White Stork Natural History
Size
Can grow between 100-125 cm tall, with a wingspan of 155-200 cm, and a weight of 2.3-4.5 kg.
Habitat and Distribution
The European sub-species is distributed across much of Europe, the middle east and west-central Asia.
Age
Wild birds can live and reproduce successfully past 30 years.
Diet
Consists mainly of frogs and large insects, but also young birds, lizards and rodents.
Groups and Breeding
White Storks breed in open farmland areas with access to marshy wetlands, building a stick nest in trees, on buildings. They lay between 3-5 eggs, with incubation lasting 33-34 days, once hatched the young birds stay in the nest for approximately 8-9 weeks.
Threats
Include drainage of wetlands and other agricultural intensification, collisions with overhead power lines, use of persistent pesticides to combat locusts in Africa, and hunting on passage.
Interesting Facts
There are two subspecies:-
Ciconia ciconia ciconia Linnaeus, 1758. (Europe,northwest Africa, westernmost Asia; wintering in Africa.)
Ciconia ciconia asiatica Severtsov, 1873. (West-central Asia; wintering in India)
The White Stork During Your Day Out in Kent
Two of our White Storks here at the park live on our large lake, situated in front of the pumas, jaguars and lions. Their names are Derek and Cassandra and they have access to the majority of this lake and its banks as well as its islands.
The more you know…
Want to know more about this animal? Check out our keeper blogs about them here.