Birds

Discover the flora and fauna of Westerbergen holiday park in Drenthe

Birds are a more challenging subject than plants and trees, because in a busy holiday resort, the birds really aren’t keen on people observing them at close quarters, at their leisure, in all their activities. Yet for a number of species that are quite common at Westerbergen, this isn’t too difficult, and one often needs to make hardly any effort at all, as one comes across them quite by chance, as it were. It is with this in mind that only a limited number – a more or less random selection, in other words – will be considered here, and in no particular order. Furthermore, in principle, only what everyone can see will be mentioned. There will therefore be no descriptions of, for example, the eggs, which lie in nests that nobody can reach anyway.

First up is the mallard, as a description of its appearance is hardly necessary. The mallard resembles its domestic relative so closely that it is impossible to mistake them. It too has the familiar waddling gait, the broad bill, the quacking, the whistling sound when flying, and an appearance distinct from that of other birds. Even when seen in flight, everyone recognises its outline. Moreover, wild ducks are often mistaken for domestic ducks, as they sometimes land in urban ponds and pools to spend some time with their domestic counterparts.

Before Westerbergen was transformed into a holiday resort, the large pond served as a breeding ground for wild ducks, which they evidently held in high regard. Hundreds of ducks nested there. Unfortunately, this is the downside of the influx of holidaymakers: the ducks have practically disappeared. What is remarkable, however, is that every year a few pairs of ducks still come to Westerbergen and nest as close to people as possible. This happens in the pond in front of bungalows 107 to 111. Once the eggs have hatched, one can frequently see a female swimming through the open spaces with a whole line of tiny, still-yellow ducklings behind her. As they get a bit older, they are easily tempted by bits of bread to come close to the bungalows. Residents of bungalow 109 even managed to get the ducklings to come right into the bungalow. The mother duck, who clearly had some experience with people, waited anxiously at a distance until her ducklings returned.

There is a similarity between the duck and the juniper. As mentioned in the chapter on trees, the product, jenever, is named after the shrub and not the other way round. Similarly, there is a product named after the duck and not the other way round, a fact which should be explicitly noted here.

A second bird that is found in both domestic and wild forms, and which everyone is familiar with, is the pigeon. In this case, we are referring to the wood pigeon, which is commonly found in the woods behind the main building. There are dozens of species of pigeons, both wild and domesticated, but they all share the same basic form, making them easy to recognise. It can be said, however, that the wood pigeon is blue-grey in colour and larger than most other pigeon species. It is difficult to describe bird sounds, but the somewhat melancholic ‘coo-coo-coo’ is so distinct and so frequently heard in the woods that everyone must have heard it at some point. What many visitors to the woods will remember most is how the wood pigeon can startle them. When approached, it remains perched for a long time and only flies away with a great deal of noise at the very last moment. This noise is caused by flapping its wings, meaning that when the wings are forcefully pushed upwards, they slap against each other above the back. The pigeon is seen as a symbol of peace. It is actually remarkable that this particular bird was chosen for this purpose, as observers have noted that, under certain circumstances, pigeons can be particularly hostile towards one another and, by human standards, employ methods that can truly be described as vicious.

A very distinguished bird is the magpie. Black with white patches and a long black tail, it is almost impossible not to think of a distinguished head waiter in a black tailcoat. The wings and tail often have a coloured sheen ranging from dark green to blue and purple. Incidentally, its behaviour is not at all so distinguished. One might expect it to fly with long, measured strokes, but its flight is rather erratic; it sometimes resembles fluttering, and with its long tail it makes seemingly random movements. In reality, that long tail plays a major role in maintaining balance, and not just when flying. Even when hopping along the ground, the tail makes all sorts of movements. Its take-off is rather remarkable. It finds it difficult to get off the ground and therefore employs the same tactic commonly seen with flying machines. Whenever possible, it positions itself with its head into the wind, hops a few steps and then takes off. All in all, a charming bird that is common in Westerbergen, and indeed more so in the open areas than in the dense forest, although he prefers to build his rather large branch nest in tall trees. In the woods behind the main building, one can therefore spot several of them high up in the trees.

Another charming bird is the swallow. The swallow has a swallowtail, which, as the saying goes, is as plain as day. The reason this is mentioned here is that, in the world of carpentry, a particular type of joint involving fork-shaped notches is called a dovetail. Many people do not realise that this name came about because the construction resembles the shape of a real swallow’s tail. This tail ends in two points, creating a sort of fork. Another distinctive feature of the swallow is the arch formed by its wings when they are spread wide. In most birds, a spread wing has an angle in the middle and also forms an angle with the body. In the swallow, however, the wing is almost circular and stands perpendicular to the body. This creates a continuous arc from one wing tip via the body to the other wing tip when the wings are spread. Swallows are blue-black in colour, whilst the underside is mostly white.

Swallows are such a delight because they always build their nests in places sheltered from the rain. As a result, they almost always end up in human-made environments, as these sheltered spots can be found under canopies, eaves, overhanging roofs and so on. The main building at Westerbergen is therefore ideal for this purpose, thanks to its large canopy, the covered play area and the garage at the rear, which is almost always open. The male and female build the nest together. It is made of damp earth mixed with saliva, creating a fairly hard structure. In addition, straws, twigs, heather and other materials are incorporated into the nest for reinforcement. As soon as the eggs are laid, the female begins to incubate them. This takes about 14 days. Often, the first brood is followed by a second one during the course of the summer, which is why swallows can always be seen busy somewhere throughout the entire summer season. During the brooding, which is carried out solely by the female, her head can be seen protruding above the nest. As soon as the chicks have hatched, there is a great deal of activity. Of the chicks, one sees only their wide-open beaks protruding above the nest. They seem to have an insatiable appetite, despite the fact that both the male and the female fly back and forth almost non-stop with food for the chicks. Whether there are many or few people walking or sitting beneath the nests is irrelevant; the feeding continues unabated. A bird that is not often seen but all the more easily heard is the cuckoo. It is an inconspicuous bird, fairly large and grey-brown in colour with a long tail. Thanks to its colouring, it is not easily spotted, and moreover, it is not particularly fond of people at the moment, so one is unlikely to encounter it at close quarters. All the more striking is its call. It calls out its own name, something which, incidentally, several birds do, such as the lapwing and the black-tailed godwit. The call is particularly loud and can be heard throughout the entire forest.

This text is taken from the booklet ‘The Origin of the Westerbergen’, compiled by Dr E.J. Offerhaus