adult

adult upperwing European distribution at rest

Identification

In many parts of Europe the White stork is an unmissable bird, attending to its huge nests on the rooftops and telegraph poles of numerous towns and villages. It is unmistakable, with a white body, mostly black wings, red legs and a long red bill.

Habitat

Breeds in towns and villages on the tops of roofs and poles or, in colonies, in trees in open parkland. Feeds mostly in fields and meadows.

Behaviour

The bill-clattering is often part of a greeting ceremony between adults at the nest where one or both birds may throw their heads backwards until the bill is upside-down and almost touching their backs. Bill-clattering is sometimes performed unforgettably by large flocks of migrant birds especially when they are about to tumble out of the sky in search of a roosting site.

Migration

Most birds migrate to tropical Africa (with some to Iran or the Indian sub-continent). Main departures are during mid-August to September, during which time huge numbers pass over the Bosphorus (up to 200,000 in a season) and Straits of Gibraltar (up to 40 000 a season).

This information is taken from the BirdFile on the appropriate BirdGuides DVD-ROM. As well as video and sounds, our CD- and DVD-ROMs contain additional text on Voice, Sexing, Ageing, Food, Nests and Eggs and more.

For the purposes of our bird news services, White Stork is classed as Scarce: broadly speaking, species that are covered in British Birds' annual review of scarce species (and forms of similar rarity).

Bentivoglio, Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy 28/12/2009	Castro Verde, Alentejo, Portugal 15/07/2009	Marshland St James, Norfolk 19/10/2009	Etang de Capestang, Languedoc-Roussillon, France 14/09/2009	Etang de Capestang, Languedoc-Roussillon, France 14/09/2009
Etang de Capestang, Languedoc-Roussillon, France 14/09/2009	Salgados, Algarve, Portugal 15/09/2009	Salgados, Algarve, Portugal 15/09/2009	Pt of Ayre, IOM 28/08/2009	Pt of Ayre, IOM 28/08/2009

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White Stork breeds in the following countries (Bird News Extra subscribers will see population statistics and information on trends for each country):

Albania
Armenia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Belarus
Belgium
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bulgaria
Croatia
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
France
Georgia
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Italy
Latvia
Lithuania
Macedonia
Moldova
Netherlands
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Russia
Serbia and Montenegro
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Turkey
Ukraine

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