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Project Noah Nature School
Ciconia nigra
The black stork is a large but fairly secretive bird. The black head, upperparts, wings, tail and long neck have a conspicuous green or purple gloss, contrasting with the white belly, undertail and ‘armpits’. The long legs and long, straight beak are bright scarlet in adults, especially during the breeding season, and a patch of scarlet skin also surrounds the eye The male and female black stork are similar in appearance, though the male may be slightly larger, while the juvenile has slightly browner, duller, less glossy plumage, and a pale olive-green beak and legs.
Old, undisturbed, open forest and woodland, at elevations of up to 2,000 to 2,500 meters. Foraging occurs in streams, pools, marshes, riverbanks, swampy patches, damp meadows and occasionally in grasslands, but the black stork usually avoids large bodies of water or areas of dense forest.
Spotted on Jan 31, 2012
Submitted on Feb 5, 2012
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