The nature conservation organisation (NABU) Kreisverband Gießen e.V. is committed to preserving the habitat of the European hamster in the region. Stadtwerke Gießen is now supporting the organisation with a donation.
Foxes, cats and buzzards have always been among the natural enemies of the European hamster. The small rodent's brown fur on its back protects it from their gaze - it visually blends in with its habitat. However, this has continued to shrink in recent decades due to increasing agricultural use. "The field hamster is now a protected species in Europe," explains Dr Achim Zedler, 1st Chairman of the NABU Giessen District Association. Due to the declining population, the state of Hesse has the task of protecting the small animal's breeding and resting places.
In the district of Giessen, the rodent now only lives in fields near Holzheim and Langgöns. There the hamster finds suitable soil in which to dig its burrows. The state of Hesse has agreed with the farmers who cultivate the fields that some strips will be left standing during the harvest. The farmers receive financial compensation for this. "The compensation is paid for by the state and the nature conservation organisation," says Cornelia Eltzner, who works in the customer services department at Stadtwerke Gießen (SWG), is very keen on animals and nature and has been a passive member of NABU for many years. She suggested supporting the organisation in its commitment to the rodent - as part of SWG's 75 good deeds in its anniversary year. Stadtwerke is donating the compensation payment for the preservation of two field strips. On 12 August, the SWG employee presented the symbolic donation cheque to Dr Achim Zedler, Dr Tim Mattern, deputy chairman of NABU Giessen, Martin Wenisch, hamster expert at NABU, and Peggy Schneeweiß, coordinator of youth work at NABU.
Martin Wenisch assured them: "100 per cent of the donation will be used for its intended purpose - the fight for the habitat of the small rodent, which was already on the verge of extinction here in the region. All the better that a company that has its roots here is helping us in this fight."