Ostrach

History

The first mention of Ostrach occurs in 851. In the 13th century, the area passed gradually from the Holy Roman Empire into the hands of the monastery of Salem. On 21 March 1799 the Austrian and French troops fought a battle at Ostrach. In 1803, in the German Mediatisation, Ostrach and Bachhaupten passed into the hands of the house of Thurn und Taxis, and in 1806 they were incorporated into the lands of the house of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen. The railway line Altshausen-Ostrach-Pfullendorf opened in 1875. The last freight train passed through Ostrach on 31 July 2002. On 1 January 1975 the surrounding villages of Burgweiler (with Dichtenhausen, Hahnennest, Ochsenbach, Waldbeuren, Ulzhausen, Egelreute), Einhart, Habsthal (with Bernweiler), Jettkofen, Kalkreute, Laubbach, Levertsweiler, Magenbuch (with Lausheim), Spöck, Tafertsweiler (with Bachhaupten, Eschendorf, and Gunzenhausen), Wangen, and Wirnsweiler were incorporated into Ostrach.

Geography

Ostrach lies between the Danube and Lake Constance, about halfway between Sigmaringen and Ravensburg. It lies on the brook of the same name, which passes through a narrow pass between the glacial moraines left by the Rhine Glacier at the end of the last ice age. The landscape is hilly and wooded. Abandoned quarries to the north and south of the village of Jettkofen have created small lakes.

Most-observed species

• Carrion Crow

  Corvus corone Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  665
• Eurasian Blue Tit

  Cyanistes caeruleus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  659
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  655
• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  647
• White Stork

  Ciconia ciconia (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  575
• Mute Swan

  Cygnus olor (J.F.Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
  564
• Red Kite

  Milvus milvus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  550
• Eurasian Coot

  Fulica atra Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  542

Most recent

• M 4.2 — 2026-04-26
  4 km NNW of Quarten, Switzerland
• M 3.4 — 2022-10-16
  Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany
• M 3.8 — 2022-09-01
  2 km WSW of Sevelen, Switzerland
• M 4 — 2022-07-09
  2 km NNE of Grosselfingen, Germany
• M 3.8 — 2018-02-01
  4 km N of Innerbraz, Austria
• M 4 — 2018-01-17
  2 km NE of Innerbraz, Austria