Storks
Storks have a dignified appearance, standing graceful and tall or
marching deliberately on slender legs. Nature has a good purpose for
those long legs, of course: they allow the stork to take long strides
and wade into deep water or tall grasses and reeds in search of food. A
long neck allows them to stretch out to capture their prey. Storks are
also beautiful in flight. They fly mostly by soaring on warm air
currents, with long, broad wings that only flap occasionally. They
stretch their necks out and dangle their legs behind them as they fly,
making them recognizable even from far away. Some storks have bare
patches on their heads and necks. In the scavenger species, this is
thought to prevent feathers from getting stuck together with blood or
mud, but the bare places are also used to impress, becoming more
brightly colored during breeding season. Some storks also use their
feathers in displays, like the woolly-necked stork Ciconia episcopus
that has feathers to puff out around its throat like a ruffed collar.
» Description: Large, long-legged, long-necked wading birds; long, bare throat sac
» Size: 150 cm (59 in)
» Weight: Up to 9 kg (20 lbs)
» Diet: Insects, baby crocodiles, flamingos, small mammals, fish and carrion
» Life span: Up to 20 years in zoos; wild life span not known
» Habitat: Marshes, savannas and fields.
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