Danger from mowers

Rescue comes from the air for hidden fawns

25,000 fawns die an agonizing death every year because they hide in the tall grass.

(Bild: Michael Breuer)

Drones are supposed to save the "Bambis", which are actually hiding from their animal predators, from being killed by the combine harvester. While in some places the technical aids are even being modernized, in others they are being dispensed with altogether for cost reasons...

Their natural behavior makes fawns largely invisible to their animal enemies. However, this characteristic also puts them in great danger. This is because they duck into the tall grass - but the time of the first mowing coincides exactly with the time of fawning. According to estimates, around 25,000 "Bambis" fall victim to mowers across Austria every year.

Modernized drone
Fortunately, many hunters and farmers want to prevent this cruel fate and are increasingly relying on drones. Using a thermal imaging camera, the field can be scanned for hidden deer before mowing. A positive example of cooperation can be found in the Amstetten cadastral municipality of Preinsbach. The drone that has been in use there for years was recently brought up to the latest technical standard. "We are able to save many fawns every year," says local head Andreas Gruber happily.

Drones can be used to track down roe deer before mowing. In Preinsbach, the aircraft has now even been modernized.

(Bild: Wolfgang Zarl)

"There has to be a will"
However, there is criticism from animal rights activists in the district of Neunkirchen. This is because, as in many other regions, air support is still often not used for cost reasons. The activists are therefore calling for municipalities to buy drones and make them available: "Hunters, farmers and politicians need to sit down at the same table. There must be a will to help the fawns!"