Local White Stork – Ciconia ciconia

I’ve mentioned seeing unringed White Storks, Ciconia ciconia, in our neighbourhood previously. They are probably collection escapees, perhaps from Old Hurst Farm, although I think their specimens are ringed, so maybe not. My first sighting was around the marina in a village not far from here called Earith. Possibly the same individual has been hanging around some flooded farmland (Smithy Fen) and was today reported by a friend as being on a different flooded field right next to the main road north out of our village. It is unlikely that this bird is a vagrant from continental Europe, but you never know. Some cynical birders would refer to an escapee as a plastic bird.
Zoomed and cropped photo of a White Stork from about 80 metres
I headed out on my bike to try and catch sight of it, but it was no longer in the reported field. If only I’d checked my messages before I left another friend had sent me a photo from the “new” village ponds where he’d seen it and wanted to know what sort of bird it was. Anyway, Mrs Sciencebase having caught me up at Smithy Fen headed back towards home along the Cottenham Lode and spotted the White Stork in yet another flooded field. She called me to report in and I cycled up to to see it. The sun was out for 20 minutes, so got some reasonable views of the bird standing on a mound of earth behind the old stud and stables.
Closer view of a White Stork in the collection at Old Hurst Farm. It’s plausible that the Cott...

Source: David Bradley Sciencebase - Songs, Snaps, Science - February 10, 2024 Category: Science Authors: David Bradley Tags: Birds Source Type: blogs