White stork: the famous bird of Russian nature. White stork: description with photo

Busel are white

The whole territory of Belarus

Stork family - Ciconiidae

In Belarus - C. c. ciconia (the subspecies inhabits the entire European part of the species range).

Common breeding migrant and transit migrant. The territory of Belarus is conditionally divided into 3 regions with different nesting densities of the white stork: southern and southwestern regions with high density, central regions with medium density, northern and northeastern regions, where storks are common, and in some places rare.

The appearance of a stork is well known: a long, straight and sharp beak, a long neck and long legs, wide wings. The plumage color is mostly white, only the flight feathers and the back of the back are black. The beak and legs of adult storks are red, but in young storks the beak is dark gray, almost black. The weight of males is 2.9-3.6 kg, females 2.9-3.1 kg. Body length (both sexes) 97-110 cm, wingspan 200-220 cm.

In the last 40 years, the white stork flew in the second decade of March - the first decade of April. The timing of the arrival of the white stork as it moves by 1° of latitude from the southwest to the northeast of the region shifts by 2–3 days. Autumn migration, on the contrary, occurs the same number of days earlier.

Inhabits open spaces mainly in flat areas, more often near water bodies or vast swamps. Moving with a leisurely gait along a mowed meadow or the shore of a reservoir, the stork looks for food. It rests on the nest or on the top of the tree. It is capable of soaring flight and can circle for a long time in the sky in ascending air currents. This is perhaps the only one of our birds, deprived of the ability to make sounds with a vocal apparatus. This bird produces a characteristic "scream" due to frequent blows of the mandible on the mandible. Thanks to the traditional patronage of the local population, white storks in Belarus are not afraid of humans and since ancient times nest in settlements - villages, towns and even small towns. There are especially many nests of storks in the villages of the Belarusian Polesie, adjacent to open river floodplains - the favorite places for feeding this bird. Among river floodplains or near them, along country roads, on forest edges, nests of white storks can also be found outside settlements. These birds nest, as a rule, in separate pairs, however, in the south of Belarus, group settlements are sometimes found, in which several pairs of storks nest in close proximity.

Males are the first to arrive at the nesting site, females 3-4 days later. Appearing in the spring already in the last decade of March, storks immediately occupy old nests. They are located, as a rule, on trees, but nests are often found on the roofs of houses and sheds, water towers, power line supports. Sometimes storks make nests in unusual places - for example, on stacks of hay, well cranes, and even on the boom of a non-working crane. They often occupy bases for nests specially arranged by people in the form of wooden frames or wheels mounted on trees. Birds usually nest in solitary pairs; group settlements of 4–10 or more pairs are also known.

The nest is a bulky structure made of twigs and branches mixed with bundles of hay and straw. Over the years, it becomes even more massive, as it has been in use for many years and is constantly being built on. A flat tray, as a rule, is lined with a rather thick layer of soft material, in particular, straw, hay, shreds of felt, wool, old rags, scraps of paper and rope, feathers, etc. The height of the nest is 40-115 cm, diameter 70-230 cm; tray depth 8-12 cm, diameter 35-40 cm. Construction of a new nest takes about 8 days.

In a full clutch there are from 2 to 6 (usually 4) eggs (as an exception, a clutch of 7 eggs is noted in Europe). Egg weight 100 g, length 73 mm (67-79 mm), width 52 mm (47-53 mm). The shell is white, yellowish in the light. When incubated, it may acquire a grayish tint; granularity is relatively weakly expressed.

The bird starts laying eggs in the last decade of April or early May. Egg laying occurs at intervals of 2–3 days. One brood per year. The male and female incubate for 29-30 or 33-34 days. Incubation usually begins after the laying of the second egg. The chicks stay in the nest for a long time, making their first flight not earlier than on the 50th day of life (in the second half of July - early August). Prior to this, adults regularly bring food to the chicks, and in the first weeks of their life, one of the adult birds is constantly on the nest, guarding the brood and covering the chicks from the sun in hot weather, and from rain in rainy weather. The chicks stay in the nest for 54–63 days. About 15–17 days after departure, parents feed the young. At the age of 70 days young birds become independent.

In the nesting behavior of storks, an interesting, not entirely clear phenomenon is often observed - throwing one or two eggs or chicks out of the nest. If a discarded chick is put back into the nest, storks in most cases (but not always!) Throw it out again. As a rule, the weakest chick of the brood is thrown out. Perhaps this behavior is associated with the difficulty of feeding the entire brood in years that are unfavorable in terms of food.

Not all pairs of storks nest. For the first time, birds start nesting at the age of three, some at the age of six, a small number at the age of two.

In August, stork families form pre-migratory clusters - flocks of 20-40, rarely up to 100 or more adults and young birds that are found in meadows, fields, forest edges, and human settlements. By the end of August, most of these flocks have already left the territory of Belarus, in September you can see mostly small “late” groups or single, often sick birds.

The range of food for the white stork is very wide: frogs, terrestrial and aquatic invertebrates, lizards and snakes, fish, small rodents, etc. There are cases of eating small birds and even small rabbits by storks. The quantitative ratios of different food objects vary greatly depending on the area and the season of the year.

During the national bird count in 1995–1996. (within the framework of the V International Census of White Storks) 11807 nesting pairs were registered, of which 97% successfully hatched chicks.

The number of white storks in Belarus at the end of the 20th century was estimated at 10.5–13 thousand pairs. According to the 2004 national census, about 21.5 thousand pairs of white storks nested in Belarus (9% of the world population of the species), in the Brest region - 5874 nesting pairs. According to the latest national census (2014-2015), the number of white storks in Belarus is estimated at 22-22.5 thousand breeding pairs and already accounts for 10% of the world population.

The maximum registered age in Europe is 39 years.

Olga Vasilevskaya, Pinsk district (Brest region)

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

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

White stork

The Latin name is Ciconia ciconia. This species can be recognized by its white plumage and black wingtips. Due to its contrasting coloration (legs and bright red), the white stork has become a muse for many Asian artists, its image can often be found in Chinese and along with images of cranes. An adult bird weighs an average of 4 kg, females - a little less. The wings of a white stork reach 60 centimeters in length. Attempts have been made to cross a white stork with a black one, but nothing has come of it, as their mating rituals are too different. White storks are monogamous.

Black stork

The Latin name is Ciconia nigra. Representatives of this species are slightly inferior to white storks in size: they weigh an average of 3 kg, and their wings do not exceed 55 centimeters in length. The color of the bird is usually not pure black, but with a greenish or red tint. The beak, limbs, throat and skin around the eyes are painted red. The abdomen of a black stork, the photo of which is presented to your attention below, is white. characteristic feature Black storks are monogamous: they choose a partner for life.

stork

The Latin name is Anastomus. This is the common name of the genus, it includes the African razin stork, the Indian razin stork. Main outward difference- a larger beak that does not close completely, there is always a small gap. That is why the bird got its name.

Brazilian Yabiru

The Latin name is Jabiru mycteria. This is a large bird with a wingspan of up to 2.5 meters. The tip of the long beak of the stork has a slight upward bend. The body of the Brazilian yabiru is painted white, while the head, neck and beak are blue-black. Females differ from males in yellow eye color. The neck of the stork, the photo of which you can see below, has a red-orange tint at the base.

Marabou

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

Far Eastern stork

The Latin name is Ciconia boyciana. It belongs to endangered species, in Russia the number of these birds does not exceed three thousand. Birds, like black and white storks, are monogamous. Outwardly, they resemble white storks, but are more massive, and their beak is painted black. It has other names: Chinese, black-billed stork. The area of ​​the skin around the eyes of Far Eastern storks is colored red. The extermination of individuals of this species entails not only a fine, but also imprisonment.

Stork food

The stork's main hunting tool is its beak. What do storks eat? The basis of the diet is animal food: from small insects, molluscs, pests and amphibians to small mammals. You can often see a stork eating snakes and frogs. The stork, the description of which is presented to your attention in the article, is able to catch a small bird, mouse, hare or gopher. Usually storks are slow, but they can also pursue especially interesting prey. It is not uncommon for these birds to cover large (5-10 km) distances from the nesting site in order to get enough food for the chicks.

The stork swallows food whole, is able to bring a large amount to its children. The structure of these birds also allows you to bring water in your beak. When hunting, the stork is easily able to disguise itself as the surrounding vegetation, remains motionless or walks very slowly. These birds almost do not make sounds, so they do not attract the attention of prey. Sometimes for lunch, the stork may choose the eggs of other birds.

What storks eat, we already know. And interestingly, in what quantity? After all, the bird is huge, and as you already know, food can be swallowed whole. For normal functioning, the body of an adult stork needs an average of 700 grams of food per day. Storks are excellent hunters, there are cases when they caught up to 50 mice in one hour.

Lifespan

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

Wintering grounds for storks

The stork is a migratory bird, except for South African birds that live in one place without flying anywhere. They are looking for places for wintering, where it will be warm enough and have plenty of food. Old and young storks go for wintering to warmer climes separately. As a rule, this occurs between the end of August and October. The flight takes place in the daytime, the birds fly high, the directions for European and Eastern storks are different.

The birds, whose habitats are located west of the Elbe, head to the Iberian Peninsula, then move towards Africa through Gibraltar. As a result, birds winter in western Africa, in the area between the Sahara desert and the tropics. European storks winter here, as well as birds from the Iberian Peninsula, and from Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria.

Birds whose nesting sites are located east of the Elbe go for wintering to the extended territory between Sudan and South Africa. They fly first to the Bosporus, then cross the lands of Asia Minor and Palestine, fly over the Nile River before reaching their destination. Part of the flock may remain in South Arabia, part chooses Ethiopia for wintering, the rest continue their long journey, some reach India.

The wintering places of storks also differ depending on the species: whites survive the winter in Africa, Pakistan, India, Korea, and the Japanese islands. Black - south of the Sahara, in the Ganges basin, in the southeastern part of China.

About chicks

Most often, there are more eggs in the clutch than chicks hatch: some eggs remain unfertilized. Incubation lasts from 30 to 46 days.

Baby storks have vision but are otherwise helpless for the first 70 days of life. The chicks are white and fluffy, after hatching they lie for about 10 days, and for the first 7 weeks they stay without getting out in the place of birth - the nest. Even after the chick has learned to fly, parents help him in search of food for 2-3 weeks.

While the stork chicks are in the nest, their weight may exceed the weight of the parents, but gradually their food is limited. Storks throw sick, weak chicks out of the nest, leaving only those able to fight for life. Sexual maturity occurs at the age of three years, birds begin nesting later - at 6 years.

Habitat

What determines the habitat of storks? The bird, in order to find food suitable for it, often settles in swamps, damp meadows and reservoirs with stagnant water. The climate for storks is preferred tropical, temperate or hot. Marabou build nests on storks prefer forests, whites - lowlands, yabiru - swampy areas.

White storks live in Europe, in North-West Africa, in Asia Minor and Central Asia, in the Amur Region and Primorye, on the Japanese Islands. Black storks live in the southern part of the Iberian Peninsula, in the south to the Persian Gulf, in the north - to St. Petersburg, Tomsk. For the black stork, the preferred nesting sites are those where there are old forests, impenetrable swamps. This bird does not like to be next to people.

stork nest

The nests of these birds take up a lot of space: their diameter reaches 2 meters, and their weight is more than 200 kg. Most often, birds choose the roofs of houses or trees, but there are also unexpected places where stork nests were found, for example, a lamppost. Previously, when the roofs of human dwellings were often thatched, storks settled there. Currently, their nests can be found on water towers,

Nest building materials: branches, branches, straw, grass, rags, wool, paper. The nest can accommodate adult parents and up to 7 eggs. Often storks settle where there are already dwellings of their relatives. As a rule, storks live in the same nest for more than one year, they build it very carefully, and repair it as necessary.

Legends and interesting facts about storks

What they eat what species are common - you already know that. In conclusion, I would like to tell you some legends and interesting facts about these incomparable birds. Storks are sacred in many countries, for example, in Japan it is forbidden to hunt them. In ancient Greece, it was customary to kneel at the sight of the first stork. There are many legends about storks, which cannot be said about any sparrow.

The most mysterious species can be called black storks: they prefer to live as far away from people as possible.

legends

• A curious legend explains the red coloration of the nose and legs of storks. Once upon a time, this legend says, God gave a man a bag full of snakes, hedgehogs and other reptiles. The man had to get rid of them: burn them, throw them into the sea, bury them, or simply leave them untouched, but he disobeyed. The bag was untied out of curiosity, and the recalcitrant person was punished with lifelong transformation into a bird-eater of various evil spirits. Former man he was ashamed of what he had done, because storks to this day are distinguished by a red nose and limbs.
• Ukrainian legend: once a stork nested on a house with two babies. There was a fire, but the owners were not at home, then the storks carried the children out of the fire, slightly singeing the tips of the wings. Since then, all storks are black, and the beak and legs are red.

Interesting Facts

• marabou is a predator and scavenger, so not all members of the stork family feed on frogs and beetles;
• storks are not inclined to change their nest often, there are cases when several families of birds lived in the same nest for more than 300 years;
• stork males are not particularly picky: they create a pair with the female who first visits their house (nest);
• not only females, but also male storks are engaged in incubation of eggs;
• the ancient Romans believed that chick storks, growing up, feed their parents, but this is not so;
• during flights, storks can fall asleep for a short time to restore strength, while continuing to move.

Signs associated with storks:

• a German sign: if a girl meets two storks with the onset of spring, this year will bring her marriage, if one - she will remain unmarried for now;
• a sign from Morocco: storks were considered people from a distant island, able to turn into birds and vice versa;
• Moldavians consider this bird a symbol of winemaking and grape growing;
• in Turkey, it was believed that the house on which the piles were protected from fire and lightning;
• Polish belief says that storks circle in the sky not just like that, but driving away clouds;
• Armenians consider storks to be the patrons of agriculture.

Large birds with a long, pointed beak belong to the stork family. The hind toe of the storks is poorly developed, the front three toes are connected at the base by a small swimming membrane. The vocal cords and membranes are reduced, so storks are almost dumb birds. They have no goiter, on the wing (on the first finger of the hand) there is a claw. In flight, stretch the neck forward.

This family includes 17 species of birds, united in 9 genera, distributed on all continents, but in North America they inhabit only the very south of the mainland. Most species live in the hot countries of the Eastern Hemisphere. There are 27 known fossil species of storks.

White stork (Ciconia ciconia) is a large bird, on high legs, with a long neck and a long beak. Its weight is 3.5-4 kg, the wing length is 58-61 cm. The color of the plumage is predominantly white, the ends of the wings are shiny, black. When the wings are folded, it seems that the entire back of the bird's body is black, hence its Ukrainian name is chernoguz. Beak and legs are red. The bare skin around the eyes and the front of the chin are black. Females are slightly smaller than males and do not differ in coloration.

The white stork breeds in Europe north to southern Sweden and Leningrad, east to Smolensk, Bryansk and Orel, in Northwest Africa, in Asia Minor to Western Iran, in Transcaucasia, in Central Asia (eastern parts of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan). In addition, the white stork nests in the east of Asia, in the Amur and Primorye, south to Korea, and on the islands of Japan. White storks winter in Africa, south of the Sahara and in the southern part of the UAR, in Pakistan, India and Indochina, in Korea and in the southern part of the Japanese islands.

White storks are monogamous birds. The same pair of storks can nest in the nest they built for several years in a row.

The spring arrival of white storks occurs quite quickly. According to the observations of D.N. Kaigorodov, these birds occupy the nesting area in the European part of the USSR for 17 days, usually from March 23 to April 9. However, there are later and more early dates arrival. Males arrive earlier than females. According to European authors, the white stork, returning from African wintering, flies an average of 200 km per day.

For the first time, storks start nesting at the age of three (more than half of the nesting birds), but some begin to breed later, sometimes even at the age of 6 years. A small number of birds start breeding as early as 2 years of age.

After arrival, white storks settle down, as a rule, in a low-lying landscape, where there are vast wet meadows, swamps and stagnant reservoirs. They arrange nests on the roofs of houses, in trees located in villages or close to them. Recently, storks have been making nests on high-voltage line supports, on factory chimneys. If there are few places suitable for nesting, fights arise between birds.

Stork nests are bulky, usually have a diameter of at least a meter, and if an old nest is occupied, which is renovated and completed by storks, then the diameter can reach one and a half meters. The construction of a new nest takes about 8 days. It is built by both members of the couple. Occasionally, white storks build a second nest, which serves them for sleeping or as a guard post. Nests are also made by young, not yet nesting birds.

Sometimes charred rods, pieces of half-burnt branches or chips are found in the nests of storks, apparently picked up by birds at the place of a fire in a meadow or on a river bank. If the firebrand is not completely extinguished, the fire can be fanned by the wind, and in this way the stork “sets fire” to its nest. A similar case is described, for example, by A. V. Fedosov for Sevsk (Bryansk region). When the nest of storks, located at the very top of the roof of one bell tower, suddenly began to smoke, both adult birds began to throw down the burning rods and branches. The situation was saved only by the fire brigade arriving on time. Such cases probably served as the basis for the legend that storks, if the owner of the house destroys their nest, bring a burning firebrand in their beak and set fire to the house of the inhospitable owner.

In a full clutch there are from 2 to 5 eggs, most often 4-5, but sometimes storks incubate only 1 egg, rarely 7 eggs in a clutch. Apparently, the feeding conditions of the year influence the number of eggs in a clutch. In addition, young, first-time breeding birds lay fewer eggs than older ones. Eggs are white with a slight sheen.

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Their size is as follows: the long axis is on average 73.8 mm, the short one is 53.8 mm.

Eggs are not laid daily, but at intervals of 2 and sometimes even 3 days. Birds begin to incubate usually after laying the second egg. Both parents incubate for 33-34 days. The hatched chicks are helpless, but sighted, covered with white fluff. They sit in the nest for 54-55 days, and after leaving the nest, their parents feed them for another 14-18 days. Chicks become independent at the age of about 70 days.

Shortly before departure, white storks gather in small groups, sometimes in flocks; in wintering they sometimes stay in thousands of flocks. Departure begins in late August - September, sometimes delayed until October. Birds fly during the day and at high altitude, often resorting to soaring flight. They move south about two times slower than they flew in the spring. Individual birds sometimes remain in their nesting area for the winter, for example, in Denmark.

European storks have two main routes of autumn migration. Birds nesting west of the Elbe migrate to the Iberian Peninsula, cross the Strait of Gibraltar and then settle for the winter in western Africa in the steppe belt between the Sahara and the tropical rainforest region. About 4 thousand birds of Central European origin winter in this area, about 110 thousand from the Iberian Peninsula, 140 thousand storks from Morocco and about 50 thousand birds from Algeria and Tunisia. Approximately one third of the birds wintering in West Africa (nesting in Tunisia and eastern Algeria) fly directly south across the middle Sahara for wintering, while others, including European storks, fly through Morocco and the western parts of the Sahara.

Oriental storks, that is, nesting in Europe east of the Elbe, are drawn to the Bosphorus in autumn, fly through Asia Minor and Palestine, then along the Nile Valley to Sudan and settle for wintering along a significant stretch of East Africa between southern Sudan and the Republic of South Africa. A small number of storks settle a little earlier: they can winter in Ethiopia and very few in South Arabia. Very many young storks stay for the summer in the area of ​​African wintering or linger on the spring migration 2000-3000 km from their homeland. Adult birds lingering on wintering grounds in South Africa may sometimes nest there. A small branch branches off the eastern flyway further east. By the northern shores of the Persian Gulf, it brings birds to Northern India.

White storks make flights, using mainly soaring flight, and fly in a narrow front, choosing the most aerodynamically favorable terrain. Naturally, storks avoid flying over the sea.

White storks feed on animal food, eating frogs, lizards, various insects, molluscs, fish and small mammals: mice, voles, small hares and speckled ground squirrels. On occasion, they can grab a small bird or chick. When feeding, storks walk slowly, but, noticing the prey, they can quickly run up to it.

White storks sometimes produce a kind of "cleansing their ranks" in the fall. They slaughter weak birds to death. Apparently, this circumstance served as the basis for stories about the presence of “courts” among white storks, which end with the death penalty of the “guilty” bird.

The life expectancy of a white stork is approximately 20-21 years. In one zoo in the UAR, a tame stork lived to be 24 years old.

It is noted that for last years in Western Europe, in places there is a decrease in the number of white storks. So, they completely or almost completely disappeared in Switzerland. In this regard, the number of these birds was counted. A census of the number of white storks in the Soviet Union, carried out in 1958, made it possible to establish the presence in our country of 26,103 residential nests. This is probably an underestimate, but it still gives a good idea of ​​how many white storks we have nesting. There are very few storks in the Far Eastern part of the range. There it is apparently an endangered bird that deserves especially careful protection.

Black stork(C. nigra) is somewhat smaller than white: its wing length is on average 54 cm, weight is about 3 kg.

The plumage of this bird is predominantly black with a greenish and copper-red metallic sheen, the ventral side of the body is white. The beak, legs, throat, unfeathered spot on the bridle and around the eyes are bright red.

This stork is widely distributed. It breeds in the south of the Iberian Peninsula and then from Germany and the Balkan Peninsula to the east to the shores of the Sea of ​​Japan and Sakhalin. To the north, its nesting area extends to Leningrad, Tomsk and the Aldan basin. In the south, it is found to the shores of the Persian Gulf. In the south of the steppe part of the USSR and in the deserts of Central Asia, this bird is absent. Black storks winter in Africa, south of the Sahara (however, relatively few birds cross the equator), as well as in the Ganges basin and in southeast China.

The black stork is a forest bird. A prerequisite for its nesting is a combination of old forests or at least groups of old trees with hard-to-reach swamps of a diverse nature, open banks of rivers and lakes.

In most of its range, the black stork nests in sparsely populated areas that are difficult for humans to access.

Like all ankles, the black stork is a monogamous bird; it starts breeding at the age of three. Soon after the arrival, which happens in late March - early April, the pair proceeds to build a nest, building it on tall, spreading trees, but usually not on the top, but on the side branches, 1.5-2 m from the trunk. Black storks do not form colonies. Their nests are usually located no closer than 6 km from one another, only in Eastern Transcaucasia they are located at a distance of only 1 km, and sometimes there are two residential nests on one tree. Nests are also arranged in rock niches and along high cliffs. The same nest serves black storks for a number of years. Thus, in Belovezhskaya Pushcha there is a known nest where black storks have bred their chicks for 14 consecutive years.

The nest is built from branches, sometimes so thick that the bird can hardly cope with them. With the help of sod, earth and clay, these branches stick together with each other. Compared to the nest of the white stork, the nest of the black one is neater and more skillful, it has a more or less regular hemispherical shape.

A full clutch of a black stork consists of 4 eggs, but sometimes more - up to 6 eggs, sometimes there are 2 or 3 eggs in a clutch. Eggs are laid with an interval of two days, and birds begin to incubate about a day after laying the first egg. Both male and female incubate. The duration of incubation in most cases is 35-46 days, but sometimes the chicks begin to hatch after 30 days of incubation. Often there are one or two unfertilized eggs (talkers) in the clutch, so there are usually fewer chicks in the nest than there were eggs.

The chicks hatch covered with thick white or slightly grayish down. Their beak is brightly colored, orange at the base and greenish-yellow at the end. For a long time (about 10 days), the chicks are in a lying position, then in a sitting position, and only at the age of 35-40 days they begin to stand on their feet. At the age of 50 days, already fully fledged, but still in the nest, they acquire a weight that exceeds the weight of their parents, then they lose some weight, since the parents feed them at this time less intensively. Young storks fly out of the nest at the age of 64-65 days.

Already in early August, families and small flocks of black storks begin to move south, but the flight can be delayed until late autumn.

Black storks feed on animal food. These can be fish (even up to 25 cm in size), frogs, various aquatic insects, and occasionally reptiles. Sometimes aquatic plants can also be found in the stomachs of these storks. The feeding areas of this bird are large. Storks often fly to feed at distances up to 5 km from the nest, there are cases when they had to fly even 10 km away. Parents feed their chicks 4-5 times a day, less often in rainy weather. In Belovezhskaya Pushcha, a case is known when an adult bird brought 48 frogs to its chicks at once with a total weight of 454 g.

During the flight, black storks, like white ones, constantly resort to soaring. The general appearance of a flying bird is as follows: wide wings, long legs thrown back, neck extended.

The genus belongs to the stork family stork(Anastomus), whose representatives are outwardly very similar to the white and black storks already described, but at first glance they are well distinguished from them by a more powerful beak and especially by the fact that when the beak is closed, a clearly visible gap between the mandible and mandible remains in its apical part. . Hence the name - razinya stork.

This genus includes 2 species. The Asiatic razini stork A. oscitans has white plumage with greenish-black flight and tail feathers, and a dull green beak. The Asiatic stork is smaller than all other storks. It is distributed in the south

Asia from India to South China and Thailand. It breeds in colonies, arranging nests on large bushes and trees growing near or in water. It feeds on freshwater mollusks and other invertebrates, as well as fish.

Breeds in Central and South America from Mexico to Argentina brazilian yabiru(Jabiru mycterica).

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This is a large stork. Its beak is long and slightly curved upwards at the end. The head and neck of the yabiru are not feathered and are dark bluish-black in color. The base of the neck is reddish-orange. The body is predominantly white.

The Brazilian yabiru places its huge nests on the tallest trees. It feeds on fish, frogs, worms and snails. Other species of jabiru inhabit South Asia, Australia and tropical Africa.

They differ greatly in appearance from other storks species of the genus marabou(Leptoptilus). African marabou(L. crumeniferus) - large heavy bird/

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When looking at it, a large, featherless head and a huge massive beak immediately attract attention. In a calmly sitting bird, the beak usually lies on a kind of pillow, which is a fleshy protrusion of the neck not covered with feathers. The plumage color of the African marabou is white, but the back, wings and tail are dark gray, blackish. Wing length 70 cm, beak 30 cm, weight 5-6 kg.

Marabu, or, as he is often called for his "solemn", military-type gait, adjutant, is widespread in tropical Africa. Marabou arranges their huge nests on trees, for example, on baobabs, sometimes even in villages. Often nests next to pelicans, forming mixed colonies.

The marabou feeds mainly on carrion, but on occasion it eats frogs, lizards, rodents and insects, in particular locusts. Often this bird can be seen hovering in the air, looking out for prey along with vultures. The vultures gathered on the carrion treat the flying marabou with great “respect”, since the blows of the marabou’s powerful beak are dangerous even for such large birds.

Two other species of marabou (L. dubius and L. javanicus) inhabit India and the islands of Indonesia up to Kalimantan. These marabou are similar to the African, but smaller.

Animal life: in 6 volumes. - M.: Enlightenment. Under the editorship of professors N.A. Gladkov, A.V. Mikheev - (Grallatores) a detachment of birds, very diverse in appearance, distinguished by more or less long and thin wading legs (see) (only rarely the lower part of the lower leg is feathered), living along the banks of rivers, lakes and seas, in swamps and rarely in fields. ... ...

Or stork-like (Herodines s. Ciconiae) a detachment of birds, which used to be connected together with waders and shepherds into one group of ankles (see. Ankles). C. are common in all zoogeographic regions. This includes five families: 1) ibis ... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron

This term has other meanings, see Stork (meanings). Stork ... Wikipedia

- (Ciconiidae), a family of storks. Length 76 152 cm. The beak is long, straight or slightly curved up or down. The wings are long and wide, some A. can soar for a long time. Most species are voiceless (there are no vocal muscles of the lower larynx) and ... ... Biological encyclopedic dictionary

There are many stories about the stork in human culture. Legends and beliefs are associated with this bird, poems and songs are composed about it. Since ancient times, it has been considered a symbol of family and fidelity. This amazingly graceful bird never ceases to amaze the imagination with its beauty and grace.

The most famous among storks is white. About him and will be discussed.

general characteristics

The stork bird has twelve species, the white of which is the most common. Its external features:

• white bird with black edging on wings;
• graceful elongated neck;
• thin beak;
• long red legs.

The bird has a proud gait. When the wings are folded, it looks like it is half black.

Males do not differ in color from females. You can distinguish them by size - females are smaller. By growth, the birds reach 125 cm, in a wingspan - 2 meters. The weight of an adult bird is no more than 4 kg. The life span of birds in nature is up to 20 years, less in captivity. The bird is considered a long-liver.

habitats

Where do storks live

The white stork settles throughout Europe and Asia. This is a fairly large area. In recent years, the range has shifted towards the east.

For the winter, the white stork flies to Africa or India. Populations living in Africa and Western Europe do not fly away for the winter, as winters in these areas are warm.

At the wintering grounds birds gather in numerous flocks, consisting of thousands of individuals. Young birds can stay in Africa for the entire winter hut. The flight takes place during daylight hours. They fly at a considerable height, while hovering. For this, areas that are comfortable in terms of aerodynamics are suitable for them. Birds avoid routes over the sea.

nests

Ornithologists have a special interest not in the habitat of the white stork, but in choosing a place for its nest. Back in the 19th century, an amazing feature of these birds was noticed - before building a nest, the stork watches people for a long time.

In connection with this feature, a belief was even born that if a stork's nest appeared in a village, it would bring prosperity and happiness to the inhabitants. Cases have been recorded when nests were found even on the roofs of multi-storey buildings. People, having discovered such a dwelling, are not upset, but, on the contrary, rejoice. Sometimes they even specially prepare sheds so that the bird can live on their roof.

Life in the wild

The white stork is in flight most of the time. And more often he uses energetically profitable way of flying - soaring. Having found suitable places for this, the stork can fly for many kilometers without flapping its wings. Birds fly 200-250 km per day.

During the flight, the bird may even take a nap. Scientists have drawn this conclusion from data on the weakening of the pulse and breathing of birds. At the same time, hearing becomes aggravated so that the bird can hear in which direction the flock is flying.

Birds fly in large flocks for the winter.. At this time, they switch to feeding on insects, preferring locusts. In Africa they are called "locust birds".

To observe storks, scientists use ringing. V Lately satellite surveillance is used. This method involves the supply of birds with transmitters that broadcast signals to the satellite. Thanks to this method, scientists study the characteristics of the life of birds, what the stork eats, how it reproduces, and other interesting points.

Nutrition

What does a stork eat in nature

The white stork feeds on small vertebrates and invertebrates. They feast on frogs, vipers, grasshoppers, eat beetles, earthworms, small fish, lizards. The movements of birds when searching for food are unhurried. But as soon as they notice the prey, they quickly run up to it and grab it. They carry water to their chicks with their beaks.

To search for food, the stork bypasses swamps and lowlands. The structure of his body quite allows him to do this. Legs with long toes give stability on unsteady wet ground. And the oblong beak allows you to get all sorts of goodies from the depths - mollusks, snails, frogs.

They can even pick up dead fish don't mind to enjoy also:

• moles;
• rats;
• small birds.

Of course, it is not so easy for them to catch moving animals.

The winged ones hunt in shallow water They do not like to go into deep water. They can feed on the ground, prefer freshly cut grass, where they catch small insects. In Africa, storks gather where people have burned the grass. In such places you can see hundreds of birds. They also fly to the fields and collect larvae there.

Storks can expect prey for a long time. For example, he can hide not far from the hole of a rodent and wait for it to stick out its nose. The time of such fading does not exceed several minutes.

In muddy water, the bird hunts "at random", not seeing its prey. She opens and closes her beak in the water until some tadpole comes across. The bird can catch food on the fly by capturing a dragonfly or other insects. In captivity, birds catch food, like dogs, on the fly.

Stork destroys dangerous insects: turtle bug, kuzku beetle, beet weevil. He helps farmers to eliminate the bear - this is a harmful insect that all farmers know about.

During the years of outbreaks of mice and rats, storks actively eat these rodents, providing significant assistance to humans.

One stork needs 700 grams of food per day. When feeding offspring, this volume increases greatly, and adults have to spend the whole day searching for food.

reproduction

The white stork is a monogamous bird. It creates a pair and a nest for breeding. Previously, nests were built only on trees near human dwellings. Birds built them from branches. Later they began to settle on the roofs of houses. Such a neighborhood does not upset people, but only pleases.

In recent years, storks have been building nests on factory chimneys and even on power lines. One nest is built for several years. Over the years, it has grown in size. It happens that after the death of adults, the nest passes to the offspring.

Storks begin to nest at the age of about six years. This is not surprising, because a bird lives for 20 years.

The males are the first to arrive at the nesting site.. In Russia, this is the beginning of April. First, the first female appears, then the second, a struggle flares up between them for the right to become a mother. Of course, no one wants to remain an old maid and live all his life alone. After all, only death can separate a pair of storks. The male does not interfere in the struggle of the females. He calls the winner to his nest, making special sounds. If another male flies up to the nest, the owner ruthlessly chases him away, striking with his beak.

The female brings from 2 to 5 eggs, less often from 1 to 7. Both parents incubate them. Usually during the day it is a male, and at night it is a female. The process takes 33 days. Little chicks have vision, but are completely helpless.

rearing chicks

Parents feed babies earthworms giving them out of his beak. Chicks catch worms on the fly or collect from the nest. Growing up, they pick up food from the beak of adults. Parents monitor the offspring, the sick and weak are thrown out of the nest. Chicks can also die due to lack of food.

After 55 days, the chicks begin to fly. Their first attempts are monitored by their parents, feeding them for another 18 days. Juveniles spend the night in parental nests and learn to fly during the day.

After 70 days, young people gain independence and fly away to spend the winter. Adults fly later - in September.

The white stork, meeting a couple, starts clicking its beak loudly. At the same time, the bird throws its head back to form a resonating space that amplifies sounds. This is how storks communicate.

In relation to relatives, the bird behaves aggressively. Weak individuals can even be beaten to death.

The number of storks in the western regions is rapidly declining. This is due to the decrease in the amount of food, an increase in the chemicalization of nature, leading to the death of birds and disruption of the reproductive regime. In Russia, the number of birds, on the contrary, is increasing.

Around the world there are about 150 thousand pairs of white storks, a third of them live in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.

Interesting legends associated with the bird. The stork has long been considered a protector from satanic forces. There is a legend explaining the origin of the bird. According to her, God, seeing the danger of snakes, decided to destroy them. He gathered all the reptiles in a sack and asked the man to throw the sack into the sea or into the mountains. But out of curiosity, the man opened the bag and freed the creepers. As a punishment, the Creator turned a man into a stork and forced him to collect snakes throughout his life.

There is also a fairy tale "Kalif-stork", where a man turned into this beautiful bird.

In view of the fact that for the second year near my house storks have been nesting on the concrete support of the power line, I decided to replenish my knowledge about these birds. And learned so much interesting facts that she decided to publish them in a journal. Basically, it concerns the white stork.
So:
Since ancient times, the stork was considered a sacred bird; in ancient mythology, storks (according to another version, cranes) were harnessed to the chariot of Mercury. In the beliefs of the ancient Chinese, he figuratively denoted a happy old age. And in many European traditions, the stork is a symbol of caring for elderly parents, since it was believed that adult storks feed old relatives who are not able to get food on their own.
In the Christian tradition, the stork symbolizes goodness, light and faith, as it actively destroys snakes, which Christianity considered a symbol of sins and the devil.
There is a widespread legend that the stork brings children and a good harvest. It is for this reason that storks were revered in countryside, and still in the villages they try to protect these birds from all troubles. Since ancient times, peasants have been fixing old cart wheels on the roofs so that the stork can make a nest. If, for some reason, storks left nesting on the house, it was believed that this was a punishment for sins and all sorts of troubles and misfortunes would fall upon the inhabitants of the abandoned house.
But on the African continent, where storks mostly winter, they are hunted. 80 percent of the death of these birds is shooting. Stork meat is used by Africans for food, the head and legs are used in witchcraft rites, and feathers are used for jewelry.
Do not lag behind the Africans and the inhabitants Far East. This led to the fact that the last Far Eastern stork nesting in Korea was killed in 1971. The only exception in the East was Japan, where stork hunting has always been banned.
In enlightened Europe, too, storks were not always treated favorably. In the 17th century, the stork was completely destroyed in Italy, Germany and Austria-Hungary did not lag behind, where at the beginning of the 20th century awards were given for shot birds.
The black stork had the worst of it, hunting for which was prohibited only in 1960. Greedy little people believed that he was eating them, destroying fish stocks.
The image of a stork was widely used in heraldry and symbolism. The stork, which is on the coats of arms, denotes vigilance and foresight, as it sleeps on one leg and is always ready to wake up and begin active actions. In the modern world, the stork is one of the unofficial symbols of Belarus. The stork is also used in the symbolism of Germany, and for the Japanese prefecture of Hyogo, the stork has become the official symbol.
The stork is a very large bird. The white stork (Ciconia ciconia) has a height of 100-125 cm and a wingspan of up to two meters. The weight of large individuals of this species reaches 4 kg.
The population of storks, living in a temperate climate, moves south to Africa during the cold season. And this is about 10,000 km. Birds have acquired a number of features for this. The wide powerful wings of storks are capable of making up to two strokes per second, which allows them to reach a speed of 45 km. at one o'clock. They actively use ascending air currents for climbing and gliding. Storks during the flight for 10-15 minutes can switch to rest mode. In this state, the bird's heart rate drops to the same level as during sleep. (The pulse of storks during wakefulness is 270 beats per minute). Thanks to all these devices, storks are able to fly up to 200 km per day.
The stork sleeps standing on one leg. At the same time, the bird periodically, without waking up, completely reflexively changes its tired leg.
The back toe of the stork is not developed, and there is a membrane between the front toes. It helps the bird to move through swampy areas and shallow water with a silty bottom.
The long strong beak of the stork is perfectly adapted for obtaining food - small fish, amphibians, reptiles and large insects.
The white stork does not make loud sounds, this is caused by the underdevelopment of the vocal cords. Of course, they are quite capable of giving out a weak squeak or hiss, but they use a different method as communication. Wanting to attract a female or drive away an opponent from the nest, the male white stork makes loud noises by clicking its beak. At the same time, the position of the body in each of these cases is different, which allows you to create a sound of different tonality. Females and even chicks of the white stork also use this method of communication, but chicks with a soft beak do not get a loud click.
According to different sources, the life expectancy of storks is very different. On the one hand, many authors claim that storks live up to 20 years, on the other hand, up to 70 years.
White and black storks are not picky about food. But they also have their own predilections. The most predatory is the white stork, which gladly eats small mammals (including ground squirrels and hares), and on occasion catches small birds and destroys nests with chicks. There have been cases when a stork attacked a weasel or even an ermine.
In addition to mammals and birds, the diet of the white stork includes amphibians, reptiles and mollusks. Predatory bird even eats poisonous snakes such as the viper. White storks do not disdain insects, especially in the spring. At this time, the favorite food of birds is earthworms, leaf wasp larvae, bears and May beetles. The white stork also willingly eats locusts. True, most of the locusts are eaten by them during the winter in Africa.
White and black storks arrive at the nesting sites in late March - early April. Moreover, males are several days ahead of females.
Storks reach marriageable age by the age of three. The female differs from the male only in size.
Storks prefer to use the same nest year after year. The oldest nest of a white stork is considered to be a nest built in 1549 on one of the towers in East Germany. It was used until 1930.
Returning to the old nest, the male immediately begins to build and renovate it. Often, old nests reach enormous sizes and weights of several hundred kilograms. Not only storks themselves, but also small birds settle in such “apartments”.
The male white stork that occupies the nest vigilantly guards it from competitors. When approaching another male, he drives away the opponent, loudly clicking with his beak, and the sound of clicking and the posture of the male is fundamentally different from the behavior by which the female is called. If the opponent persists, then a fight may break out between the birds.
All storks are monogamous, but migratory species change partners. The male arriving at the nest waits for the first female to respond to his call. At the same time, it does not matter whether his last year's girlfriend is still alive. Often, a clash occurs between a late last year female and a new one that managed to occupy the nest before her, and the male stork does not interfere in the conflict in any way. The winner stays with him.
The stork has about 3-5 eggs in its clutch. Incubation occurs on average for about a month. Their chicks are born helpless, although covered with down. After that, for about another two months, the parents take care of the chicks. Moreover, parents not only feed the chicks, but also give them water, and on a hot day they pour water over them to prevent overheating.
Trial flights begin at the age of two months, but for another 15-20 days the children live in the nest and the parents continue to take care of their grown chicks. Complete independence in migratory species of storks occurs at an age of slightly more than 70 days.
In the future, the chicks live separately from their parents. Their independence comes to the point that adolescent white and Far Eastern storks go for wintering a month earlier than adults. They may, at the age of one or two, may not return to nesting sites at all and all year round stay in the wintering grounds.
It has been noticed that white storks often throw weak and sick chicks out of their nests. Moreover, if the fallen chick is planted back, history will repeat itself. Most likely, this is how storks fight against overspending of food and protect healthy chicks from parasitic and infectious diseases.
The migration routes of storks are currently well understood. Western European storks fly through France, Spain and Gibraltar to Algeria and Morocco and on to wintering grounds in West Africa, or rather, to Senegal and Nigeria. storks of Eastern Europe- along the western coast of the Black Sea, over the Bosporus to Turkey and Syria, and further, along the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea to the lower reaches of the Nile and through the countries of East Africa up to the southern part of the continent. They finally reach the wintering grounds by December, evenly distributed over the entire territory. The flight pattern is laid down genetically. If storks from Eastern Europe are transported to Western Europe, they will still move by the eastern route, although it will be more protracted. But this will only happen if the relocated individuals do not come into contact with the local ones. Young birds from another region who have entered a flock of local storks will follow the routes suggested by older storks, and will soon master a new migration route.
Unlike cranes, storks do not form a geometrically correct V-shaped wedge and fly in a relatively free group following the leader. In flight, the bird stretches its neck forward, and the beak is slightly lowered down.
Storks have practically no natural enemies. Only large eagles and crocodiles can attack a powerful bird. Therefore, the main danger to the population of storks different types represents a person.
At present, only the white stork has achieved relative population stability. The rest of the species are under the threat of extinction, some because of their initially small numbers, and some because of the active influence of man. Black and Far Eastern storks suffered from human impact.
But even the white stork at the beginning of the 21st century had no more than 150,000 breeding pairs. Moreover, now there is a constant reduction in the number of birds nesting in the countries of Western and Central Europe. The main livestock is located in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.
In nature, large species of storks lead a solitary lifestyle, forming pairs during nesting. Nests are located at some distance from one another, and before the start of the mating season, males strictly monitor that competitors do not invade their living space.
Storks treat people differently. The white stork tries to settle closer to human habitation, preferring to place its nests on the roofs of village houses or old towers. The black stork, on the contrary, settles away from the person.
In home conditions, storks quickly get used to a person and easily make contact. It is better not to keep storks near pets of small sizes (rodents, and small birds), because birds may well try to eat other pets.
In relation to large poultry, storks behave calmly. Cases were mentioned when a stork living next to a person “grazed” and guarded him poultry, not allowing chickens to scatter around the yard.
Storks are not only beautiful and graceful, they are faithful helpers of man, destroying pests of agricultural plants. Separate types storks, among other things, are sensitive indicators of the ecological situation. It has been noticed that if a stork lives and feeds on some reservoir, then the water there is clean. Now it depends only on the good will of people whether those times can return when storks lived in every village, delighting those around them with their beauty.