Who can eat a stork. The white-necked stork has a white downy plumage of the neck.

Most people's knowledge about storks is limited to the fact that these birds allegedly bring children. Of course, this fact is not true. However, there is much more interesting information about storks that can literally amaze the imagination. Some of the facts given are related to the realm of mythology, which does not make them any less exciting and fascinating.

Ornithological facts

Not all storks are harmless. living in Africa are birds of prey. True, they can hunt only for fairly medium-sized prey, preferring carrion. Marabou in Africa are found so often that the locals do not even pay attention to them: for an African, a marabou is the same as a dove or a sparrow for a Russian.

In many pictures, the stork is eating a frog. Storks and insects do not disdain. And here's the fact that these birds birds can kill and eat poisonous snake, for many will be a discovery.

Storks do not build new nests, but equip old ones. Interestingly, these birds are extremely attached to their home and prefer not to move, but to repair. Interestingly, the oldest discovered nest was built about four centuries ago. Several generations of storks lived in this nest.

Storks are able to build truly huge nests of diameters 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.

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

Stork nests often burn down, and the owners themselves are to blame for this. The reason for the fire lies in the fact that the stork can take a branch from a smoldering fire for a nest. Therefore, after a picnic, tourists are required to put out fires and leave the parking lot, making sure that the fire is completely extinguished.

Storks behave according to the laws of Sparta: weak storks are simply thrown out of the nest so as not to waste resources on them. Storks do not leave the nest until they are two months old. After that, they learn to fly and begin to live an independent life;

White storks are human satellites, they prefer to settle as close as possible to people's dwellings. Black storks, on the contrary, avoid people and prefer to build nests where a person cannot penetrate.

Storks have a complex communication system. They communicate with clicks and hisses emitted by their beaks. In addition to these sounds, storks can only make a thin, barely distinguishable squeak.

• White stork can not only fly: he also runs very well. This helps to catch prey, such as rodents or frogs.
• Storks prefer to sleep standing on one leg. At the same time, the bird changes its leg from time to time, without waking up;
• White storks build sloppy nests, which are branches thrown over each other. Black storks are more skilled builders. They lay the branches in a certain order and additionally fasten them with clay and mud.
• Storks have no natural enemies. The exceptions are eagles and crocodiles, which sometimes prey on these birds. Sometimes a human becomes an enemy of a stork. For example, in Italy in the 17th century, the stork population was completely destroyed by hunters.
• Ornithologists have found that storks sometimes arrange a kind of cleansing, killing weak relatives. Especially often birds do this before seasonal migrations. Perhaps this cruel measure is not without reason: weakened individuals simply will not reach their destination and will delay the entire flock.
• Black and white storks are not different species: genetically they are no different from each other. However, due to evolutionary processes, the crossing of black and white storks turned out to be impossible. This is due to the fact that mating rituals differ too much among subspecies.

Storks in culture and mythology

1. In the Land of the Rising Sun, hunting for storks has been banned at the legislative level since the founding of the country.
2. 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 the warmth has overcome 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 it is the stork that brings children is connected with this association.
3. The stork is considered one of the symbols of Belarus. Interestingly, in Belarusian folklore there is even a fairy tale about how these birds appeared. God gave the man a bag of snakes and ordered him to be thrown into the sea. But the man was too curious and looked into the bag. The snakes spread all over the earth, and God decided to punish the man and turned him into a stork. Since then, he has been forced to roam the swamps and destroy snakes and frogs, and he will do this until he kills the last creeping reptile. And the nose and legs of the stork turned red from the fact that the overly curious person, who failed to fulfill the instructions of God, became ashamed of the perfect deed.
4. In ancient Roman frescoes, storks were often depicted harnessed to the chariot of the god Mercury.
5. In some villages, there is still a belief that a pair of storks, returning for the second time to their nest built on the roof of the house, portends the owners of a replenishment in the family. Sometimes even people specially equipped nests where birds could raise chicks.

A small group of ankle-footed birds that gave the name to the entire Stork order. In fact, the genus of storks has become widely known thanks to one species - the white stork, while the rest of its representatives are little known. The closest to real storks are razini storks and beaked storks. In addition, family ties in these birds can be traced to marabou, saddle beaks and yabiru.

Far Eastern or black-billed stork (Ciconia boyciana).

The appearance of these birds is easily recognizable due to the characteristic long legs, neck and beak. The beak of real storks is straight and not too massive, in razin storks it looks more powerful, and its flaps are slightly curved, so they never close tightly. Because of the ever-open beak, they were called gapes. The wings of these birds are wide and strong, the tail is relatively short, bluntly cut. The legs are feathered only in the upper part, the fingers are free and not connected by membranes. In the coloration of all types of storks, there is only white and black in different proportions. The color of the paws and beak is black or red. The size of all species is approximately the same, these birds weigh 3-5 kg. Males and females are outwardly indistinguishable from each other.

African razin stork (Anastomus lamelligerus).

Storks live in the Old World, they reach the greatest diversity and abundance in the tropics and subtropics of Africa and Asia. The only species found in South America, - American stork. All southern species are sedentary and live in pairs or small groups consisting of several pairs nesting in the neighborhood. White, black and Far Eastern storks live in the temperate zone of Europe and Asia and are migratory. The white stork winters in Africa, the black stork in Africa and India, and the Far Eastern stork in China. Birds arrive at nesting sites in March-April, at first they stay in small flocks, and then break into pairs. Throughout the nesting period, nepotism persists, however, in feeding places, storks calmly endure the neighborhood of their own kind. By autumn, they gather in small flocks of 10-25 individuals, and in late August-early October they fly south. On wintering grounds, they form mass concentrations, here their flocks can number up to a thousand individuals.

The American stork (Ciconia maguari) has a bluish beak.

The flight of storks is moderately fast with strong wing beats. Although these birds feel confident in the air, they try to avoid unnecessary energy costs. During a long flight, they often switch to gliding with outstretched wings, and storks also try to avoid places with strong air currents, in particular, they never fly over the sea.

The nature of these birds is calm and friendly. They not only do not sort things out with each other, but also put up with other waterfowl and near-water birds (herons, for example). Almost all species of storks are voiceless, the means of communication for them is the loud clicking of their beak. The only sound-producing species is the black stork. His voice sounds like a quiet "chi-ling". Interestingly, the chicks of all species of storks are able to scream, their voices resemble a rough bass or a cat's meow.

The white-bellied stork (Ciconia abdimii) is the shortest-legged and short-billed species.

The habitats of storks are somehow connected with water. In most cases, birds prefer to nest in trees close to the shore. It happens that the nest itself is hidden in the thick of the forest, and birds fly to the reservoir only to feed. While searching for food, they roam in shallow water or at the water's edge. Storks never go deep into the water because they cannot swim. They also avoid dense thickets of reeds, impassable shrubs, but meadows with low grass are perfect for them.

Almost all species avoid proximity to humans and try to populate remote areas. The only exception to this rule is the white stork. He tolerates the neighborhood with people so well that he often settles on man-made structures. White stork nests can be seen on rooftops, bell towers, power poles, telegraph poles, water towers. If the design allows, then several pairs can arrange nests right next to each other.

A pair of black storks (Ciconia nigra) at the nest in the forest thicket. The plumage of these birds, like those of other dark-colored species, often casts green and purple.

Storks feed on a variety of small animals. Their diet consists of mollusks, worms, frogs, toads, small lizards and snakes, sometimes small fish. The method of hunting storks can be called active search. Unlike herons, they do not freeze in place in a fixed stance, but constantly walk along the feeding area. Seeing the prey, the stork sharply throws its neck forward, finishes it off with an energetic blow of the beak and immediately swallows it.

The black stork roams the shallow water in search of prey.

Storks are monogamous birds: the resulting pair remains faithful to each other throughout life. A bird can form a new pair only in the event of the death of the former partner.

Migratory species start nesting shortly after arrival. Stork nests are large piles of branches with a rammed tray in the middle. The construction of the nest is quite strong, so the birds try to occupy old nests, periodically updating them. Often, after the parents, the nest is “inherited” by one of their chicks. The record-breaking case of continuous nest exploitation is recorded in Germany, where birds used it from 1549 to 1930. Harmless freeloaders - sparrows and similar small birds often settle in the bulky nests of storks.

The mating ritual of Far Eastern storks - male and female, throwing their heads back, click their beaks.

The clutch of these birds is from 2 to 5 eggs. white color. Incubation begins after the laying of the first or second egg, so the entire brood hatches over several days. The incubation period lasts 33-34 days, both parents participate in incubation. Stork chicks hatch covered in light gray down and grow quickly. Parents take turns bringing them food and water in their beaks. Breeding success largely depends on forage conditions; in low-feed years, younger chicks often die, which get less food. The first month and a half, the chicks spend in the nest, then they fledge and begin to travel along the branches of the tree, and then wander around with their parents.

White storks (Ciconia ciconia) at the nest with chicks.

In nature, storks do not have so many enemies: their relatively large size protects them from attack by birds of prey, and nesting in trees from land-based predators.

In the past, these meek and faithful birds enjoyed universal love. Storks personified happiness and family well-being. According to legend, the nest of storks on the roof of the house meant prosperity and peace, and the birds themselves were the messengers of motherhood. Nevertheless, now the number of species living in the temperate zone is constantly declining. This is due to the reduction of natural habitats (drainage of swamps, pollution of water bodies), a disturbance factor. In the white stork, cases of death of chicks and adult birds on power lines are not uncommon. The Far Eastern stork, listed in the International Red Book, is extremely rare, the number of black storks avoiding the neighborhood with humans is small (it is also listed in the national Red Books), and even the white stork is reducing its range. To protect these birds, it is enough just to provide them with fodder lands (ponds, meadows) and attract them with convenient nesting sites.

A small colony of white storks on an old bell tower.

Storks are migratory birds. Arrive somewhere in March-April. They reach more than 1 meter in length, and the distance from the beak to the tail is approximately 1.3 m. An adult stork weighs about 4 kg. The stork bird is characterized by rather long legs without feathers, covered with mesh skin. Bare patches of skin can also be found on the head and neck. A long straight beak flaunts on the head. There is a swimming membrane between the fingers, and pink claws at the fingertips.

The coloring of a stork depends on its species - there are a total of 12 species of storks. In all species, white and black colors predominate in different proportions.

Genus: Storks

Family: Stork

Class: Birds

Order: Storks

Type: Chordates

Kingdom: Animals

Domain: Eukaryotes

Where does the stork live?

White and black storks are common in Europe and Asia. They fly to Africa and India for the winter, sometimes they can stay to spend the winter in the countries of South Asia. They like to live in swampy areas, in meadow lowlands. White storks are not afraid of people and can build their nests right on the roof of houses or on poles next to people's dwellings. People consider such a neighborhood a good sign and these birds are welcome. Other types of storks can be found in Eurasia, Africa, South America.

An interesting fact is that storks can fall asleep during the flight. Scientists have recorded cases when, during the flight, the bird's pulse slowed down and breathing became superficial. At this time, hearing intensified so as not to fight off the pack. This rest is enough for the bird for 10-15 minutes and it returns to its normal state again.

What does a stork eat?

Storks' favorite food is frogs, but the variety of stork diets is impressive. They can eat insects, mollusks, snails, fish, worms, May beetles, they can also eat larger food - mice, snakes, lizards, small rats, rabbits, ground squirrels. While searching for food, the stork can move slowly, but once suitable food is found, the stork quickly runs up to it and grabs it with its strong and long beak.

Stork lifestyle

Storks are migratory birds. They are monogamous birds. They choose one couple for life. Returning to their nest, after hot countries, they are engaged in the continuation of their kind. At this time, all couples keep on their own. But during the winter, storks, on the contrary, gather in huge flocks, which can number tens of thousands of individuals.

Another feature of storks is "cleaning". All diseased and weak individuals are clogged with beaks to death by strong and healthy individuals. At first glance, this is a rather cruel act, but it is a necessity for survival and the creation of a healthy kind. In this way, storks protect other individuals from the spread of the disease and prevent weak individuals from becoming parents.

Stork breeding

The mating season begins for storks from the moment they return to their nest after wintering. First of all, they begin to restore it after the winter. Storks even have a kind of inheritance where the nest of the parents passes to their children. Old nests are large.

Males return first to the nests and wait for females. If the pair has not yet been created, then the female who first sits on his nest can become the wife of the male. Sometimes the females may fight for the male. In this case, the male does not take part in the fight.

When the couple has already decided, it is created until the end of life. The female incubates from 2 to 5 eggs. The eggs incubate for approximately 30 days. The parents take turns sitting on the eggs. Chicks hatch with white down. At first, parents feed their children, and in the heat they pour water on them.

After a month and a half, the chicks make their first flight attempts, and after 2-3 months they become independent and fly south with everyone in the fall. After three years, the chicks are already sexually mature. But storks start nesting at the age of 6. The life expectancy of storks is approximately 20 years.

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The house, near which the storks have built a nest, becomes a haven of endless happiness.

Translated from Hebrew, "stork" means "merciful" or "pious." In ancient Rome, there was a "stork law", according to which grown children were obliged to take care of their elderly parents. It was believed that storks feed their parents. In many other cultures, the stork is also a symbol of kindness and happiness.

In fact, not everything is so simple with this bird!

Types of storks

Over 17 species of storks are known on planet Earth. They all belong to the species of ankle-footed ones, and outwardly they are approximately the same: long neck, legs and beak, large wings, light body. They build huge nests and live in them for several years. Species of storks differ in color, size and shape of the beak, as well as the presence of bald patches in plumage in some species.

The most famous species for us is the white stork, it has a height of a meter to 120 cm and a weight of about 4 kg. The wingspan of such a bird reaches two meters! But for all its virtues, the white stork is mute, it can only hiss and click its beak.

Less known to us, the black stork differs from the rest in its color, it is completely black on top and has a white belly. Unlike the white stork, it has a voice.

Three types of yabiru storks (African, Brazilian and Indian) are very different from those listed above in their color. African and Indian yabiru have a pronounced black color with a metallic sheen. Plus, the African jabira is distinguished by a massive bright striped beak of yellow-black-red color. The Indian yabiru has a completely black beak.

And the Brazilian yabiru has a white plumage, however, its neck and head are completely bald, grayish in color. The beak is long and slightly curved upwards.

The most prominent species of storks is the marabou. Even the name itself sounds exotic! His head is bald, and his neck at rest folds into soft folds, forming a "pillow" on which the bird's powerful beak "rests". Growth reaches one and a half meters, and the wingspan is almost three!

Where do they live, where do they fly

Lifestyle different types different because of their environment. White, black and Far Eastern storks are monogamous. This is due to the fact that these species migrate for the winter to warmer climes. They winter, as a rule, in India or South Asia, flying away in September-October, returning in February-March.

White storks inhabit temperate latitudes. They prefer lowlands, swampy places, stagnant reservoirs. Nests are built on the crowns of sprawling trees or on the roofs of houses.

Stork settlements.

Group settlements of white storks are not uncommon, when several nests are built at once on one wide platform or edge.

The Far Eastern stork lives in the northern latitudes of Russia, it is listed in the Red Book as an endangered species. For its nests, it chooses deaf places away from humans, but as close as possible to water bodies.

The black stork is a hermit, chooses deaf places for his permanent residence, remote from humans and relatives. This species inhabits almost all our forests, from eastern to western outposts, as well as Altai, southern Kazakhstan and the Tien Shan. It is also an endangered species and is protected by law from extermination.

Yabiru and marabou inhabit warm countries and therefore do not fly anywhere for the winter.

Marabou inhabit the territory of tropical Africa, south of the Sahara. They nest mainly in trees, mainly on baobabs, as well as on sheer cliffs. This is the most friendly (in relation to relatives) species of stork: they settle in colonies, close enough to each other, get along well with smaller neighbors and even look after the nearest nests.

The Yabiru prefers papyrus forests and swamps near rivers. They are incorrigible loners. The specific countries in which they prefer to live can be guessed from the names of their species. African yabiru lives in southern Africa, sometimes in the expanses of Australia. Indian yabiru in the jungles of India and Pakistan, occasionally in South Asia. The Brazilian yabiru is found from Mexico to Argentina.

What do storks eat

It's time to remember the tale of the "merciful" bird. It may seem strange, but the stork is a predator! Moreover, this feature applies to all types of storks, from white to marabou.

The stork menu consists of a wide range of small mammals, reptiles, amphibians, small birds and insects.

The white stork eats, in addition to all of the above, the eggs of other birds and even rabbits.

Far Eastern and black storks enjoy fish.

Marabu here is very different from relatives. In terms of nutrition, it is an analogue of our wolf - the "nurse" of the forests, feeds on carrion, thereby clearing the expanses of Africa from hotbeds of infections. At the same time, they do not hesitate to feast on reptiles, small mammals. If there is none of the above nearby, a marabou can “starve a worm” even with a small crocodile or flamingo!

Yabiru feeds on large amphibians, fish, and semiaquatic vertebrates.

reproduction

It has already been said above that storks are looking forward to families where they want to have children. But what are storks like as parents? We have to admit that the law of survival also operates in the life cycle of these beautiful birds.

If we recall the types of storks that lead migratory image life (white, Far Eastern and black), then they live for twenty years, and they start “starting a family” at about six. Females and males almost do not differ from each other, if only the female is slightly smaller than the male. Storks do not shine with fidelity.

Return from the south.

Males are the first to return from warm countries, begin to equip their nest, and finish putting it in order already in the company of females.

Females arrive later than males, and it often happens that two females can fly to the same male at once. Which of them will remain, they decide in a fair fight, the male does not take part in this matter, he only watches from the side. If a male flies to a nest already occupied by a pair of storks, then the owner of the nest hisses threateningly at him and aggressively snaps his beak.

One pair of storks has a clutch of one to seven eggs at a time. Most often it is four eggs. Storks incubate their eggs in turn, the female at night, and the male during the day. Thus, the optimal temperature for the offspring is maintained and its constant protection.

Offspring

Chicks hatch 34-35 days after laying eggs. Chicks are born sighted, but completely helpless. And here the very cruel law of survival works: storks mercilessly throw sick or “defective” chicks out of the nest, thereby giving strong chicks a chance to eat more densely and gain strength. Parents also feed the chicks in turn, first with worms, later with frogs, mice and other small mammals. And they give the babies water, bringing liquid in their beaks and even in small pieces of moss, “squeezing” water out of them right into the storks’ beaks.

First flights.

After about two months, the chicks become strong enough not only to stand on their feet, but also to make small flights in the company of their parents.

And after three months, the chicks are ready for an independent flight to warmer climes. They fly away before their parents, and certainly do not feed them in old age, as the ancient Romans thought. In wintering places, neither parents nor storks, having met, recognize each other.

The method of reproduction, laying eggs and raising chicks in all types of storks is approximately the same, therefore, within the framework of this article, the differences are not considered. There have been instances in zoos where a black stork has courted a female white stork, and people have attempted to crossbreed the two species. But the attempts were unsuccessful, since the courtship rites of these species are very different from each other.

livestock protection

The stork is a protected bird. The white stork is quite numerous, sometimes it is even exterminated for the destruction of the “livestock” of frogs in the vicinity of human settlements, since frogs eat midges, mosquitoes and gadflies, and with a lack of these amphibians, insects greatly annoy cows, reducing milk yield.

The Far Eastern and black storks are under increased protection of the law and their extermination threatens not only with a fine, but also with imprisonment. Such strict measures are due to the fact that the species are on the verge of extinction, the number of storks currently living on earth is barely 630-750 pairs. And this needs to be seriously considered.

The stork is a large bird, on high legs, with long neck and long beak. His wings are very large and beautiful. The color of the feathers is mostly white, only the ends of the wings are shiny, black.

Storks live where there are vast wet meadows, swamps and stagnant ponds. 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. The same pair of storks can live in the nest for several years.

The nests of storks are large, a meter or more in diameter. Nest building lasts up to 10 days. Occasionally, white storks build a second nest, which serves them for sleeping or as a guard post.

In winter, storks fly to warmer climes. Older birds set off earlier or later than younger ones, but they never fly with them. Shortly before departure, white storks gather in flocks; on wintering grounds, they sometimes stay in thousands of clusters. Departure begins at the end of August, sometimes delayed until October. Birds fly during the day and at high altitude.

White storks feed on animal food, eat frogs, lizards, various insects, molluscs, fish and small mice, small hares and speckled ground squirrels. During feeding, storks slowly walk around, but, noticing the prey, they can quickly run up to it.

Many peoples of the world revere this unusual majestic bird. In Russia, since pagan times, the stork was considered a bird of fate, a messenger of happiness and prosperity. Even children know the belief that this bird brings babies.

To this day, there is a legend that happiness will reign in the house, over the roof of which the stork will build a nest, children will grow up healthy, the garden and the garden will give a bountiful harvest. People believe that these birds are well versed in people: nests are built only near the houses of those who are worthy of happiness. If you ruin a nest or kill a bird, then misfortune will come to the house.

If the stork himself left the nest on the roof and carried the chicks, there will be a fire in the house or lightning will fall into it.

There is such a legend. Once God gave a man a bag of reptiles and ordered him to throw it into the sea, into the fire, bury it in a pit, or leave it on top of a mountain. Out of curiosity, the man untied the bag, and all the evil spirits spread over the ground. Then, as a punishment, God turned a man into a stork so that he would cleanse the earth of reptiles - snakes, hedgehogs. From shame, the stork's nose and legs turned red.

It is believed that storks have a human soul, understand the language of a person, cry tears, pray to God (this is their scream), celebrate weddings together.