White Stork

 
he White Stork (Ciconia ciconia) is a large bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. Its plumage is mainly white, with black on its wings. Adults have long red legs and long pointed red beaks, and measure on average 100–115 cm (39–45 in) from beak tip to end of tail, with a 155–215 cm (61–85 in) wingspan. The two subspecies, which differ slightly in size, breed in Europe (north to Finland), northwestern Africa, southwestern Asia (east to southern Kazakhstan), and southern Africa. The White Stork is a long-distance migrant, wintering in Africa from tropical Sub-Saharan Africa to as far south as South Africa, or on the Indian subcontinent. When migrating between Europe and Africa, it avoids crossing the Mediterranean Sea and detours via the Levant in the east or the Strait of Gibraltar in the west, because the air thermals on which it depends do not form over water.
A carnivore, the White Stork eats a wide range of animal prey, including insects, fish, amphibians, reptiles, small mammals, and small birds. It takes most of its food from the ground, among low vegetation, and from shallow water. It is a monogamous breeder, but does not pair for life. Both members of the pair build a large stick nest, which may be used for several years. Each year the female can lay one clutch of usually four eggs, which hatch asynchronously 33–34 days after being laid. Both parents take turns incubating the eggs and both feed the young. The young leave the nest 58–64 days after hatching, and continue to be fed by the parents for a further 7–20 days.
The White Stork has been rated as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It benefited from human activities during the Middle Ages as woodland was cleared, but changes in farming methods and industrialisation saw it decline and disappear from parts of Europe in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Conservation and reintroduction programs across Europe have resulted in the White Stork resuming breeding in the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, and Sweden. It has few natural predators, but may harbour several types of parasite; the plumage is home to chewing lice and feather mites, while the large nests maintain a diverse range of mesostigmatic mites. This conspicuous bird has given rise to many legends across its range, of which the best-known is the story of babies being brought by storks.

Description

Flying in Germany. White Storks fly with their necks outstretched.

The White Stork is a large bird. It has a length of 100–115 cm (39–45 in),and a standing height of 100–125 cm (39–49 in). The wingspan is 155–215 cm (61–85 in) and its weight is 2.3–4.4 kg (5.1–9.7 lb).Like all storks, it has long legs, a long neck, and a long, straight, pointed beak.The sexes are identical in appearance, except that males are larger than females on average. The plumage is mainly white with black flight feathers and wing coverts; the black is caused by the pigment melanin The breast feathers are long and shaggy forming a ruff which is used in some courtship displays.The irises are dull brown or grey, and the peri-orbital skin is black. The adult has a bright red beak and red legs,the coloration of which is derived from carotenoids in the diet. In parts of Spain, studies have shown that the pigment is based on astaxanthin obtained from an introduced species of crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) and the bright red beak colours show up even in nestlings, in contrast to the duller beaks of young White Storks elsewhere.
As with other storks, the wings are long and broad enabling the bird to soar. In flapping flight its wingbeats are slow and regular. It flies with its neck stretched forward and with its long legs extended well beyond the end of its short tail. It walks at a slow and steady pace with its neck upstretched. In contrast, it often hunches its head between its shoulders when resting. Moulting has not been extensively studied, but appears to take place throughout the year, with the primary flight feathers replaced over the breeding season.

An older juvenile at Vogelpark Avifauna, Netherlands. Beaks turn red starting at the base.

Upon hatching, the young White Stork is partly covered with short, sparse, whitish down feathers. This early down is replaced about a week later with a denser coat of woolly white down. By three weeks, the young bird acquires black scapulars and flight feathers. On hatching the chick has pinkish legs, which turn to greyish-black as it ages. Its beak is black with a brownish tip. By the time it fledges, the juvenile bird's plumage is similar to that of the adult, though its black feathers are often tinged with brown, and its beak and legs are a duller brownish-red or orange. The beak is typically orange or red with a darker tip. The bills gain the adults' red colour the following summer, although the black tips persist in some individuals. Young storks adopt adult plumage by their second summer.

Similar species

Within its range the White Stork is distinctive when seen on the ground but, when seen at a distance in flight, it can be confused with several other species with similar underwing patterns, such as the Yellow-billed Stork, Great White Pelican, and Egyptian Vulture. The Yellow-billed Stork is identified by its black tail and a longer, slightly curved, yellow beak. The White Stork also tends to be larger than the Yellow-billed Stork. The Great White Pelican has short legs which do not extend beyond its tail, and it flies with its neck retracted, keeping its head near to its stocky body, giving it a different flight profile. Pelicans also behave differently, soaring in orderly, synchronised flocks rather than in disorganised groups of individuals as the White Stork does. The Egyptian Vulture is much smaller, with a long wedge-shaped tail, shorter legs and a small yellow-tinged head on a short neck. The Common Crane, which can also look black and white in strong light, shows longer legs and a longer neck in flight

Migration

A flock in migration over Israel. Migrating White Storks use the uplift of air thermals to reduce the effort of long-distance flying.

Systematic research into migration began with German ornithologist Johannes Thienemann who commenced ringing studies in 1906 at the Rossitten Bird Observatory, on the Curonian Spit in what was then East Prussia. Although not many storks passed through Rossitten itself, the observatory coordinated the large-scale ringing of the species throughout Germany and elsewhere in Europe. Between 1906 and the Second World War about 100,000, mainly juvenile, White Storks were ringed, with over 2,000 long-distance recoveries of birds wearing Rossitten rings reported between 1908 and 1954.

Cultural associations

"Der Klapperstorch" (The Stork), a painting by Carl Spitzweg (1808–1885)

Due to its large size, predation on vermin, and nesting behaviour close to human settlements and on rooftops, the White Stork has an imposing presence that has had an impact on human culture and folklore. In Ancient Egypt, it was associated with, and was the hieroglyph for, the Ba, or "soul". The Hebrew word for the White Stork is chasidah (חסידה), meaning "merciful" or "kind". Greek and Roman mythology portray storks as models of parental devotion, and it was believed that they did not die of old age, but flew to islands and took the appearance of humans. The bird is featured in two of Aesop's Fables: The Fox and the Stork and The Farmer and the Stork. They were also thought to care for their aged parents, feeding them and even transporting them, and children's books depicted them as a model of filial values. A Greek law called Pelargonia, from the Ancient Greek word pelargos for stork, required citizens to take care of their aged parents.The Greeks also held that killing a stork could be punished with death. It was allegedly protected in Ancient Thessaly as it hunted snakes, and widely held to be Virgil's "white bird". Roman writers noted the White Stork's arrival in spring, which alerted farmers to plant their vines.
Followers of Islam revered storks because they made an annual pilgrimage to Mecca on their migration. Some of the earliest understanding on bird migration were initiated by an interest in White Storks; Pfeilstorch ("arrow storks") were found in Europe with African arrows embedded in their bodies. A well-known example of such a stork found in the summer of 1822 in the German town of Klütz in Mecklenburg was made into a mounted taxidermy specimen, complete with the ornate African arrow, that is now in the University of Rostock.

Supposed filial virtues of the stork

Storks have little fear of humans if not disturbed, and often nest on buildings in Europe. In Germany, the presence of a nest on a house was believed to protect against fires. They were also protected because of the belief that their souls were human. German and Dutch households would encourage storks to nest on houses, sometimes by constructing purpose-built high platforms, to bring good luck. Poles, Lithuanians and Ukrainians believe that storks bring harmony to a family on whose property they nest.
The White Stork is a popular motif on postage stamps, and it is featured on more than 120 stamps issued by more than 60 stamp-issuing entitie It is the national bird of Lithuania,and it was a Polish mascot at the Expo 2000 Fair in Hanover. In the 19th century, storks were also thought to only live in countries having a republican form of government.Polish poet Cyprian Kamil Norwid mentioned storks in his poem Moja piosnka (II) ("My Song (II)"