinDelichon urbicum
- Barn swallowHirundo rustica
- RookCorvus frugilegus
- DunnockPrunella modularis
- Eurasian NuthatchSitta europaea
- Common ChiffchaffPhylloscopus collybita
- Black RedstartPhoenicurus ochruros
- Short-toed treecreeperCerthia brachydactyla
- European GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis
- Meadow PipitAnthus pratensis
- Garden WarblerSylvia borin
- FieldfareTurdus pilaris
- BlackcapSylvia atricapilla
- Common LinnetLinaria cannabina
- Coal TitPeriparus ater
- BullfinchPyrrhula pyrrhula
- Common RedstartPhoenicurus phoenicurus
- Common Reed BuntingEmberiza schoeniclus
- Spotted FlycatcherMuscicapa striata
- European StonechatSaxicola rubicola
- Sedge WarblerAcrocephalus schoenobaenus
- SkylarkAlauda arvensis
- Willow WarblerPhylloscopus trochilus
- GoldcrestRegulus regulus
- Mistle ThrushTurdus viscivorus
- YellowhammerEmberiza citrinella
- Sand MartinRiparia riparia
- Lesser whitethroatSylvia curruca
- Icterine warblerHippolais icterina
- Bearded ReedlingPanurus biarmicus
- HawfinchCoccothraustes coccothraustes
- BramblingFringilla montifringilla
- BluethroatLuscinia svecica
- Eurasian SiskinSpinus spinus
- TwiteLinaria flavirostris
Other birds14 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common Wood PigeonColumba palumbus
- Great Spotted WoodpeckerDendrocopos major
- Rock DoveColumba livia
- Common PheasantPhasianus colchicus
- Eurasian Collared DoveStreptopelia decaocto
- CootFulica atra
- Green WoodpeckerPicus viridis
- Common MoorhenGallinula chloropus
- Common CuckooCuculus canorus
- Grey PartridgePerdix perdix
- Stock DoveColumba oenas
- European SwiftApus apus
- Common KingfisherAlcedo atthis
- European Turtle DoveStreptopelia turturVU
Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.
When to go
The most species in May.
Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.
- Jan4°/1°80 mm
- Feb5°/0°63 mm
- Mar7°/2°54 mm
- Apr12°/5°39 mm
- May16°/9°56 mm
- Jun19°/12°66 mm
- Jul21°/15°83 mm
- Aug21°/15°86 mm
- Sep18°/12°70 mm
- Oct14°/8°75 mm
- Nov9°/5°77 mm
- Dec6°/2°83 mm
- Bar: species recorded that month.
- Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
- Rain: monthly total.
The place
Ostfriesische Meere.
Special protection area in the EU defined by the birds directive in Niedersachsen, Germany
Ostfriesische Meere is a Special Protection Area under the EU Birds Directive in Germany.
130 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 2,331 open records.
The most recorded are the Great tit, the Eurasian Blackbird and the Eurasian Chaffinch.
34 species come for the summer, 21 for the winter and 3 only pass through.
3 are threatened worldwide, including Curlew Sandpiper, Grey Plover and European Turtle Dove.
The most species are recorded in May.
Get there and watch
- Campingplatz Großes Meercampsite · 3.3 km · 5 within 10 km
- Landhaus Großes Meer - Hotel Restaurantplace to stay · 3.6 km · 76 within 10 km
- Moordorfnearest town · 5.7 km in a straight line
- Groningen Airport Eelde (GRQ)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 62 km in a straight lineCar hire at GRQ airport (Groningen)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
Plan the visit
A guided walk, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
From above
The place and its surroundings.
The satellite image of the 6 × 6 km around the place, with the bird hides, towers and trails that OpenStreetMap shows.
Around, in OpenStreetMap
- 1bird hides within 6 km
- 1marked trails within 4 kmEms-Jade-Weg
- 1visitor centres within 6 kmHaus am Meer
- 3viewpoints within 5 km
- 6car parks within 3 km
- 5campsites within 10 kmCampingplatz Großes Meer, Wohnmobilhafen am Großen Meer (P2), Stellplatz am Ihler Meer and 2 more
- 76places to stay within 10 kmLandhaus Großes Meer - Hotel Restaurant, Meerhaus Sonne, Ferienwohnung Kajüte and 73 more
- observation towers within 6 km
- restaurants and cafés within 3 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet.
In our other atlases
Around Ostfriesische Meere.
The lakes, beaches, islands, rivers and mountains around this place, and its night sky, in the family's atlases.
Lakeyas5 lakes within 15 kmGroßes Meer1.4 km² · 4.0 kmKleines Meer0.8 km² · 5.5 kmBansmeer0.2 km² · 7.6 kmUphuser Meer0.2 km² · 7.9 kmEwiges Meer1.0 km² · 14 km
Riveryasthe river nearbyFehntjer Tief24 km
Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Photographs
The place, as people saw it.
Other places nearby.
Ostfriesische Meere
Germany
- 59Birdyas Score
- 130Species
- 58Migrants
- 3Threatened
Ostfriesische Seemarsch zwischen Norden und Esens
Germany · 27 km
- 61Birdyas Score
- 159Species
- 69Migrants
- 2Threatened
Where these figures come from
| Name and type | Wikidata (Q61040287) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Birds | 2,331 open bird records within 6 km (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY 4.0 only; mostly eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology) |
| See these records | gbif.org |
| Species | GBIF Backbone Taxonomy · CC BY 4.0; Wikidata (CC0); Wikimedia Commons |
| Altitude | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Temperature and rain | NASA POWER (CERES SYN1deg, 2001–2020; MERRA-2) |
| What is around | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Sister atlases | Lakeyas, Riveryas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Visit 
mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Visit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit 
caves
Every cave with its real depth and length: the rock above, the temperature inside all year, and how to visit.Visit 
dark skies
Where the night is still dark: the sky of every place, the Milky Way month by month, the Moon, eclipses and auroras.Visit 
viewpoints
Every viewpoint with its real 360° panorama: the peaks you can name, how far you see and where the sun sets.Coming soonVisit 
birdwatching
Every bird sanctuary and wetland with the species recorded month by month: who is resident, who comes for the summer, who only passes through.You are here
forests
Every forest with its land-cover rings, what grows and lives in it, and the best months to walk it.Coming soonVisit