Storks belong to the order of the ciconiiformes of the ciconia family, which also include heron and ibis. The most famous representative of this family is the white stork. He is known for numerous legends and legends.
Since time immemorial, the white stork was considered a revered bird, it was associated with luck, prosperity and happiness. A large number of legends and legends are associated with the white stork in Europe and the East, where he acts as the guardian of the family hearth and the defender against evil spirits. Previously, it was believed that a stork arriving contributes to the appearance of a long-awaited child in the family, so childless families relied on the help of these birds.
In connection with the reduction of the vocal cords in adult storks, there is practically no voice. Most often you can hear the beak clicking used for greeting. White stork - the bird is beautiful and large enough, its mass can reach four kilograms. The wingspan is up to 205 centimeters, and the body length can reach 120 centimeters. The white stork has a long neck, long legs and a long beak. The plumage of males and females (females are slightly smaller in size than males) are the same: they are covered with white feathers, with the exception of black wings. According to folk legends, God endowed the stork with white plumage, and the devil with black wings, so it symbolizes the eternal struggle between good and evil. White storks live quite a long time, their average life expectancy can be up to 20 years.
The main area of bird distribution is the Iberian Peninsula, all of Europe, as well as North Africa and Asia. White storks winter in India and on the African continent, and many birds from Central Europe go to Asia. During the spring flight, they have to fly 200 kilometers a day. The main migration routes of white storks are flights through the Mediterranean Sea, the Straits of Gibraltar, the Bosphorus and the Suez Isthmus. There you can see huge clusters of white storks at high altitude in spring and autumn.
The basis for feeding the white storks are various invertebrates and medium-sized vertebrates, which they procure on land and in water. Small mammals, amphibians, reptiles, fish and insects are the food that this bird loves. The white stork eats even small rabbits, which determines its predatory nature. Often, storks eat inedible items that are mistaken for food, which leads to blockage of the digestive tract and death.
The main place of settlement of white storks are the roofs of houses, farm buildings, rarely - rocks and trees. Many white storks have been using the same nests for over a century, passing them from generation to generation. They bravely protect their nests and chicks from other birds. It takes more than a week for the bird to build a new nest, therefore the white stork often repairs the old place of settlement. The nest can reach impressive sizes. As a rule, the clutch contains four to five eggs. White storks hatched eggs alternately, and after a month helpless chicks hatch, which become independent at the age of 70 days.
Currently, the number of white storks is decreasing every year due to the chemicalization and intensification of agricultural products, as a result of which the forage base of birds is reduced.
