Birds in Geneva –
A threatened species niche at the tip
Forty couples of PierreGarin Sternes settled in the nature reserve. These formerly common birds are now threatened.
Two abyss nesting at the tips of kiss.
For the nature of
A happy news points out to the heart of summer. About 40 couples of PierreGarin Sternes have settled in the Boise Pointe Nature Reserve, managed by Pro Natura. These usually very common birds on the banks of Lake Geneva have been threatened for several years, because their natural habitat tends to disappear.
If these volatiles are in danger, it is because the pebble benches and the naked islets that they like to nest tend to disappear because of human activity on the banks of the lake.
Saving this species by the lake was not an easy task. Since 1979, Geneva ornithologists have been trying to recreate places conducive to the nesting of these birds. On the side of the tip to the kiss, a raft was installed in 2009 to attract the Sternes Pierregarin.
“Despite a promising start, nesting has been hampered by competition from another species, the Leukophy gull, which also likes this type of environment and comes to settle on the raft in the spring, preventing the Sternes from returning,” details the Pro Natura center via a press release.
Efforts that pay at the tip
Place officials therefore made the decision to prevent the Goélands from nesting there, to promote the installation of the Sternes. These efforts borne fruit after ten years of work: in 2024, 19 couples of Sternes settled on the raft in question. “Building on this success, the project partners installed a second raft in March 2025,” the Center managers tell.
And again, the efforts proved to be paid. The first eggs were laid at the end of May on the second refuge, from which stern chicks were released on June 19. To date, about 80 birds of this species are the hosts of the nature reserve.
A stern chick in the center of the tip to kiss.
For the nature of
And good news for ornithophiles: Pro Natura has installed cameras near Sternes nests. It is therefore possible to observe the lives of these volatiles live in the center premises, during opening hours.
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