What do storks eat? Stork bird: species, description, photo, habitat

The stork is a large bird, visually spectacular, and many fashion brands use this in their collections of clothing and accessories. But if you can often see these birds on dresses and handbags, in reality certain species of storks are even listed in the Red Book. The number of black storks (Ciconia nigra) is rapidly declining, and there are also few Far Eastern storks (Ciconia boyciana) left.

The stork family consists of 17 species and 9 genera; the birds are distinguished by a long graceful neck, large body, long unfeathered legs with a swimming membrane and a sharp beak. Different species of these birds differ from each other in appearance. What do storks eat, where do they live, how do they raise their offspring? What main species of these birds can you still meet? You will find answers to all these questions in the article.

What does it look like

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Photo of a stork in the meadow

The stork is a stately, tall bird with a large barrel-shaped body, thin stilted legs and a long, straight, conical beak. The neck is long, flexible, and sharply curved back at the top. The head looks forward, the end of the beak is directed downward.

In the plumage of all types of storks there are two colors - white and black, each variety has a different color ratio. The powerful paws are partially feathered, the skin on them is red-gray, covered with sparse gray down. Toes without webs.

Two storks in the water opened their wings

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Storks have huge wings, their span is 1.5-2 meters. When fully expanded, the back of the wings forms a straight line. The wings move with a large amplitude, which allows the bird to quickly gain height. In flight, storks can reach speeds of up to 45 km/h. In flight with rising air currents they glide. Soaring is achieved due to wide wings beveled at the end, an elongated forearm and a short shoulder. While soaring, the stork goes into rest mode: cardiac activity decreases, the pulse is 100-120 beats per minute. A short sleep lasts 15-20 minutes, then the bird enters the wakefulness stage and increases its speed of movement.

The tail of storks is of moderate length, blunt at the end. It's always black.

Photo of a stork close up

Storks' faces are not feathered. The skin around the eyes may be black, red or blue, depending on the species. The color of the stork's beak is red, but there are birds with gray and black beaks.

Stork beak

Stork in nature
As has been noted, the beak of storks is long and thin, straight, tapered at the end. The bird “works” with it like tweezers, capturing aquatic life from a shallow depth. The stork holds the victim across its body, then makes a sharp swing of its head, tossing the carcass, and swallows it completely.

Photo of a stork's beak

Those who have ever watched a stork may have noticed that storks knock with their beaks. This is how birds communicate with each other. Due to the peculiar structure of the vocal apparatus, most species of storks are deprived of the ability to make sounds similar to other birds. The exception is the Black Stork. It may make sounds similar to loud inhalation. The stork knocks with its beak, and the air passing between the halves of the beak transforms into a quiet whistle or hiss. By clinking their beaks, birds warn their relatives about danger, show sympathy, and mate. Other storks click their beaks without any whistles. Males constantly click their beaks during love games. Their “songs” are a series of rapid chattering sounds of their jaws. During the mating ritual, the male and female knock their beaks together as a sign of sympathy.

Why do storks stand on one leg?

The stork stands on one leg.
The unusual habit of the stork to stand on one leg is not a bird’s whim, but a vital necessity.
Birds spend most of their time in the water, and if they stand on both legs, they will quickly freeze. Therefore, storks have to bend one leg and hide it in the feathers under their belly - this is how birds carry out thermoregulation. Storks, like flamingos and herons, sleep standing on one leg. The peculiar structure of the bird's paws helps maintain balance while standing on one leg. At the same time, the muscles in this position are relaxed and the birds do not get tired.

2. There are many different species of storks, sometimes completely different from each other.

3. The genus of storks includes the following species: white-bellied stork; black-billed stork, Chinese stork, Far Eastern stork, Far Eastern white stork; white stork: Turkestan white stork; European white stork; white-necked stork: black stork; American stork; Malayan woolly-necked stork.

4. The origin of the word “stork” has not been established for certain, but there are many versions of its origin. The most plausible version: a transformation of the German word “Heister”, which in some areas of Germany is the name of a magpie. Probably the word was transformed into “gaister”, and then into “stork”.

5. It is difficult to find an analogy between a magpie and a stork; the only similarity between them is the color of their plumage. It can be assumed that this is the basis for the name of the stork.

White stork

6. The white stork lives in some areas of Europe (from Southern Sweden and Denmark to France and Portugal, in the countries of Eastern Europe), in Ukraine, in Russia (from the Vologda region to Transcaucasia), in Central Asia and in northwestern Africa (from northern Morocco to northern Tunisia)

. 7. According to their habitat, two subspecies of white storks are distinguished: European and Turkestan. The Turkestan subspecies is slightly larger than the European one and is found in Central Asia and some areas of Transcaucasia.

8. The body of white storks is white, which is reflected in the name. Only the feathers at the ends of the wings are black, and until the bird spreads them, it seems that the entire lower body is black. This is where the popular name for the bird came from – blackgut.

9. The stork’s beak and legs are red. The chicks have black beaks. The bare skin near the eyes and beak is red or black. The iris of the eyes is dark brown or reddish. The dimensions of the wing are 55-63 cm, the tail is 21.5-26 cm, the metatarsus is 17-23.5 cm, the beak is 14-20 cm. The length of the body can reach 1.02 m. The wingspan is 1.95-2. 05m. The white stork weighs 3.5-4.4 kg. Females are smaller than males.

10. White storks living in Russia fly to Africa and India for the winter.

.Black stork

11. The black stork is a species that avoids people. Its habitat is the vast expanses of Eurasia: from Scandinavia and the Iberian Peninsula to the Far Eastern regions. The northern border of distribution reaches the 61st and 63rd parallels, the southern one passes through the Balkans, Crimea, Transcaucasia, Iran, Central Asia, Mongolia, and the middle part of China. The black stork winters on the African continent, in India and China. In Africa, birds fly no further than the equator. True, individuals nest in the south of the mainland, which in all likelihood got there during migration and remained there permanently.

12.The color of this type of bird is predominantly black, with the black plumage tinged with green, bronze or purple. White feathers grow only on the lower body, on the back of the chest and in the axillary areas. The bird's beak is slightly slanted upward.

13.The legs, beak and skin around the eyes are red. The iris of the eye is brown. Juveniles have white plumage, with the legs and beak of the young being grey-green. The weight of a black stork does not exceed 3 kg, the body can reach a length of 1 meter. The length of the wing varies from 52 to 61 cm, the length of the metatarsus is 18-20 cm, the tail grows to 19-25 cm, and the length of the beak reaches 16-19.5 cm. The wingspan of the bird is 1.5-2 meters.

14. Storks have neck air sacs that are filled with exhaled air, as they are connected to the nasal chambers. These bags are small, located under the skin and lie on the sides of the neck at the base of the head. The bag system creates an air gap between the skin and muscles.

15. The stork’s wings are long, rounded, their apex is formed by 3-5 flight feathers. The inner wing feathers are long. When folded, they reach the length of the primary flight feathers.

White-bellied stork

16. The white-bellied stork is an African species of stork that lives from Ethiopia to South Africa. One of the smallest storks, reaching 73 cm in length. The mass of the bird is 1 kg. The predominant color is black, only the chest and underwings are white.

17. The beak of the white-bellied stork, unlike most species, is gray. The legs are traditionally red. A distinctive feature of the white-bellied stork is the blueness of the skin around the eyes during the mating season. The eyes themselves have a red tint. Females are smaller than males. They lay 2-3 eggs.

18. In flight, storks soar above the ground. This becomes possible due to the special articulation of the bones of the shoulder girdle and the structure of the wing with an elongated forearm and a shorter shoulder. These features are characteristic of large soaring birds, including birds of prey. There is a claw on the wing on the first finger of the hand.

19. The tail of storks is of moderate length, straight, slightly rounded at the top. It consists of 12 tail feathers.

20. The colors of young birds differ slightly from adults. There are no differences in the color of males and females, or changes in color depending on the time of year. Stork chicks have grayish fluff; adults have white or gray fluff.

White-necked stork

21. The white-necked stork has 3 subspecies: the first of them lives on the Hindustan peninsulas, Indochina and the Philippine Islands; the second is found in Uganda and Kenya, countries of tropical Africa; its third species is a resident of the island of Java and the islands lying on the border of the Asian and Australian biogeographic zones.

22.The body length of white-necked storks varies from 80 to 90 cm. The back of the head, neck and upper chest of the birds are white and fluffy. The feathers on the underbelly and tail are white. The head is black on top, as if wearing a cap. The wings and upper body are black, there are reddish tints on the shoulders, and the ends of the wings are covered with a greenish tint.

23. White-necked storks live in groups or pairs near water.

24. After wintering at the end of the world, white storks return to their nests and put them in order. These birds are extremely attached to their homes.

25. The oldest known stork nest, in which many generations of these birds lived, was inhabited by them for 381 years.

26. The stork living in northern latitudes is a migratory bird that led a sedentary lifestyle before the Ice Age. Residential behavior still occurs today: for example, the black-billed stork, which lives in Japan, does not fly away for the winter. White-bellied storks, white-necked storks, American storks and Malayan woolly-necked storks also do not fly south, as they live in warm latitudes, where they are provided with food all year round.

27. Seasonal migrations are carried out by white storks, black storks and Far Eastern storks (black-billed storks), living in Europe, Russia, and China.

28. Birds fly during the day, at high altitudes, without observing a certain formation. Storks fly mainly over land, reducing the sea sections of the route to a minimum. This is due to the fact that ascending air currents formed over land are important for soaring flight. Storks fly through the water only when they see the opposite shore. By spring the birds return.

29. Storks eat exclusively animal food. Their food is varied, but mainly consists of small animals, which include: mammals: moles, rats, mice, voles and other mouse-like rodents, speckled gophers, young hares, weasels, stoats.

30. Storks have the remarkable ability to eat poisonous snakes without harming themselves. Apparently they are immune to poison.

Marabou Stork

31. Not all storks are harmless. Marabou, living in Africa, are birds of prey. True, they can only hunt fairly small prey, preferring carrion.

32.Marabou are found so often in Africa that local residents do not even pay attention to them: for an African, a marabou is the same as a dove or sparrow for a resident of Russia.

33. Storks, like all large birds, are very careful. During flights and overnight stays they stay together. The birds feed separately, but at the same time do not lose contact with their relatives.

34. The lifespan of storks depends on the species and habitat. White storks live in the wild for about 20-21 years (according to some sources up to 33 years), in captivity this figure may be higher

35. Far Eastern storks in captivity lived up to 48 years. The maximum lifespan of black storks in captivity is 31 years, while in natural conditions this figure is 18 years.

36. Storks sleep standing on one leg, and they change legs without waking up.

37. Storks do not build new nests, but equip old ones. Interestingly, these birds are extremely attached to their home and prefer renovation rather than moving.

38. After the male has built a nest, he must find a mate. More precisely, the females themselves look for males who have managed to acquire housing. It’s funny, but the first female to fly to the “new building” becomes the other half of the male. Moreover, “marriages” among storks are concluded once and for all: by nature, these birds are monogamous.

39. White storks are human satellites; they prefer to settle as close as possible to people’s homes. Black storks, on the contrary, avoid people and prefer to build nests where people cannot penetrate.

40. Storks have no enemies in nature. The exceptions are eagles and crocodiles, which sometimes prey on these birds.

41. Storks are capable of building truly huge nests with a diameter of up to one and a half meters and weighing about two centners. Sometimes storks have “tenants” and starlings or sparrows live in the same nest with them.

42. In Orthodoxy, the stork is considered a symbol of the Annunciation. This is due to the fact that storks arrive in the spring, bringing the good news that warmth has defeated the cold and summer will soon come, just as the angel told the Virgin Mary about her impending motherhood. Some researchers believe that the myth that the stork is the one that brings babies is due to this association.

43. In Japan, hunting storks has been prohibited by law since the founding of the country.

44. The stork is considered one of the symbols of Belarus.

45. In Africa and Asia, there are soothed storks with a bare neck.

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46. ​​A family of storks is created very simply: the male accepts as his wife the first female that flies up to his nest. If last year’s girlfriend suddenly returns to the old nest, where the young female has already settled, a fight begins between the contenders, and the male leaves the winner in the nest.

47. Birds lay from 2 to 5 eggs in a nest. Parents incubate them in turn for 33 days.

48. When many people see a stork on a nest, they think that they see a female, but usually it is a male. Future parents share their responsibilities: the male incubates the eggs during the day, and the female at night.

49. In all the territories where storks live, the population treats this bird very carefully, believing that it brings happiness, prosperity and many children to the house.

50. Storks are very useful birds that protect plantings from pests. So, hunters, for example, compiled a description of the contents of the stomachs of three caught birds: in the stomach of the first stork they found 76 cockchafers, inside the second - 730 larvae of leaf wasps, in the third - 1315 pieces of locusts.

photo from the Internet

Female and male: differences

Male

The male weighs up to 4 kilograms. The male representative has a powerful body with a retracted chest, wide long wings, and a medium-sized tail. In some species, the area around the eyes turns blue during the breeding season.

Female and male stork in the nest

Female

The weight of the female varies from 2 to 2.5 kilograms. Her body is not as built up as that of the male. The neck is shortened, shaped like the number “2”. The beak is pressed to the neck.

Marabou

The Latin name is Leptoptilos. This is the common name of the genus and includes Javanese, African, and Indian marabou. Like the Brazilian jabiru, these storks are large, with a large head and a massive beak. Even adult birds look more like ugly ducklings than beautiful swans. The wings reach 70 centimeters in length, and the birds weigh about 5 kg. The marabou has an unofficial name - “adjutant”, received for its gait, like that of the military. There is no feathering on the bird's head, as well as on the peculiar protrusion of the neck, which helps to hold the heavy beak. The tail, back and wings are dark gray or black.

Spreading

Habitat of the stork
In Russia, storks live in the territory from the Baltic Sea to the Urals, then in Southern Siberia and the Far East, bypassing the Kuril Islands and Kamchatka. A small group of black storks lives in Chechnya and Dagestan. Outside Russia, they live in Asia, Eastern Europe, Africa, and are found sporadically in the Netherlands, Iceland and southern Saxony. In North America and England, as well as in Australia, there are no storks of the genus Ciconia.

Where do storks live

A stork drinks water from a lake.
Storks live in quiet, dense deciduous forests, next to swamps and lakes rich in aquatic life.
Storks live in tall trees. These birds are found in hilly and mountainous areas. Some species of storks, in particular White storks, nest next to humans. They build nests on power lines and roofs of outbuildings.

Tantalum

The fifth and last genus of stork birds represented in India is Tantalus, 4 species of which are distributed in the tropical countries of Asia, Africa and America. It differs from other storks in the shape of its beak, which is rounded at the tip and rounded at the top and slightly curved downward, thus occupying the middle between the beak of the ibis and other storks.

stork tantalum

The Indian representative of this genus, the Indian tantalum (T. leuco-cephalus), known as the pelican ibis, belongs to the most famous birds of India, common in areas rich in water. It lives alone or in pairs, often nests socially in large trees near villages, easily becomes tame and is then very trusting of humans.

Is the stork a migratory bird or not?

Stork bird in flight
Storks are migratory birds. Every year at the end of summer they fly to warmer climes. The young ones fly away first. Young birds gather in flocks and fly along the same routes and to the same places as their parents. Adults are removed from the site a little later. The birds fly in a wedge at an altitude of 1-2 kilometers. The flight continues throughout daylight hours; at night, the storks make a stop. The distance that birds cover during migration is 6-9 thousand kilometers. In spring, the birds form flocks again and fly back. Young animals can remain “overwintering” from one to three years before reaching sexual maturity.

Species living in South Africa, Central and Southern Europe, America, Japan and Asia lead a sedentary lifestyle, since food remains freely available for them all year round.

When do storks fly away for the winter?

The stork flies away to warmer regions
Like all migratory birds, storks fly away to warmer regions by the beginning of autumn and return back after 6-7 months. Storks from Belarus fly away for the winter in mid-August. The signal for the start of migration is the first night cold snap and shortening of daylight hours. Storks from the Kaliningrad region fly south in early September. In warm autumn, birds stay in their habitat until the end of the month. Storks return from wintering in early March. From the Leningrad region, storks fly south already in July. Returns occur in early April. Chinese storks move away closer to October.

Where do storks spend the winter?

Two storks in a field
Different species of storks have their own wintering place. One of the countries where storks fly is Africa. Storks from Russia migrate to East Africa for the winter, Belarusian storks spend the winter in the south of the African continent. Some species fly to Asia Minor during the summer. Belarusian storks fly southwest to Spain and Gibraltar. Some flocks remain to bask there. Others continue their journey through Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal, and Guinea to the south of the continent. Spanish and Algerian birds join the European storks as the school moves. A significant portion of birds remain for the winter in West Africa, in particular Senegal and Nigeria. Russian birds fly to Africa through Asia Minor and Israel to the east coast of Africa - to Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia. In warm winters, the migration route is shortened. If weather conditions permit, storks remain for the winter on the coasts of the Mediterranean and Black Seas.

White stork in the Red Book

The species is listed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

In Russia, it is listed in the Red Book of the Moscow, Rostov, Kaluga, Belgorod, Nizhny Novgorod, Kaluga, Tver, Ryazan, Kirov, Tambov regions, Stavropol and Krasnodar territories, Chechnya, Mordovia, Karelia.

Main causes of extinction

Factors influencing the decline in the white stork population:

• land reclamation, construction of industrial facilities;
• reduction of nesting territories due to forest fires and logging;
• chemical treatments of agricultural land;
• destruction of nests during inspection of power lines by energy company employees;
• poaching, destruction of clutches by people and bears;
• throwing out, eating chicks by parents.

During the operation of hydraulic structures, water discharges through the dam lead to shallowing of small reservoirs. The oxbow lakes are overgrown with grass and shrubs, reducing food habitats.

Not all white storks reach their wintering grounds. Some die due to storms, collisions with high-voltage power lines, lighthouses, and vehicles.

Scientists believe that the main reason for the decline in numbers is the reduction in food supply.

Current population situation

According to the results of the fifth International census in 1995, the total number of white storks was 170–180 thousand pairs. Of these, the majority were from populations living in Poland, Spain, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, and Russia.

After 10 years, the number increased by 50 thousand pairs, while significantly decreasing in Uzbekistan and Denmark. The largest increase was noted in Portugal, Sweden, Italy, and France.

In Russia, according to expert estimates, about 7–8 thousand pairs nest. More than others were taken into account in the Pskov, Kaliningrad, Bryansk and Smolensk regions. With a general decrease in the population, resettlement continues to Russia and Ukraine with a shift of the range to the east.

Are protective measures required?

Recommendations for preserving the population and nesting sites:

• explanatory work, registration of storks with the involvement of the population;
• creation of nesting platforms, protection of existing ones;
• patronage of nests by organizations servicing power lines and water towers.

For storks in trouble, rehabilitation centers have been created in Russia. Organizations provide injured or sick birds with veterinary care and return to their natural habitat.

To restore numbers throughout Europe, programs for the conservation and reintroduction of the species have been created in the Netherlands, Sweden, England, Belgium and Switzerland.

The stork is a symbol of Belarus

A stork stands on one leg on a stump.
In the Republic of Belarus, storks are called “busly” (“buslik” and “lyalko”). Busel is a symbol of Belarus. These birds are clean and peaceful, they are caring parents. Along with swallows, doves and cranes, buslas are sacred birds for Belarusians. With its white wings, the busel shelters the people from everything bad.

Stork eats grass

Busel in Belarus appears as a wise, ambitious being with high moral qualities. According to ancient legend, the busel was once a man, but God turned him into a bird. The arrival of a bird from wintering means the arrival of spring, the rebirth of life. The image of the busla in Belarus can be found in art and folk art.

There are many white storks in Belarus. 15 years ago there were 20 thousand pairs in the republic. Today the number of birds has increased by another 10 thousand. Population growth is associated with an increase in suitable nesting sites. The Belarusian climate is mild, there is enough habitat for birds.

Two storks in flight

Storks live near human settlements, since food can always be found nearby. These birds settle only where there is plenty of food for them. In the wild, storks settled on tree branches near swamps. But due to the reduction of places suitable for living and food, storks began to move closer to people. Today, storks feed in hay pastures and arable lands, in vegetable gardens and orchards.

Natural enemies

Due to the large size and high location of the nests, storks do not have many enemies. Most often, their numbers are declining due to climate change, landscape changes and human activity. A dangerous enemy in modern cities is power lines. In addition, it has been precisely proven that sometimes storks themselves clear their population of weak individuals.

Photo: proprikol.ru

Starling (50 photos): description of the bird, habitat and what it eats

Nutrition

Stork on the hunt
Storks are birds of prey. They hunt reptiles and fish, snakes and small mammals. Their diet includes frogs, eels, salamanders, and crabs. During the breeding season, small fish, small birds and animals are added to the menu. Storks feed their chicks with snails, worms, mollusks, beetles and their larvae. Storks feed on snakes, and do not shy away from poisonous species, such as vipers. Creeping up on the victim unnoticed, the stork grabs the snake with its tenacious beak and begins to forcefully hit the ground. Having stunned it, the stork swallows its prey whole.

Lifestyle and behavior

Stork in the swamp
Predators spend most of the day searching for food. They look for food by standing in the water with their wings spread and their head bowed low. As soon as prey appears in the water surface, the stork throws its head forward and grabs the victim with its long beak. Hunting, as a rule, takes place alone. If food resources allow, then the birds flock to the table to eat to their heart's content. Storks forage for food in the water, but sometimes come to land to hunt ferrets, mice, and gophers.

Photo of a flock of storks on a field

During the breeding season, storks stay in pairs; birds gather in flocks only during migration. Surprisingly, before flying to hot countries, storks perform a “cleansing” - sick and old birds are beaten to death with their beaks. This is done so that during a long flight, weakened birds do not delay the flock. In addition, sick birds are carriers of infections, which can lead to the spread of diseases among healthy birds.

Storks return from their winter quarters in March-April. The males arrive first. The first thing they do is start arranging their home.

Argala

The more famous of the two representatives of this genus, the argal (L. dubius), ranging from Northern Hindustan through Eastern India to Sumatra, Java and Borneo and often found in the vicinity of large cities, appears, for example, in large flocks in Calcutta in the hot season. Previously, when the cleanliness of the city still left much to be desired, the argala at night usually sat on the roof of the governor’s house and other tall buildings in the city.

Argala stork

As a useful cleaner of street sewage, he enjoys the protection of the law in many areas, but, in addition to carrion and other garbage, he also eats reptiles, frogs and fish. This bird is also called the bald stork orderly . This bird hatches its eggs in large societies, often together with pelicans, and it is remarkable that although it has no vocal muscles and usually cracks its beak like our storks, it can nevertheless produce a cry reminiscent of the lowing of a cow.

stork nest

Storks in the nest
Storks build huge nests, measuring 1.5 * 1 m. The weight of a stork's nest is 200-250 kilograms. Storks make nests on poles, roofs of buildings, and treetops near water bodies. The presence of water near the “house” is an important condition when searching for a nesting site, since the birds are very voracious and the presence of food nearby is their priority. Having once built a nest, birds use it throughout their entire lives. Every year the storks return to their nest. It is easier for them to renovate an old home than to waste energy each time building a new one.

Photo of a family of storks in a nest

The male builds the nest. Construction takes him two weeks. The bird carries twigs and large branches to the place and weaves them together. The bottom is lined with grass or hay. Birds living near humans use objects found near the house or in the barnyard as bedding - old rags, wool, paper, straw.

Lonely stork in its nest

Each species of stork has its own peculiarity of nest construction. White storks are sloppy in this matter; their nests are always hastily built, looking like a bowl of branches thrown on top of each other. By the end of the season, holes and gaps form in their nests, so the birds have to patch the walls and bottom every year. Black storks have neat and compact “houses”. Strengthen the walls of the bird with clay or damp soil. The nests serve their owners for many years. Every year the nest of the stork family becomes larger: the walls thicken, the depth increases. Sometimes storks live in the same nest with small passerine birds.

Interesting facts about the bird

Amazing facts about white storks:

1. Cleaning is done before migration. They destroy weak and sick relatives.
2. For thermoregulation, on hot summer days they defecate on their feet. The higher the air temperature, the more droppings, which cool the skin and reflect the sun's rays.
3. They do not wake up when changing the supporting leg.
4. Dry prey is rinsed in water so that it can be swallowed.
5. They build sloppy nests by throwing branches on top of each other.
6. Images of a white stork are present on city coats of arms, coins, and ancient frescoes.
7. In Muslim mythology, storks are the souls of believers who were unable to visit holy places.
8. The oldest nest was occupied 381 times. The largest one - with a diameter of one and a half meters, weighs 200 kg.

Grown-up chicks taken from the nest quickly get used to humans. They greet acquaintances by opening their wings and tapping the beak halves. If an adult tamed bird is released into the wild, it will fly a little and come back.

Reproduction

Photo of a family of storks
Having finished building the nest, the male begins to search for a partner. Or rather, the female herself chooses a male from among those who have already acquired a home. The female who flies to the nest first becomes the male's spouse. Sometimes females fight for a specific male, while the male does not take part in the fight. Storks are monogamous birds. The bird lives with one partner for the rest of its life. The only exception is the death of one of the partners, then the lonely bird chooses a new mate. Birds mate in the air, while the birds stay parallel to each other, rushing high into the sky.

Photo of stork eggs in a nest

The stork lays from two to four eggs measuring 6*5 centimeters. The shell is white, matte, rough. Laying lasts a week, eggs appear at intervals of two to three days. Incubation begins with the first egg. Storks hatch their chicks one at a time: while the male sits in the nest, the female feeds at this time. Then the birds change places. 30 days after the first egg is laid, the chicks appear.

Appearance and features

Photo: White stork bird

The stork is a bird almost entirely white. On the wings and slightly behind there is a border of black flight feathers; it is more visible during the flight of the bird. When the bird is standing, the back of the bird appears to be black due to the folded wings. During the mating season, the bird's plumage may take on a pinkish tint. The bird has a large, pointed, smooth beak. Long neck. The bird's head is small in size. Bare black skin is visible around the eyes. The iris of the eyes is dark.

The main part of a bird's plumage is the flight feathers and feathers covering the shoulder part of the bird. The bird has long feathers on its neck and chest; if the bird is disturbed, it fluffs them up. Males also fluff up their feathers during mating games. The tail is slightly rounded. The bird's beak and legs are reddish in color. White storks have bare legs. While moving on the ground, the stork slightly shakes its head. In the nest and on the ground it can stand on one leg for quite a long time.

The flight of a stork is a fascinating sight. A bird gently soars in the air, almost without flapping its wings. During landing, the bird sharply presses its wings towards itself and pushes its legs forward. Storks are migratory birds and can easily cover long distances. Birds mainly communicate with each other by chattering their beaks. When clicking its beak, the bird throws back its head and extends its tongue; this clicking replaces vocal communication. Sometimes they can make hissing sounds. Storks are long-lived and on average white storks live about 20 years.

Stork chick

A stork chick is having lunch.
Since all eggs have a different period of postembryonic development, stork babies are born in different sizes. The smallest chick is born from the last egg laid. Mature stork chicks (maturely hatching) have fluff on their bodies, the chicks see and hear well, and can move around in the nest. The skin of immature chicks (immature hatchlings) is bare, they are blind and helpless, and cannot independently maintain normal body temperature. The skin of the cubs is light gray, the beak is orange. By 40 days of life, young storks fledge.

Photo of a stork hatching from a nest

Stork chicks look larger than the babies of other bird species similar to storks. Scientifically, a baby stork is called a “chick.” People call the offspring of storks “storks.” If we are talking about one chick, then we can say “stork”.

Why do storks throw their chicks out of the nest?

Stork chick in the nest
Parent storks are attentive and caring towards their babies. For the first two weeks, they warm the chicks, take turns feeding them, and make sure that they are not eaten by other birds of prey. However, these birds are not without hard-heartedness: storks closely monitor the development of the young, and if they notice that the offspring have weak and frail specimens, then they coldly throw the chicks out of the nest. Such cruelty is explained by the fact that immature chicks are not viable, and therefore parents prefer not to waste energy, time and food on them. Birds either peck at weak and sick chicks or throw them out of the nest. There is a reason for this behavior: immature chicks are disposed of so that stronger and more mature chicks can get more food. When parents have nothing to feed their newborns, the last hatched chick usually lags behind in development. It may be trampled by other chicks or thrown out of the nest. or he himself may fall out of the nest due to lack of space. We are talking about natural selection - whoever is stronger survives.

Photo of stork chicks falling out of the nest

Adult storks do not always throw out only weak chicks from the nest. In hungry years, parents can also get rid of healthy offspring, leaving 1-2 chicks in the nest, which they can feed. Sometimes strong chicks themselves get rid of competitors - they throw their brothers and sisters out of the nest. Due to lack of food, adult storks eat their chicks or eggs.

The storks feed the remaining healthy young with earthworms. Newborn birds deftly grab food and swallow it whole.

Two stork chicks are waiting for their parents

At one and a half months old, stork chicks make their first flights under the supervision of adults. The parents continue to feed the brood for another two weeks. By 70 days of life, young birds leave the parental nest. At the end of summer, mature storks gather in flocks and fly south separately from their parents. They fly to the wintering grounds of adult birds, unmistakably choosing the route of their descendants on an intuitive level. Young storks return to their birthplaces upon reaching sexual maturity (at 3-4 years).

Signs about the stork

A white stork flies near the trees.
According to an ancient legend, God instructed a man to take a bag of snakes, frogs and lizards to the river and throw them out there, but the slave did not fulfill the request and released the reptiles. For disobedience, the man was turned into a Stork. The bird's food was the same frogs and snakes released into the wild.

Most signs associated with storks are positive. The people believed that the bird protected from evil spirits and evil spirits, and attracted happiness and wealth to the house. In ancient times, storks were considered sacred birds, and it was forbidden to hunt them. People tried to lure birds to the house - this way they attracted good luck and prosperity.

Stork on the roof of a house

A lucky omen is to see a stork on the roof of a house. Storks have always preferred to live next to humans, but not every human home became their shelter. For unknown reasons, birds choose specific houses, bypassing others. A stork's nest on the roof of a house is considered a good sign. For a family living in a house, the appearance of a bird promises family and financial well-being. You will be even luckier if next year the stork family returns to the old nest - such a sign meant that it would be good for at least a year. A popular legend about the stork says that a stork living on the roof of a house protects against damage, the evil eye and bad news. Great grief foreshadowed the sudden abandonment of the nest by the stork family. People believed that if birds abandoned their nesting grounds, disease and poverty would come to their home.

Other signs:

The stork is looking for something in the grass

1. Storks settled on the roof of a barn or took a fancy to a building in a barnyard - for large offspring. Cows will produce more milk, and chickens will lay eggs.
2. Seeing a stork in reality is a sign according to which a person will be protected by higher powers throughout the next year.
3. It is a lucky omen if a stork flies to the house. This event will certainly bring good luck, harmony and prosperity to the house.
4. Seeing a stork in the sky is a sign that guarantees success in work matters. A stork flew overhead - to meet pleasant people, to fulfill all plans.
5. It is a good omen to see a stork on the road - such a meeting with a bird promises a pleasant time with family and friends, peace of mind.
6. According to popular belief, if a stork flies past a particular house or lands on the roof of a house, it means that a child will soon be born there. The arrival of a baby in the family is signaled by a stork flying over the heads of the future parents.

Signs about weather and nature:

Two storks are freezing

1. A stork flew over the field - for a harvest year.
2. Seeing a flock of storks is a bad omen, foreshadowing a cold, rainy, protracted autumn.
3. Storks are circling over the nest - strong winds are expected.
4. The bird sits motionless on a branch - sunny, dry weather will change to rainy.

The person who finds a stork feather will have a happy, long life.

Two bird feathers for an unmarried girl means that she will get married within a year. In ancient times, Indians decorated their clothes with stork feathers because they believed that they brought good luck in hunting. The found feathers were kept in a secluded place.

Why do storks bring babies?

Photo of a stork with a basket
Since ancient times, storks have symbolized new life, birth. Each of us at least once in our lives has seen a picture depicting a stork carrying a bundle with a baby in its beak. He delivers the child to the parents - this is how offspring appear in the family. It is not known for certain who connected the stork and the child, since many civilized nations have similar legends. Historians believe that the origins of ancient myths about storks distributing children to childless people are in Northern Europe. During the time of the pagans, marriage ceremonies among people took place in the summer. At the same time, the storks flew away for the winter. The birds returned after 9 months. Their arrival coincided with the birth of children from those couples who were married last summer. Thus, the appearance of storks foreshadowed the birth of children. Gradually everything got mixed up and resulted in a wonderful story about noble birds - messengers of God who carry children all over the world.

Stork holding a baby in its beak

Birthmarks on newborns are called “stork’s kiss.” This peculiar pigment formation is most often located between the eyebrows or on the back of the head and does not pose a threat to health. Redness on the skin usually goes away in the first years of life. Nevus received its name due to its shape in the form of wings and a heart.

Dream about a stork

Stork walks in the field

• to see a stork flying overhead in a dream - to a quick addition to the family;
• if a person dreamed that a stork had built a nest on the roof of a house, then this dream means that a happy future awaits him;
• a dream about a family of storks foreshadows a happy marriage;
• an unmarried girl dreamed of a stork - foretells early marriage;
• dream of a stork sitting on the roof of a house or a tree - to a pleasant meeting with relatives;
• empty nest of storks - a dream promises troubles, family conflicts;
• A black stork dreams of problems at work.

Origin of the bird's name

Storks fight
According to one version of the origin of the name of the bird, “stork” refers to the German dialect, in the dictionary of which there is the word “Heister”. The Germans used this word to call the magpie bird, then they began to call the birds that we call “storks.” The German word entered the Russian language in the form “geister”, which over time was transformed into the word “stork”. Initially, only the Black Stork species was called "stork". Since the mid-19th century, when the white stork began nesting in Russia, the name “stork” extended to this species of bird.

Origin of the species and description

Photo: White Stork

White stork (Ciconia ciconia). Order Stork-like. Stork family. Genus Storks. Species White stork. The stork family includes 12 species and 6 genera. This family belongs to the order of long-legged birds. According to scientific data, the first storks lived in the Upper Eocene era. Some of the most ancient remains of storks were found by scientists in France. The stork family reached its maximum peak of diversity in the Oligocene era.

Apparently, in those days the best conditions for the life and development of birds of this genus developed. In the modern world, there are descriptions of 9 fossil genera, as well as 30 species. Some species of storks that exist in the modern world lived during the Eocene. And also 7 modern species are known from the Pleistocene period.

Video: White stork

It is known that ancient storks were many times larger than modern birds, and also differed slightly from modern birds in their physiological structure and way of life. The modern white stork is a large white bird. The wings have black trim. The back of the stork's body is also black. Females do not differ in appearance from males. The size of the bird is about 125 cm. The wingspan is about 200 cm. The body weight of the bird is about 4 kg.

The species Ciconia was first described by the secular scientist Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Carl Linnaeus was the first to mention this species in a unified system of classification of flora and fauna.

Interesting facts about storks

The stork froze in place

1. In the 17th century in Italy, storks were exterminated.
2. The only enemy of the stork is the eagle.
3. White storks prefer to live next to humans, while black storks, on the contrary, avoid communicating with people.
4. In Orthodoxy, the stork is considered a symbol of the Annunciation.
5. Africa is home to a separate species of predatory storks - marabou. These birds feed on carrion and behave unfriendly to other birds and humans.
6. The stork can soar in the air for hours without moving its wings.

Habitat

On European territory there are black and white storks, which are classified as migratory birds. In central Europe, these birds appear in February/March. These birds are not found in the vast expanses of England.

White-bellied storks live within the African continent, from Ethiopia to South Africa. As for white-necked storks, they can actually be found in southern Thailand; Malayan storks are found in western Malaysia and Brunei. These birds prefer to nest in biotones that are untouched by humans and represent lowlands with the presence of forest plantations. In addition, storks settle in floodplains of rivers, as well as near various fresh water bodies.

Interesting moment! Some populations of these birds are found in northern Korea, northeastern China, and also in Mongolia. These birds winter in the south, as well as in southeast China. These areas are characterized by the presence of wet areas, small ponds, and rice fields.

The habitat of American storks extends to the South American continent, starting from the expanses of Venezuela and ending with the territories of Argentina. Here they nest in damp areas, as well as near agricultural lands. Far Eastern storks prefer to live in the Far East, or rather in Primorye and the Amur region, as well as in the basins of rivers such as the Amur, Zeya and Ussuri.

Stork's nest - be careful

How long do storks live?

A stork walks along the mown grass.
Sedentary species of storks live longer than their migratory counterparts. On average, storks live 15-20 years. The life expectancy of white storks is 19-20 years. In captivity, birds live up to 30 years. Far Eastern storks in the wild live no more than 19 years. In protected conditions, birds can live 40-45 years. Black storks have a life cycle of 18 years. Birds in captivity live 5-6 years longer.

Name options:

• male stork - stork;
• female stork - stork;
• chick or baby stork - stork;
• chicks or baby storks are storks.

Lifespan

How long do storks live? In ideal artificial conditions, birds can live for more than a quarter of a century. How long do storks live in natural conditions? A rare individual lives up to 15 years. Factors that hinder the long life of storks include environmental conditions, natural selection, diseases, lack of food, and harm caused by humans and predators. Sometimes representatives of this family themselves shorten the lifespan of their fellows by pecking at sick birds. It has been noticed that storks live longest where the energy is positive, where there are no people swearing nearby, where peace and tranquility reign.