The Baby is Coming

Have your parents ever told you that the stork brings the baby?

Funny, actually. No one really knows where that myth came from - but it was believed that because storks are migratory birds and nest on top of chimneys, they could bring babies along with them and sometimes even send the baby down the chimney.

But we all know how babies are made, and I don't think I need to discuss that. When a man loves a woman...

Aaanyway.

I wanted to start off with lemurs, since they are my favourite animals and all, but I figured I should do a post on something a little more local. (To where I used to live, anyway. You don't get white storks in Ireland, really.) But it's all good since the white stork is another one of my favourite animals anyway.

(Image source: Lincoln Park Zoo)

These birds come from the order Ciconiiformes and the family Ciconiidae. Another name for the White Stork is Ciconia Ciconia.

White Storks are quite big - They can be as tall as 1.25m(about 40 - 50 inches) and their wingspan can be about 1.5 - 2m long(Around 60 - 80 inches). They weigh about five kilograms - but that can vary.

As the name implies, white storks are white - however they have patches of black at the ends and sides of their wings, and their beaks and extremely long feet can be anywhere from a reddish orange to a bright red.

European White Storks live in Europe(obviously), but they are also seen in Africa, Asia and nearby areas.

They are very common to Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic.

It may not look like it, but the European White Stork is actually a bird of prey. It feeds on smaller birds and animals, including rodents and frogs.

When storks come together, they are mates for life. They nest on rooftops, chimneys and trees. The storks' nests are quite big, ranging from around 2m to 2.5m across. (That would be around 80 - 100 inches)

(Image source: TrekNature)

Here's a nice fact - If you have a closer look at a stork's wings, you'll be able to see little patches of blue and green along with the black on their wings.

You can listen to the White Stork here!

(Not my video)

~

So that is it for now, expect more birds of prey later on! And maybe a fox or something. I'll stick to forest and local animals for now, then move onto the more exotic ones.

Ciao!