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  Profile

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  In flight

Cranes & Waders

Black Stork

Ciconia nigra

• rare
• 45 km/h
• Least Concern

Glossy black and bright red-billed, it nests on remote cliff ledges far from humans. Your most exclusive carrier.

Population

21,400-42,100 mature individuals (global estimate)

Habitat

Old, undisturbed open forests near freshwater — marshes, shallow streams, pools, damp meadows, floodplains, and edges of lakes and estuaries; nests high (roughly 4-25 m) in large forest trees or on cliffs.

Fun fact

Unlike its highly social relative the white stork, the black stork is shy and wary, typically foraging and nesting alone or in pairs rather than in colonies.

Range

Breeds across Europe (from Portugal and Spain through central/eastern Europe) into Asia to Siberia and the Pacific coast; migrates to winter in Sub-Saharan Africa (European breeders) and the Indian subcontinent (Asian breeders); a small isolated non-migratory population also occurs in Southern Africa.

Diet

Primarily fish (cyprinids, pike, eels), supplemented with amphibians, small reptiles, crabs, and invertebrates such as water beetles and earthworms, caught by wading in shallow water.

Size

0.98 m

Wingspan

1.5 m

Lifespan

20 years