Chuffing sparrows, they’re everywhere, like vermin!

Here comes another one, a cheeky little minx, tucking into my bread basket. They are brazen these little birds, much like pigeons, though not as annoying, or as ganky, or as flipping huge.

Thankfully, they seem to outnumber  flying rats  in Berlin.

I can’t fathom why there are so many of the blighters; almost as much a part of the urban furniture as the graffitti. And they act almost like pets. OK, they don’t sit in your hallway woofing at the postman, but they often feed from your hand or pop up onto the table, taking small beak-size nuggets out of your bread.

As I’m typing this at Mir cafe, outside Gorlitzer Park in Kreuzberg, one pesky varmint has nipped up on to the table to help me finish off my snack. wish he’d take the olives instead. He’s not quite as bullish as this youtube clip, but you get my drift.

Sparrows are a thing of the past in London, dwindling in number ever since the horse stopped being the main form of transport – apparently sparrows loved horses crud, which essentially are 90% oats and a cracking good sparrow feed.

Not that the main form of transport is horse in Berlin. However, it is noticeably cleaner air hier, perhaps due to the heavy reliance on public transport, and the tram network, and the fact most people use a bike. Berlin is also almost one-third park, lake, forest or river, with the consequent colonies of insects to feed on.

Not that the sparrowsey need insects: they have bread – Berliners seem to have bread with every meal. Rarely do they eat it all. They just leave it on their plates or in their baskets, for the sparrows to peck at!

Tim Food, Kreuzberg, Sightseeing, berlin, graffitti, photos, transport Berlin sparrows