However, the webcam has the full backing of the National Armed Forces and the only breach is in the privacy of a group of "green crows" inside their bird-box barracks at the Ādaži military range just outside Rīga.
No šodienas, 2. maija, mājaslapā https://t.co/rpt3J0Owly interneta tiešraidē ikviens aicināts sekot līdzi norisēm zaļās vārnas būrī Ādažu poligonā: https://t.co/2n0u5yZUEj pic.twitter.com/EKW3122sVW
— AizsardzībasMin. (@AizsardzibasMin) May 2, 2018
From today, May 2, the homepage www.putniadazos.lv will let everyone follow the daily drills and special operations of the green crows, which are actually not carrion birds at all but known in English as European Rollers (Coracias garrulus), who first set up their nests here in 2007 and are an endangered species. Suitable accommodation was provided for them by the Latvian Ornithological Society, whose chairman Viesturs Ķerus said:
"The European Roller, which was once common in Latvia, has become one of the most endangered species. Special care should be taken to protect the European Rollers, including preserving the habitat of this species in the Ādaži ranges and elsewhere. We hope that this will encourage inhabitants to take care of this natural treasure that still exists in Latvia."
There are both interior and exterior cameras and microphones (see below), so if you are really lucky, as well as catching sight of these birds you might see and hear the occasional tank trundling past or explosion.
You can read more about these interesting birds at this excellent site dedicated to the birds of Latvia.
As previously reported by LSM, as well as serving military training purposes. the Ādaži ranges are also an important and unique wildlife habitat.
And "green crows" are not just stars of online broadcasting: they have also found their way into the world of Latvian literature, providing the title for a book by Kristīne Ulberga which has also been published in English.
