Stork

Storks are large birds with long legs, long necks, and strong beaks. They belong to a group called the family Ciconiidae and are part of the order Ciconiiformes. Unlike herons and ibises, storks live in drier places.

Storks are good at flying. They use warm air to help them fly with less energy. Some storks, like the marabou stork, have very wide wings—up to 3.2 metres! They build big nests that they can use for many years.

These birds eat many things, like frogs, fish, insects, earthworms, small birds, and small animals. There are 20 kinds of storks in the world, and they live in many places. Some storks travel far during migration.

Storks appear in stories and myths, especially in Western cultures where people believe they bring new babies to families. Storks usually stay with one partner, but sometimes they mate with others.

Etymology

The word "stork" has been used since the 1100s in Middle English. It comes from the Old English word storc. Some stork species have different names. The jabiru is named after words from Tupí-Guarani. The marabou stork is named after an Arabic word for holy man. The adjutants are named after a military rank.

Systematics

See also: List of storks

A DNA study showed that the families Ardeidae, Balaenicipitidae, Scopidae and the Threskiornithidae are part of the Pelecaniformes. This means that Ciconiidae is the only group in its order.

Storks were different and likely lived in many places by the Oligocene. Like most water birds, storks probably began in the Palaeogene, maybe 40–50 million years ago. For the fossil record of living types, documented since the Middle Miocene (about 15 million years ago) in some cases, see the genus articles.

No type of stork is known to have disappeared in recent history.

Phylogeny

The following family tree is recognized by the International Ornithological Congress, partially based on de Sousa et al (2023):

Fossil storks

• Genus Palaeoephippiorhynchus (fossil: Early Oligocene of Fayyum, Egypt)
• Genus Grallavis (fossil: Early Miocene of Saint-Gérand-le-Puy, France, and Djebel Zelten, Libya)^{[citation needed]} – may be same as Prociconia
• Ciconiidae gen. et sp. indet. – formerly Aquilavus/Cygnus bilinicus (fossil: Early Miocene of Břešťany, Czech Republic)^{[citation needed]}
• Ciconiidae gen. et sp. indet. (Ituzaingó Late Miocene of Paraná, Argentina)
• Ciconiidae gen. et sp. indet. (Puerto Madryn Late Miocene of Punta Buenos Aires, Argentina)
• cf. Leptoptilos gen. et sp. indet. – formerly L. siwalicensis (fossil: Late Miocene? – Late Pliocene of Siwalik, India)
• Ciconia nana (fossil: Pleistocene of Darling Downs, Queensland, Australia, and Ciconia louisebolesae fossil: Olig-Miocene of Riversleigh WHA, Queensland, Australia
• Genus Pelargosteon (fossil: Early Pleistocene of Romania)^{[citation needed]}
• Genus Prociconia (fossil: Late Pleistocene of Brazil) – may belong to modern type Jabiru or Ciconia^{[citation needed]}
• Ciconiidae gen. et sp. indet. (fossil: Late Pleistocene of San Josecito Cavern, Mexico)

The fossil types Eociconia (Middle Eocene of China) and Ciconiopsis (Deseado Early Oligocene of Patagonia, Argentina) are often placed with this family. A "stork-like" fossil piece from the Touro Passo Formation found at Arroio Touro Passo (Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil) might be of the living wood stork M. americana; it is at most of Late Pleistocene age, a few 10,000s of years.

Morphology

Storks are birds with long legs and necks. They come in different sizes. Some, like the marabou, are tall and heavy. Others, like the Abdim's stork, are smaller. Male storks are often a bit bigger than females, but they usually look very similar.

Storks have big bills. These bills look different depending on the species. Some storks use their bills to catch fish. Others use them to find food on the ground or in muddy water. These different bill shapes help storks find the food they like to eat.

Even though some people think storks can't make noise, they actually can make sounds. They don't do this very often. Their body parts for making sound are a little unusual, but they work well for the storks.

Distribution and habitat

Storks live in many places around the world, except near the poles, most of North America, and large parts of Australia. They are most common in tropical Asia and Africa south of the Sahara. Only three kinds live in the New World: the wood stork, maguari stork, and jabiru, which is the tallest flying bird in the Americas. Two kinds, the white and black stork, live in Europe and western Asia, while the Oriental stork is found in eastern Asia, and the black-necked stork lives in Australasia.

Storks live in many different places. Some like watery areas, while others live in grasslands, forests, or near farms and towns. They like shallow water where they can catch food. Some storks live close to people, using gardens and even places where people throw away food.

See also: List of Ciconiiformes by population

Migration and movements

Storks move around in different ways. Some, like the white stork, black stork, and Oriental stork, fly very far each year to avoid cold weather. They fly over land, often avoiding long stretches of water. They learn these routes from other birds.

The Abdim's stork moves within tropical areas, breeding in northern Africa and then traveling to Southern Africa. Even storks that don’t usually move might travel short distances to find food or a place to nest. Wood storks have been seen traveling up to 130 km (80 mi) from where they were born to find food.

Behaviour

Storks are birds that eat meat. They hunt for animals like reptiles, small mammals, insects, fish, and amphibians. They usually hunt in shallow water. They stand or walk in the water with their long bills. When their bill touches prey, it snaps shut very quickly.

Some storks specialize in certain foods. For example, milky storks in Sumatra eat mudskippers, and openbills eat freshwater snails. Other storks may eat locusts or other insects.

Storks also have different ways of breeding. Some species breed alone, while others live in groups. They build nests in trees in many different places, such as forests, cities, farmlands, and wetlands. Some stork species may nest close to each other, while others prefer to nest alone.

In culture

Many old stories from different cultures talk about storks. In Ancient Egypt, people thought saddle-billed storks were very powerful. In stories from Greece and Rome, storks were known for taking good care of their parents.

Storks appear in famous fables, like The Farmer and the Stork. Another fable, The Fox and the Stork, teaches us to treat others well.

In many parts of the world, people believe that storks bring babies to families. This idea comes from old European tales. Some people still share this story today.