Wildlife of Berlin, Germany
Berlin is the wild boar capital of Europe — several thousand live inside the city limits — and holds the densest urban population of northern goshawks anywhere in the world. Its post-industrial wastelands, canals and huge forests like Grunewald also support red foxes, beavers, red deer and one of Germany's healthiest bat communities.
Best timeApril – June for goshawks and songbirds, October – November for red deer rut in nearby forests.
- 1Berlin is the wild-boar capital of Europe — thousands live inside the city limits.
- 2Berlin has the world's densest urban population of northern goshawks.
- 3Beavers returned to Berlin's rivers in the 1990s and now breed along the Havel and Spree.
Signature species
Curated for Berlin, Germany, each tagged with its IUCN Red List status.
- LC
Northern goshawk
Accipiter gentilis
Urban breeding density unmatched globally.
- LC
Eurasian beaver
Castor fiber
- LC
Wild boar
Sus scrofa
- CR
European hamster
Cricetus cricetus
German populations near collapse.
- LC
Common pipistrelle
Pipistrellus pipistrellus
IUCN codes — EX extinct · EW extinct in wild · CR critically endangered · EN endangered · VU vulnerable · NT near threatened · LC least concern · DD data deficient
Dos & don'ts
Local etiquette that keeps wildlife wild.
Do
- Watch wild boar family groups at dawn near Grunewald edges.
- Support NABU's swift and bat box programme.
- Keep distance — use zoom or binoculars, never bait animals closer.
- Stay on marked trails to avoid trampling nests, burrows and plants.
Don't
- Don't feed wild boar — Berlin fines up to €5,000.
- Don't approach fox dens in Tiergarten during pup season (Apr–Jun).
- Never feed wildlife — human food changes behaviour and shortens lives.
- Don't share exact locations of nests, dens or rare species online.
Spotted here lately
Live from iNaturalist — research-grade observations within 50km, last 30 days.
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