2024-08-14 22:00:18
The ever-popular sheep spend their summer vacation on the Danube island: around 70 of the animals are deployed in the natural north of the leisure paradise to replace the mechanized mowing of the meadows. Interim results show: The City of Vienna-Vienna Water Department’s animal mowing brigade is busy again this year. Since the arrival of spring this year, sheep on the island have cleared a large area of 6 hectares.
“With the help of sheep, the biodiversity of the Danube islands is enhanced: the animals not only quietly mow the grass, but also constantly keep the flowers standing upright. Sheep prefer to avoid plants such as thistles, but these are home to rare wild bees An ideal food source,” explains Ulli Sima, the city councilor responsible for the Danube Island.
A rich buffet of insects and flowers
The sheep also reach hard-to-reach meadows; the naturally gentle slopes of the northern Danube Island are no problem for our four-legged friends, and the sheep’s constant grazing also limits fast-growing vegetation. Delicate grasses receive more light and grow better. The meadows bloom with colorful flowers, which are beneficial to a variety of insects including butterflies, praying mantises and grasshoppers.
Well looked after around the clock
During daily visits, the shepherds fill their furry friends’ water troughs, check on the ranch tents and make sure everyone is doing well. The animal mowing crew stayed in the fenced-in green space for about a week. Once the area is fully grazed, the mobile fence is moved, followed by another area.
The sheep on the island feed on food provided by natural grasslands. Visitors to the Danube Island are therefore asked not to feed the animals during their visit and to keep an eye on their dogs and keep them on a leash!
Lamb Flocki is enjoying a wonderful holiday on Danube Island!
Over the past few years, the sheep on the Danube Island have become a real favorite – and for many people they are worth a trip to see the island’s natural beauty. To mark the start of this year’s season, one of the new lambs was christened for the first time by the fan community as part of an online voting process. “Flocki” is an adorable Kerry goat with distinctive black spots on its ears, nose and legs. Initially a bit reserved and always close to her mother, the little one now spends a lot of time with her furry friends and conquered the natural grasslands of the Danube island.
Sheep grazing has been implemented since 2019 as part of the EU LIFE DICCA program, which the City of Vienna-Vienna Water Department launched on the Danube island in autumn 2018. Within this programme, various measures are being taken to adapt the Danube Island to the challenges of climate change.
rk-Photography Services: www.wien.gv.at/presse/bilder
Original OTS press release. The sender is solely responsible for the content – WWW.OTS.AT | NRK
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