[SC] Is it true that Birds don't fly over Aushwitz ?

the_monkey · 04-01-2012 1:02am #1

I have heard that birds don't fly nor sing over Aushwitz.

I don't know how reliable this is and remain skeptical, surely there could be
another scientific reason behind it IF it is true.

TheLynx · 04-01-2012 1:04am

the_monkey · 04-01-2012 1:16am

TheLynx wrote: »

?? anything else ?

Oryx · 05-01-2012 5:27pm

Where did you hear this?

kylith · 05-01-2012 9:44pm

Granted I've not been there, but it sounds like nonsense to me; why would birds care what's happened humans?

If there's any shred of truth it's probably because there are no trees within the compound. No trees, no cover. No cover, no birds. No birds, no singing.

keith16 · 05-01-2012 9:48pm

kylith wrote: »

Granted I've not been there, but it sounds like nonsense to me; why would birds care what's happened humans?

If there's any shred of truth it's probably because there are no trees within the compound. No trees, no cover. No cover, no birds. No birds, no singing.

There are plenty of trees in the immediate vicinity of the compound, and even large trees near block 11 from what I remember. This I'm afraid is utter nonsense.

KTRIC · 05-01-2012 9:50pm

I experienced this outside Dachau. I can't explain it and i'm not going to try.

mlumley · 05-01-2012 9:59pm

In 1971 I went to Belsen in Germany. We had to listen to a tape of the commanding officer who's men liberated the camp. I, and about 30 late teens and 20 somethings all had tears in our eyes listening to that tape. We then went into the camp and walked around for a while. Just mounds with a number on it, estimates of how many dead it contained. And remember, this was not an extermination camp, but they starved them to death.

There were birds around in the trees, this was about 25 years after liberation.. But the tape mentioned that there were no birds about when the camp was liberated. It was the stench of rotting courpes that kept them away. It also mentioned that you could smell the camp when flying overhead at 10,000 feet.

I met a local German who said that no one knew what was going on in the camp. Somehow, I didnt belive him.

As we were leaving the camp, a German army bus pulled up. Every on of those soldures was looking down at their boots as they walked into the camp. We were ordered not to make a sound. It was a walk of shame for those army lads.

So, yes, I belive what th OP says.

How could any person do such things to another human I dont know.

MrStuffins · 05-01-2012 10:02pm

mlumley wrote: »

In 1971 I went to Belsen in Germany. We had to listen to a tape of the commanding officer who's men liberated the camp. I, and about 30 late teens and 20 somethings all had tears in our eyes listening to that tape. We then went into the camp and walked around for a while. Just mounds with a number on it, estimates of how many dead it contained. And remember, this was not an extermination camp, but they starved them to death.

There were birds around in the trees, this was about 25 years after liberation.. But the tape mentioned that there were no birds about when the camp was liberated. It was the stench of rotting courpes that kept them away. It also mentioned that you could smell the camp when flying overhead at 10,000 feet.

I met a local German who said that no ome knew what was going on in the camp. Somehow, I didnt belive him.

As we were leaving the camp, a German army bus pulled up. Every on of those soldures was looking down at their boots as they walked into the camp. We were ordered not to make a sound. It was a walk of shame for those army lads.

So, yes, I belive what th OP says.

How could any person do such things to another human I dont know.

Sorry but................ what?

mlumley · 05-01-2012 10:09pm

MrStuffins wrote: »

Sorry but................ what?

But what, what? What are you quearying? That I agree with the OP. Or that I can not understand how the Germans could starve people to death?

I might make it clearer for you by saying that the what the OP heard, is probably just at the end of the war, birds wouldnt go near the place cos the stench. But they will be there now after so long.

Please elaberate on your queary.

MrStuffins · 05-01-2012 10:18pm

mlumley wrote: »

But what, what? What are you quearying? That I agree with the OP. Or that I can not understand how the Germans could starve people to death?

I might make it clearer for you by saying that the what the OP heard, is probably just at the end of the war, birds wouldnt go near the place cos the stench. But they will be there now after so long.

Please elaberate on your queary.

Well, you said you believed that birds didn't fly over Aushwitz but said yourself you saw birds there in 1971. That's where the confusion was!

Untense · 05-01-2012 10:35pm

mlumley wrote: »

There were birds around in the trees, this was about 25 years after liberation.. But the tape mentioned that there were no birds about when the camp was liberated. It was the stench of rotting courpes that kept them away.

Explains both that birds are seen around the camp, and also explains how the myth might have formed in the first place.

I experienced this outside Dachau. I can't explain it and i'm not going to try.

It's logical to assume that sometimes there just aren't any birds around. I can sometimes look around outside and spot none. If I was only here briefly and someone told me there were no birds around since 1945 for mysterious reasons, and if at that moment there were no birds visible, I would be inclined to make this affirm the myth.

Riamfada · 08-01-2012 2:23pm

Some people do mad some people don't see birds. If you are out and about and you don't see birds you don't even notice it but in auswitzc you do and it is attributed to the myth. There are lots of people online saying that they did see birds on the grounds of the camp.

kylith · 11-01-2012 11:44am

keith16 wrote: »

There are plenty of trees in the immediate vicinity of the compound, and even large trees near block 11 from what I remember. This I'm afraid is utter nonsense.

As I said, I've never been there, and it's hard to make out any trees in online photos, do I was working on a best guess from the info I had available.

Anyway since people do see birds there the OP's first post is moot.

bleg · 18-01-2012 11:27pm

I have been there and saw loads of birds. Took pictures of them too.

Colonel_McCoy · 19-01-2012 11:53am

I was on a tour of Dachau and the guide said the same. Never saw a single bird for the entire day I was there.

Standman · 24-01-2012 4:26pm

I'll just leave this here

4041120.bin?size=620x400s

gc1971 · 24-01-2012 4:30pm

keith16 wrote: »

There are plenty of trees in the immediate vicinity of the compound, and even large trees near block 11 from what I remember. This I'm afraid is utter nonsense.

keith16 is right. There are loads of trees especially near the memorial. Our driver drove us there before bringing us to the main entrance. There are birds. It's just a stupid urban myth.

Jagle · 24-01-2012 4:34pm

Colonel_McCoy wrote: »

I was on a tour of Dachau and the guide said the same. Never saw a single bird for the entire day I was there.

so was I, loads of birds about, again nature doesnt know, or care about what we did 60 years ago in germany, complete nonsense

Sparkyd2002 · 25-01-2012 1:30pm

Auschwitz19.JPG

Have been there and have loads of photos. Funnily enough most of them are birdless! That said i do remember lost of birds around the original gas chamber. Photo attached - so yes its a myth.

Allround Predator · 01-02-2012 5:18am

the_monkey wrote: »

I have heard that birds don't fly nor sing over Aushwitz.

I don't know how reliable this is and remain skeptical, surely there could be
another scientific reason behind it IF it is true.

Part of what your saying is true, but that was only during the war when the camp was still in full operation , the smell of death and also the smell coming from the crematorium and the camps, especially Monowitz, the labor part of the camp, and Birkenau, which was the extermination part of the camp. I have read a few books on Aushwitz and it is said that during the height of the exterminations that you wouldn't hear or see a bird within a mile of the camp.

Bubblefett · 01-03-2012 5:29pm

mlumley wrote: »

there were no birds about when the camp was liberated. It was the stench of rotting courpes that kept them away.

I visited Aushwitz about 7 years ago and this question came up. The answer is during the war it was true. Birds wouldn't fly over the camp when it was functioning and mlumley hit the nail on the head with the reason.
Now though birds fly over it as the situation has changed.

CajunPenguin · 04-03-2012 8:50pm

There was or is probably something there they don't like (not necessarily the camp) and just stayed away. Or there was no reason for them to go there in the first place.
When I was small I went on holiday to Wexford and was at a field some locals said was once a mass grave for famine victims or something along those lines. Anyway as soon as a person walked off the road and into the field, what sounded like hundreds of birds started cawing. Probably just them being disturbed by people, but it was weird because even though it was deafening it seemed lik you had to be in the field to hear anything. It probably has hundreds of possible causes but it was spooky. Like Auschwitz

Cowenwatch · 04-03-2012 8:59pm

Has anyone visited Auschwitz and seen Granddad Bush's Steel foundry?
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2003/jun2003/bush-j05.shtml :eek:

gaelicred · 01-08-2012 10:04pm

Sparkyd2002 wrote: »

Auschwitz19.JPG

Have been there and have loads of photos. Funnily enough most of them are birdless! That said i do remember lost of birds around the original gas chamber. Photo attached - so yes its a myth.

That photo creeps me out dont really know why maybe because of what happened there:(

blueturnip · 01-08-2012 10:11pm

Sparkyd2002 wrote: »

Auschwitz19.JPG

Have been there and have loads of photos. Funnily enough most of them are birdless! That said i do remember lost of birds around the original gas chamber. Photo attached - so yes its a myth.

Did you have a picture taken under the sign 'Arbeit macht frei'? I saw loads of people doing this the couple of times I was there and found it extremely odd.

Pictures of the sign, yes, but pictures of friends under the sign, no.

Heres Your Future · 05-10-2012 10:38pm

I've been there, can't say I remember seeing birds but it was Winter time and I wasn't particularly looking for them. Auschwitz is actually a couple of camps spread over quite a large geographic area so it would be fairly inconceivable that birds wouldn't fly over it. Why do you think that they wouldn't?

twistedbrains · 05-10-2012 10:48pm

was their saw no birds inside the camp but hey they "all could of been at mc donalds for a euro saver meal"

Heres Your Future · 05-10-2012 11:33pm

twistedbrains wrote: »

was their saw no birds inside the camp but hey they "all could of been at mc donalds for a euro saver meal"

maybe you mean 'zloty saver meal'

Baggio... · 03-02-2013 1:50pm

the_monkey wrote: »

I have heard that birds don't fly nor sing over Aushwitz.

I don't know how reliable this is and remain skeptical, surely there could be
another scientific reason behind it IF it is true.

Occam's razor.

maccored · 03-02-2013 3:38pm

Occam's razor isnt a scientific reason.

Genghiz Cohen · 04-02-2013 2:23pm

maccored wrote: »

Occam's razor isnt a scientific reason.

I'm not even sure it's applicable in that scenario either.

beazee · 04-02-2013 2:44pm

Listen carefully on 0:26, just before he says: "The Nazi.." and then on 2:40 just before "two chimneys...".

But it is true one of the Red Cross volunteers said after the camp was liberated: "All I had with me in Auschwitz soak through with a strange, difficult to determine, sweet smell. Both clothing and food. It remained for months in the clothing after returning to Krakow. I also remember that birds spared camp at Auschwitz flying high over it."

HarrisonLennon · 06-05-2013 12:29pm

"As we were leaving the camp, a German army bus pulled up. Every on of those soldures was looking down at their boots as they walked into the camp. We were ordered not to make a sound. It was a walk of shame for those army lads."

I know this post is old, but as a WW2 enthusiast I couldn't help but comment on your above quote. It's absurd that you would think that about the German soldiers. And 100% wrong

The German Army are a completely separate organisation from the Nazi's defence forces

The Waffen SS
Luftwaffe
The Werhmacht

They share no comparison to the German Army's views, believes and responsibilities.

It's bizzarre you should think that. That's like assuming a US marine would feel responsible or shamed for the crimes of the Klu Klux Klan.

They were showing respect that day, not shame.

YerfiRitpal · 23-03-2015 2:31am

I know this is an old post, but I just had to comment.

Apparently the same phenomenon occurs at Loch Katrine, in the Trossachs in Scotland. Now I've been to this place. It's a massive tourist attraction with many hill walkers and locals alike, visiting it.

As far as I know, nothing bad has happened at this location. That's not to say that I'm right of course, as I'm sure the place is steeped in history given it's location.

The Trossachs is a wooded glen or valley so there is plenty of vegetation and trees to keep the little dickie birds more than happy. I can't say I remember hearing or seeing any birds, but I wasn't listening or looking out for them.

Seeing that the place is only about an hour from where I live, I think I might take a trip up to find out if this is actually true, more to satisfy my own curiosity than anything else and find out if there is any truth to it or if it is no more than an urban legend! Part of me wants it to be true though....

23-03-2015 1:35pm

Well above we have already seen that its false and the same goes for the Trossachs ...

4:48
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xCrkqj0bFw

Common gull over loch Katrine
http://tomgradwellphotography.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/2088Trossachs-3-2-1024x623.jpg

Standman · 11-04-2015 2:03am

Originally posted this pic on the second page, but link seems to have expired:

Heckler · 11-04-2015 2:34am

I guess its a nice idea but really its attributing human emotion and responses to birds. I can accept that the functioning death camps may have kept birds away due to the stench. The idea of primordial memory and instinctive flight or flight (no pun intended) can't be discounted either.

Ever been in a situation or location where every aspect of your being has said to get the hell out of there for no specific reason ? I have. Don't know if was justified or not because I legged it. Its called 'gut' instinct or a 'hunch'. Research it and find out how many people were saved or saved someone else by relying on it.

I've never been to the camps. Closest to the I've been to the slaughter of WW2 s probably the landing beaches at Normandy. Nowadays kids play there and make sandcastles.

[SC] Is it true that Birds don't fly over Aushwitz ?

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