"Black Storks" of Pakistan. Black stork (squad) Black stork squad of mujahideen

Storks are a genus of birds in the stork family, the order Cioriformes. These birds are easily recognizable; they are distinguished by long legs, a long neck, a rather massive body and a long beak. These birds have large and powerful wings; they are wide and allow storks to easily rise into the air.

The legs of these birds are only partially feathered; the toes on the limbs do not have webs. The size of storks is quite large: the weight of an adult bird is from three to five kilograms. At the same time, females and males do not differ in size, and in general there is no sexual dimorphism in these birds.

The plumage of storks contains black and white colors, in varying quantities, depending on the species.

The most famous types of storks:

• White-necked stork (Ciconia episcopus)
• (Ciconia nigra)
• Black-billed stork (Ciconia boyciana)
• White-bellied stork (Ciconia abdimii)
• (Ciconia ciconia)
• Malayan woolly-necked stork (Ciconia stormi)
• American stork (Ciconia maguari)

Where do storks live?

Birds of the genus storks live in Europe, Africa, Asia, and storks also inhabit South America.

Southern species lead a sedentary lifestyle, while northern storks make seasonal migrations. These birds live in pairs or not very large groups. Before flying to warmer climes, storks gather in small groups of 10–25 individuals.

All types of storks are dependent on bodies of water, so they try to settle near water. But some still make nests in the thick of the forest, flying to a reservoir only to search for food.

Listen to the stork's voice

What does a stork eat?

The stork menu consists of small animals: worms, mollusks, frogs, lizards and fish. Storks look for their food in shallow water, now and then walking in different directions. If the stork notices prey, it sharply stretches its long neck forward and pierces the victim with all its strength with its sharp beak. The bird then quickly swallows its “dinner.”

About the reproduction of storks in nature

These birds are monogamous, i.e., once they choose a partner, they remain paired only with him. A new partner can appear only if the previous one dies. Storks build their nests from a huge number of branches. In the middle of the nest, something like a compacted tray is set up. The stork’s “house” is a fairly durable structure that can support several individuals of these large birds. It often happens that after the death of the parents, one of the chicks inherits the family nest.

During the breeding season, the female stork lays 2–5 eggs, the incubation period lasts for 34 days. Both parents incubate the future offspring, when one plays the role of a hen, the second brings him food.

Enemies of storks in nature

Storks are large birds, so they have no ill-wishers in nature. They build their nests high, so that ground hunters cannot reach them, and their impressive dimensions and sharp beak protect the storks from attacks from feathered predators from the air.

Signs associated with storks

According to ancient beliefs, if a family of storks builds a nest on the roof or near a house, then peace, tranquility and prosperity await the owners. People have always associated storks themselves with a new addition to the family; it’s not for nothing that people say “the stork brought” a newborn or unborn child. These majestic birds have always evoked a feeling of admiration and reverence among people; this has happened before and is observed even in our time.

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“Black Storks” is a sabotage and fighter elite detachment of the Afghan Mujahideen, the leader of which, according to various sources, was Amir Khattab, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and Osama bin Laden. According to other sources, Pakistani special forces. According to the third version, “Black Storks” are those people who committed a crime before Allah: they killed, stole, etc. They had to atone for their guilt before Allah only with the blood of infidels.
There was information that among the “storks” there were people of European appearance with punk hairstyles who traveled in Isuzu jeeps. Each “stork” simultaneously performed the duties of a radio operator, sniper, miner, etc. In addition, the fighters of this special unit, created to carry out sabotage operations, owned almost all types of small arms.

"Black Storks" - a special forces unit, was created during the Afghan War of 1979-1989. by a number of intelligence services of Pakistan and other interested countries from among the Afghan Mujahideen and foreign mercenaries. Members of the “Black Storks” were well-trained military specialists, professionally proficient in various types of weapons, communications equipment, and knowledge of topographic maps. They knew the terrain well and were unpretentious in everyday life.
They were based mainly in the hard-to-reach provinces of the Afghan highlands bordering Pakistan and Iran, at the bases and fortified areas of the Afghan Mujahideen. They took an active part in organizing ambushes on units of Soviet troops. A number of such clashes became a difficult page in the history of the Afghan War:

2. The death of the Maravar company in the province of Kunar of the 1st company of the 334th special forces detachment of the 15th ObrSpN GRU General Staff - April 21, 1985.

3. Battle of the 4th company of the 149th motorized rifle regiment near the village of Konyak in Kunar province - May 25, 1985.

5. Battle at height 3234 near the village of Alikheil in Paktia province in January 1988.

The “Black Storks” squad was equipped with a special black uniform, with stripes of this special. divisions. - With rare exceptions (in the person of instructors), all members of the “Black Storks” were adherents of fundamental Islam. Mostly natives of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Iran, Pakistan, and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China.
Very often, during an intense battle, flaunting their own fearlessness, the “Black Storks” stood up to their full height in order to fire a shell from a grenade launcher, or fire a long burst. By this action, as well as by reading surahs from the Holy Koran over a horn loudspeaker during the battle, the “storks” hoped to demoralize and break the morale of the Soviet soldiers. Special bases for the professional training of “Black Storks” were located mainly in Pakistan and Iran.

Throughout the entire period of stay of the limited contingent in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, not a single documented case of the destruction of the “Black Storks” was recorded...

Everyone knows what a stork looks like. If you haven’t met in person, many people know the stork from photos or from numerous brands that use the bird’s image in their logos.

Storks belong to the order Cioridae (anklefish) and are part of the large stork family. The genus of storks includes 7 species of birds, common in Eurasia, Africa and South America.

Stork in flight.

Description

These are large, long-legged, long-necked birds, about 100 cm high. The wingspan of an adult reaches 1.5-2 m. Their legs are devoid of feathers and covered with red mesh skin, and their webbed fingers end in short pink claws. There are also patches of bare red or yellow skin on the neck and head. The straight, elongated beak has a pointed conical shape. The plumage color is various combinations of black and white. Females are slightly smaller than males, but otherwise the birds look the same.

An interesting feature of storks is the almost complete absence of voice. These birds are extremely taciturn and use hissing and clicking beaks to communicate.

Storks live alone or in small groups, and their existence is closely connected with various freshwater biotopes where birds feed and nest.

Stork in the field.

What do storks eat?

Storks eat exclusively animal food. Different species consume fish, shellfish, frogs, snakes, poisonous snakes, lizards, and large insects to a greater or lesser extent. The diet often includes small mammals: rats, mice, moles, gophers, rabbits. Storks stalk their prey by walking leisurely, and when they notice the victim, they run up and grab it. The offspring are first fed by belching from semi-digested food, and then earthworms are thrown into the chicks' mouths.

The stork stayed for the winter.

Features of reproduction

Storks are monogamous and the male and female jointly build the nest, incubate and feed the offspring. The mating rituals of the species differ, for example, the male white stork does not choose a companion, but considers the first female to fly up to the nest as his.

These birds build nests that are unique in size and durability, which are used from generation to generation. Therefore, one of the favorite topics of professional photographers is photos of storks in the nest. The record belongs to white storks, who built and occupied a nest on one of the German towers for almost 4 centuries.

Females lay from 1 to 7 eggs, the incubation period lasts about 30 days. Up to 1.5-2 months, the chicks are completely dependent on their parents, and in the fall the family breaks up. Birds reach sexual maturity at 3 years, and create their own families at 4-6 years. In the wild, storks live for about 20 years; in captivity they can live twice as long.

Stork nest in a village near Nikolaev, Ukraine.

Storks in the nest.

Stork in the nest.

The most famous, numerous and widespread species of storks, one of the symbols of Belarus. Most of them nest in Europe and Asia, and winter in India and Africa. Small populations of Western Europe and South Africa live sedentary.

The height of adult individuals reaches 100-120 cm with a body weight of about 4 kg. The plumage is completely white, only the tips of the wings are black, the beak and limbs are red. The folded wings cover the back of the body, which looks black, which is why in Ukraine this bird is called the Blackgut.

The white stork nests on the roofs of residential and commercial buildings, power line supports, and chimneys of abandoned factories. It builds giant nests; small birds nest in their walls - starlings, sparrows, wagtails. There are from 1 to 7 white eggs in a tray, incubation lasts for 33 days. Weak and sick chicks are mercilessly thrown out of the nest. The flight of young birds occurs 55 days after birth; after another 2 weeks, young birds become independent and, without waiting for their parents, go to wintering.

Stork on takeoff.

White stork in the sky.

White stork in flight.

White stork in flight.

The bird is also known as the black-billed stork, the Chinese stork, or simply the Far Eastern stork. Initially it was considered a subspecies of the white stork, but has recently been identified as a separate species. The population is about 3 thousand individuals, which are protected by Russia, China and Japan as rare, endangered birds.

The nesting sites of the Far Eastern stork are located in the Amur region and Primorye, on the Korean peninsula, Mongolia and northeastern China. The birds spend the winter in rice fields and swamps in the southern regions of China.

Unlike the white stork, these birds are larger, their beak is black and more massive, and their legs are colored intense red. The main difference is the area of ​​bare red skin around the eyes. These birds avoid people and make nests in swampy, inaccessible areas. Their nests are as high and wide as those of the white stork. The clutch consists of 2-6 eggs.

Far Eastern white stork in flight.

A numerous but little-studied species, widespread throughout Eurasia. The largest number of birds is found in the swampy areas of the Belarusian Zvonets reserve; in Russia, the largest population lives in the Primorsky Territory. For the winter, black storks migrate to southern Asia, with the exception of birds that live sedentary in southern Africa.

These storks are of medium size, about 100 cm high and weighing up to 3 kg. The color is black with a slight greenish or copper tint. The lower chest, belly and undertail are white. The limbs, beak and skin around the eyes are red.

The black stork avoids humans and nests in old dense forests near swamps and shallow reservoirs, sometimes in the mountains. The nests are built high and massive, the clutch contains from 4 to 7 eggs. After 30 days of incubation, the chicks hatch one by one and are completely helpless for about 10 days. The ability to stand on their feet appears only 35-40 days after birth, and young storks leave the nest at the age of 2 months.

A black stork catches a fish.

Black stork on the lake.

A species of stork that lives sedentary on the African continent from Ethiopia to South Africa. The bird population is quite large and its condition is not in danger.

These are small storks, about 73 cm high and weighing no more than 1 kg. The birds received their name due to the white color of the chest and underwings, forming a contrast with the main black plumage. The white-bellied stork has an olive-gray beak. Its legs and eye area are red, and during the breeding season, a patch of bare skin at the base of its beak turns bright blue.

The local name of the bird is rain stork, this is due to the beginning of nesting, which occurs during the rainy season, when the birds gather in large groups on rocky shores and trees. The clutch consists of 2-3 eggs.

White-bellied stork on a dried tree.

A numerous species of storks, widespread in Africa and Asia. Three subspecies live in the tropical forests of Kenya and Uganda, on the islands of Borneo, Sulawesi, Bali, Lombok and Java, in the Philippines, Indochina and India.

The height of an adult stork is 80-90 cm. The birds are black with a reddish tint on the shoulders and green on the wings. The belly and undertail are white, and there is a black cap on the head. A distinctive feature of the white-necked stork is its snow-white lush plumage, reminiscent of a scarf, draped from the back of the head and neck to the middle of the chest.

White-necked stork in flight.

The white-necked stork spread its wings.

A white-necked stork bathes.

A South American species of stork that lives over a large area from Venezuela to Argentina.

These are birds of medium height, about 90 cm in height and weighing 3.5 kg. In appearance they strongly resemble a white stork, but differ in their black forked tail, red-orange areas of bare skin around the eyes and a white iris. Old birds can be identified by their bluish-gray beaks.

Birds avoid dense forests, preferring to nest in bushes near water. Nests are built at a height of 1 to 6 m, sometimes directly on the ground. The clutch contains 2-3 eggs, newborn chicks are covered with white down, gradually darken and at 3 months they are practically no different from their parents.

American stork in the sky.

One of the rarest storks, classified as an endangered species. The habitat covers the Mentawai Islands of Indonesia, Sumatra, Kalimantan, southern Thailand, Brunei and western Malaysia. Birds live secretly, often alone or in small groups, so photos of storks of this species are very rare.

These are small birds with a height of 75 to 91 cm. The plumage color is coal black, the back of the head and undertail are white. The bird's face is completely devoid of plumage and is covered with orange skin with wide yellow “spectacles” around the eyes. The beak and legs are red. The nests are built small, only 50 cm wide and about 15 cm high. The offspring consists of 2 chicks that are able to fly 45 days after birth.

According to the third version, “Black Storks” ( Chohatlor) are military units made up of criminals, from the point of view of the Muslim religion. [ ]

The detachments were located in the provinces of the Afghan highlands bordering Pakistan and Iran, at the bases and fortified areas of the Afghan Mujahideen.

They took an active part in organizing ambushes on units of Soviet troops:

• Battle near the village of Khara - the death of the 1st battalion of the 66th Motorized Rifle Brigade in the Khara gorge, Kunar province - May 11, 1980.
• Death of the Maravar company in the province of Kunar of the 1st company of the 334th special forces detachment of the 15th ObrSpN GRU General Staff - April 21, 1985
• Battle of the 4th company of the 149th motorized rifle regiment near the village of Konyak in Kunar province - May 25, 1985.
• Capture of the fortified area "Kokari - Sharshari" Operation "Trap" Herat province - August 18-26, 1986
• Battle at height 3234 near the village of Alikheil, Paktia province

Alternative opinion

Units and formations of OKSVA in the period from 1980-1988. in this territorial zone, military operations of various scales were carried out to eliminate the infrastructure of numerous armed formations of the Mujahideen (in particular during the Kunar combined arms operations), to capture fortified areas, strongholds and transshipment bases.

Pakistani border guards, who at that time wore black uniforms, deployed their outposts as close as possible to the site of these military events and were in constant combat readiness. Professionally trained, they acted harmoniously, clearly interacting with the army artillery assigned for special cases. Often, in cases where Soviet units carried out military operations on the territory bordering Pakistan, the neighboring side assessed the current situation as an external threat to its national security. In a number of cases, the situation was assessed as an actual violation of the state border of the Islamic Republic of Iran by foreign troops (OKSVA) based on Afghan territory, and then the now mythical “Black Storks” - Pakistani soldiers in the notorious black uniform - were used. The position of the Pakistani side was based on the following: the zone of combat operations between the Afghan Mujahideen and OKSVA units, which was nomadic in nature, on the military maps of neighboring states having significant discrepancies, shifted deep into the territory of the IPA, thereby providing for the legal, in accordance with international law, use of military force by the Pakistani side strength.

Later, starting in 1985, in order to avoid an international scandal in connection with cases of border clashes with regular units of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the OKSVA command chose to avoid active combat operations in the 5-kilometer zone of the Afghan-Pakistan border. For various reasons, this prohibition was sometimes violated by Soviet units.

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Notes

An excerpt characterizing the Black Stork (squad)

“However, a large number of monasteries and churches is always a sign of the backwardness of the people,” said Napoleon, looking back at Caulaincourt to evaluate this judgment.
Balashev respectfully allowed himself to disagree with the opinion of the French emperor.
“Every country has its own customs,” he said.
“But nowhere in Europe is there anything like this,” said Napoleon.
“I apologize to your Majesty,” said Balashev, “besides Russia, there is also Spain, where there are also many churches and monasteries.”
This answer from Balashev, which hinted at the recent defeat of the French in Spain, was highly appreciated later, according to Balashev’s stories, at the court of Emperor Alexander and was appreciated very little now, at Napoleon’s dinner, and passed unnoticed.
It was clear from the indifferent and perplexed faces of the gentlemen marshals that they were perplexed as to what the joke was, which Balashev’s intonation hinted at. “If there was one, then we did not understand her or she is not at all witty,” said the expressions on the faces of the marshals. This answer was so little appreciated that Napoleon did not even notice it and naively asked Balashev about which cities there is a direct road to Moscow from here. Balashev, who was on the alert all the time during dinner, replied that comme tout chemin mene a Rome, tout chemin mene a Moscow, [just as every road, according to the proverb, leads to Rome, so all roads lead to Moscow,] that there are many roads, and that among these different paths is the road to Poltava, which was chosen by Charles XII, said Balashev, involuntarily flushing with pleasure at the success of this answer. Before Balashev had time to finish the last words: “Poltawa,” Caulaincourt began talking about the inconveniences of the road from St. Petersburg to Moscow and about his St. Petersburg memories.
After lunch we went to drink coffee in Napoleon’s office, which four days ago had been the office of Emperor Alexander. Napoleon sat down, touching the coffee in a Sevres cup, and pointed to Balashev’s chair.
There is a certain after-dinner mood in a person that, stronger than any reasonable reason, makes a person be pleased with himself and consider everyone his friends. Napoleon was in this position. It seemed to him that he was surrounded by people who adored him. He was convinced that Balashev, after his dinner, was his friend and admirer. Napoleon turned to him with a pleasant and slightly mocking smile.
– This is the same room, as I was told, in which Emperor Alexander lived. Strange, isn't it, General? - he said, obviously without doubting that this address could not but be pleasant to his interlocutor, since it proved the superiority of him, Napoleon, over Alexander.
Balashev could not answer this and silently bowed his head.
“Yes, in this room, four days ago, Wintzingerode and Stein conferred,” Napoleon continued with the same mocking, confident smile. “What I cannot understand,” he said, “is that Emperor Alexander brought all my personal enemies closer to himself.” I do not understand this. Didn't he think that I could do the same? - he asked Balashev with a question, and, obviously, this memory pushed him again into that trace of morning anger that was still fresh in him.
“And let him know that I will do it,” said Napoleon, standing up and pushing his cup away with his hand. - I will expel all his relatives from Germany, Wirtemberg, Baden, Weimar... yes, I will expel them. Let him prepare refuge for them in Russia!
Balashev bowed his head, showing with his appearance that he would like to take his leave and is listening only because he cannot help but listen to what is being said to him. Napoleon did not notice this expression; he addressed Balashev not as an ambassador of his enemy, but as a man who was now completely devoted to him and should rejoice at the humiliation of his former master.
– And why did Emperor Alexander take command of the troops? What is this for? War is my craft, and his business is to reign, not to command troops. Why did he take on such responsibility?
Napoleon again took the snuff-box, silently walked around the room several times and suddenly suddenly approached Balashev and with a slight smile, so confidently, quickly, simply, as if he were doing something not only important, but also pleasant for Balashev, he raised his hand to the face of the forty-year-old Russian general and, taking him by the ear, tugged him slightly, smiling with only his lips.
– Avoir l"oreille tiree par l"Empereur [Being torn out by the ear by the emperor] was considered the greatest honor and favor at the French court.
“Eh bien, vous ne dites rien, admirateur et courtisan de l"Empereur Alexandre? [Well, why aren’t you saying anything, admirer and courtier of Emperor Alexander?] - he said, as if it was funny to be someone else’s in his presence courtisan and admirateur [court and admirer], except for him, Napoleon.
– Are the horses ready for the general? – he added, slightly bowing his head in response to Balashev’s bow.
- Give him mine, he has a long way to go...
The letter brought by Balashev was Napoleon's last letter to Alexander. All the details of the conversation were conveyed to the Russian emperor, and the war began.

After his meeting in Moscow with Pierre, Prince Andrey left for St. Petersburg on business, as he told his relatives, but, in essence, in order to meet there Prince Anatoly Kuragin, whom he considered necessary to meet. Kuragin, whom he inquired about when he arrived in St. Petersburg, was no longer there. Pierre let his brother-in-law know that Prince Andrei was coming to pick him up. Anatol Kuragin immediately received an appointment from the Minister of War and left for the Moldavian Army. At the same time, in St. Petersburg, Prince Andrei met Kutuzov, his former general, always disposed towards him, and Kutuzov invited him to go with him to the Moldavian Army, where the old general was appointed commander-in-chief. Prince Andrei, having received the appointment to be at the headquarters of the main apartment, left for Turkey.

General characteristics and field characteristics

A large bird with long legs, neck and beak. Body length 100-115 cm, wingspan 155-165 cm, weight of an adult bird from 2.5 to 4.5 kg. Males are slightly larger than females, but outwardly they are practically indistinguishable. The plumage is white, the flight feathers are black. The beak and legs are red. When watching a bird in flight, one notices its elongated neck and legs and contrasting black and white plumage. Walks on the ground, shaking his head a little in time with the movement. On nests or perches it can stand on one leg for a long time, with its neck drawn into the plumage of the body. It often uses soaring flight, and is able to rise in rising air currents with virtually no flapping of its wings. During a sharp descent and landing, he presses his wings slightly to his body and puts his legs forward. Flocks are formed during migration; they are also formed by non-breeding birds during migrations in late spring and summer. There is no strict order in flying flocks. When descending from an updraft, the birds slide down one after another. It differs from the black stork in its white plumage, and from cranes and herons in its red beak and legs. Unlike herons, in flight it extends rather than folds its neck.

Voice. The basis of sound communication of white storks is beak chattering. Occasionally you can hear hissing. The sound repertoire of chicks is more diverse. The cry of a stork begging for food resembles a drawn-out meow. The first part of this cry has a higher tone, the second - a low one. You can also hear loud squeaks and hisses from the chicks on the nest; Already in the first weeks of life, the chicks try to crack their beaks.

Description

Coloring. Adult male and female. There are no seasonal differences in color. Most of the plumage is white, the primaries, outer secondaries, shoulder feathers and part of the forearm coverts are black with a metallic sheen. The outer webs of the secondary flight feathers have grayish margins along the trunk (the character varies and is usually visible only at close range). The feathers on the neck and chest are somewhat elongated; excited birds (for example, during mating) often fluff them up. The beak and legs are bright red. The bare skin around the eye and the front of the skin of the chin are black. The iris of the eye is brown.

First down outfit. After hatching, the chick is covered with sparse and short grayish-white down. The legs are pinkish, after a few days they become grayish-black. The beak and skin around the eyes are black, the skin on the chin is reddish, and the iris is dark. Second down outfit. The fluff is pure white, thicker and longer. Replaces the first one in about a week.

Nesting outfit. The young bird is similar in color to the adult, but the black color in the plumage is replaced by a brownish color, without shine. The beak and legs are dark brown; By the time the chicks fly out of the nests, they usually become reddish-brown, but you can often see flying fledglings with a black beak or brown with a blackish tip. The iris of the eye is gray.

Structure and dimensions

As a rule, measurements of various parts of the body of storks are published, without dividing the sample into sex groups. The wing length of the nominative subspecies of the white stork with this approach for the territory of the former. The USSR is, for 6 individuals, 585-605 mm (Spangenberg, 1951), for Ukraine (Smogorzhevsky, 1979) - 534-574 mm. The latter author also reports that the length of the tail ranges from 206-232 mm, the beak -156-195, and the tarsus - 193-227 mm. An audit of the collections of the Zoo Museum of the Kyiv National University and the National Scientific and Natural History Museum of Ukraine gave the following results: wing length (n = 14) - 513-587 mm, with an average value of 559.9 ± 5.8 mm; tail (n = 11) - 201-232, average 222.5±4.2; beak (n = 12) - 150-192, average 166.4±3.5; tarsus (n = 14) - 187-217, on average 201.4±2.5 mm (original). For the Asian white stork, the wing length of 9 measured individuals was 550-640, with an average of 589 mm.

The sizes of the white stork by sex groups and subspecies for various territories are given in Table. 31.

Table 31. Dimensions (mm) of various sexual groups and subspecies of the white stork

Parameter	Males			Females			Source
	n	lim	M	n	lim	M
Ciconia ciconia ciconia. Europe
Wing length	—	530-630	—	—	530-590	—	Witherby et al., 1939
Tail length	—	215-240	—	—	215-240	—	Witherby et al., 1939
Beak length	—	150-190	—	—	140-170	—	Witherby et al., 1939
Shank length	—	195-240	—	—	195-240	—	Witherby et al., 1939
Wing length	18	556-598	576	15	543-582	558	Hancock et al., 1992
Tail length	18	221-268	247	15	218-256	237	Hancock et al., 1992
Beak length	18	157-198	179	15	155-180	164	Hancock et al., 1992
Shank length	18	191-230	214	15	184-211	197	Hancock et al., 1992
Ciconia ciconia asiatica. middle Asia
Wing length	18	581-615	596	9	548-596	577	Hancock et al., 1992
Beak length	18	188-223	204	9	178-196	187	Hancock et al., 1992
Shank length	18	213-247	234	9	211-234	220	Hancock et al., 1992

Wing formula (not counting the rudimentary first flight feather) IV?III?V-I-VI... The outer webs of the II and IV primary flight feathers have notches. The tail is slightly rounded, there are 12 tail feathers. The beak is long, straight, tapering towards the apex. The nostrils are long, slit-like. Weight 41 males from Vost. Prussia 2,900-4,400 g (average 3,571), 27 females - 2,700-3,900 g (3,325). Weight increases slightly during the summer. The average weight of 14 males in June was 3,341 g, 14 females - 3,150 g; in July-August, 12 males weighed on average 3,970 g, 12 females - 3,521 g (Steinbacher, 1936).

The male is thus somewhat larger than the female and has a longer and more massive beak. In addition, the male’s beak has a slightly different shape: the mandible in front of the apex is slightly curved upward, while the female’s beak is straight (Bauer, Glutz von Blotzheim, 1966; Creutz, 1988). Beak length can determine the sex of 67% of birds with an error rate of no more than 5% (Post et al., 1991). Individual recognition of birds by the pattern of a black spot on the chin is also possible (Fangrath and Helb, 2005).

Shedding

Not studied enough. In young birds, the complete post-juvenile molt begins, depending on the circumstances, from December to May of the first year of life. In adult birds, complete moulting takes most of the year. The primaries are replaced in irregular sequence throughout the nesting period, some in winter (Stresemann and Stresemann, 1966).

The molting of flight feathers was traced in more detail on 5 storks kept in a nursery in Switzerland (Bloesch et al., 1977). Feather growth occurs at a linear rate. Primary flight feathers grow 8-9 mm per day, secondary ones - 6.5-6.9 mm. It takes from 50-55 to 65-75 days to replace the flight feather. The birds under observation had 6 primary flight feathers and 13 secondary ones on both wings per year. The duration of wearing different feathers varies; for primaries it ranged from 1.2 to 2.5 years. Feathers change in stages. In the primary flights it begins from XI, in the secondary ones - from several points. Molting cycles begin from the second year of life, their final course is established only by 4-5 years. During the first or third moult, the change of feathers began in March-April, later - in mid-May and continued until the beginning of November. Most of the feathers were replaced during the summer months between the start of incubation and departure.

The combination of molting and nesting may be due to the fact that the white stork at this time has much less load on its wings than during long migration or during nomadic life in wintering grounds (Creutz, 1988).

Subspecies taxonomy

There are 2 subspecies, differing in size and beak shape:

1.Cicortia cicottia ciconia

Ardea ciconia Linnaeus, 1758, Syst. Nat., ed. 10, p. 142, Sweden.

Smaller form. The wing length of males is 545-600 mm, the length of the tarsus is 188-226 mm, the length of the beak is 150-200 mm. The beak is less sharply sloping towards the apex (Stepanyan, 2003). Distributed in Europe, North. Africa, West Asia.

2.Ciconia ciconia asiatica

Ciconia alba asiatica Severtzov, 1873, Izv. Imp. Islands of Lovers of Natural History, Anthropology and Ethnography, 8, no. 2, p. 145, Turkestan.

Larger form. The wing length of males is 580-630 mm, the length of the tarsus is 200-240 mm, the length of the beak is 184-235 mm. The beak, especially the mandible, is more sharply sloping towards the apex (Stepanyan, 2003). Inhabits the territory of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Notes on taxonomy

Previously, the Far Eastern stork (Ciconia boyciana) was considered a subspecies of the white stork, but now most taxonomists consider it as an independent species. Special studies have shown significant morphological and behavioral differences, sufficient to separate the species (Hancock et al., 1992). The subspecies of the white stork population from Transcaucasia requires special study.

Spreading

Nesting area. Europe, North-West Africa, West and Central Asia (Fig. 78).

Figure 78.
a - nesting area, b - wintering areas, c - main directions of autumn migration, d - directions of expansion.

The European subspecies is distributed throughout most of Europe from the Iberian Peninsula to the Volga region and Transcaucasia. To the north its range reaches Denmark, South. Sweden, Estonia, north-west Russia. In France, storks live in only a few provinces, so nesting sites are in Spain, Portugal, Western Europe. France and North-West Africa find themselves cut off from the main European range. However, due to ongoing resettlement, it is likely that these two parts of the range will close. In the North-West In Africa, the white stork nests in Morocco, northern Algeria and Tunisia. In the West Asia - in Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Iraq, Iran, in the Transcaucasus - in southern Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, as well as in the Republic of Dagestan of the Russian Federation. There are also known cases of reproduction in wintering areas in the South. Africa (Broekhuysen, 1965, 1971; Broekhuysen and Uys, 1966; Hancock et al., 1992). In 2004, a nesting attempt was noted in the northeast of England in Yorkshire. This is the first time a white stork has bred in Britain since 1416, when the birds nested on Edinburgh Cathedral.

In Russia, the white stork has long inhabited the territory of the Kaliningrad region. In other areas it appeared relatively recently, expanding its nesting range in the eastern and northeastern directions. The first cases of nesting within the modern borders of the Leningrad and Moscow regions. were noted at the end of the 19th century. (Malchevsky, Pukinsky, 1983; Zubakin et al., 1992). By the beginning of the 20th century. The white stork began nesting in the Pskov, Tver and Kaluga regions. (Zarudny, 1910; Filatov, 1915; Bianchi, 1922). By this time, it was already quite common in the western regions of Smolensk (Grave, 1912, 1926) and the southern part of Bryansk region. (Fedosov, 1959). Settlement into new territories had a wave-like character. Particularly intensive development of new areas was noted in the 1970-1990s. Currently, on the territory of Russia, the northern and eastern border of the regular nesting of the Eastern European population can be conditionally drawn along the line St. Petersburg - Volkhov - Tikhvin - Yaroslavl - Lipetsk - Voronezh - the border of the Rostov region. and Ukraine (Fig. 79).

Figure 79.
a - regular nesting, b - insufficiently clarified border of the nesting area, c - irregular nesting. Subspecies: 1 - S. s. ciconia, 2 - S. s. asiatica.

Periodic evictions of individual couples were noted far beyond the specified border: in South. Karelia, Kostroma, Nizhny Novgorod, Kirov, Perm, Ulyanovsk, Penza, Saratov, Volgograd and Rostov regions, Krasnodar region (Lapshin, 1997, 2000; Bacca et al., 2000; Borodin, 2000; Dylyuk, Galchenkov, 2000; Karyakin, 2000; Komlev, 2000; Piskunov, Belyachenko, 2000; Frolov et al., 2000a, etc.). The West Asian population of the nominative subspecies is widespread in the Terek-Sulak lowland of Dagestan (Babayurt, Khasavyurt, Kizlyar, Tarumov districts), periodically nests appeared outside of Dagestan - in the Stavropol Territory, Karachay-Cherkessia, Proletarsky district of the Rostov region. (Khokhlov, 1988a; Bicherev, Skiba, 1990). White storks were also recorded in the foothills of the Northern. Ossetia (Komarov, 1986). The Rostov region is obviously a territory where Eastern European and Western Asian populations practically converge from different directions. The first penetrates here from the north along the Don and from the west - from Ukraine, the second - from the southeast along the Kumo-Manychka depression. The last, most poorly understood direction of bird movement can be confirmed by a meeting on May 13, 1996 in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe lake. Dadinskoe, in the extreme northeast of the Stavropol Territory, a flock of 18 birds migrated at high altitude in a northwestern direction (Dylyuk, Galchenkov, 2000).

In Ukraine, the modern border of the range passes through the North. and North-East. Crimea, southern parts of Zaporozhye and Donetsk regions, Lugansk region. (Grischenko, 2005). In 2006, the first case of a white stork nesting was noted in the southeast of Crimea near Feodosia (M. M. Beskaravainy, personal communication).

The Turkestan white stork is common in Central Asia - in the southeast of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and southern Kazakhstan. Previously, the range reached Chardzhou in Turkmenistan, the lower reaches of the Amu Darya; cases of nesting were also noted in the west of China - in Kashgaria (Spangenberg, 1951; Dolgushin, 1960; Sagitov, 1987; Shernazarov et al., 1992). Occasionally, nesting attempts - apparently of the European subspecies - are noted in the southeast of Turkmenistan (Belousov, 1990).

A small nesting area of ​​white storks (about 10 pairs) arose in the extreme south of Africa. Birds here begin nesting in September-November - the time of arrival for wintering storks of northern populations (del Hoyo et al., 1992). As in the case of the black stork, this micropopulation originates from migrants who, for some reason, began to breed in wintering grounds.

Wintering

The main wintering grounds of the western population of the European subspecies are savannas south of the Sahara from Senegal in the west to Cameroon in the east. The most important places of concentration of wintering birds are the valleys of the Senegal and Niger rivers and the lake area. Chad. Storks that nest in northwest Africa also spend the winter here. The eastern population winters in Vost. and Yuzh. Africa from Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia to South Africa. Most birds spend the winter months in Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa. Storks from the West. Asians winter partly in Africa, partly in southern Asia. The Asian subspecies winters mainly in India south to Sri Lanka. As far east as Thailand, these birds can be found (Schulz, 1988, 1998; Ash, 1989; Hancock et al., 1992). In India, the main wintering grounds for storks are the states of Bihar in the northeast and Gujarat in the west (Majumdar, 1989). It is interesting that birds ringed in Europe were also found in India (Lebedeva, 1979a). Apparently, these are storks that lost their way in the area of ​​Iskander Bay - they did not turn south, but continued their migration to the southeast.

Some birds winter in the southern part of the breeding range. In Spain during the winter seasons of 1991 and 1992. in the river delta About 3,000 individuals were counted in Guadalquivir and on the Andalusian coast (Tortosa et al., 1995). In Portugal in the winter of 1994/95. 1,187 storks wintered (Rosa et al., 1999). Thousands of storks remain in Israel for the winter (Schulz, 1998). In Armenia, hundreds of birds winter annually in the Araks Valley (Adamyan, 1990). In Bulgaria, storks remained for the winter at the end of the 19th century; now their number has increased significantly. Flocks of up to 10 individuals have been recorded (Nankinov, 1994). There are known cases of wintering in more northern latitudes - in Ukraine (Grischenko, 1992), the Czech Republic (Tichy, 1996), Germany, Denmark (Schulz, 1998). On the territory of Russia, wintering of white storks was observed in Dagestan (T.K. Umakhanova, V.F. Mamatayeva, personal communication). In Central Asia, storks winter in small numbers in the Fergana Valley (Tretyakov, 1974, 1990). Here, in the Pungan-Urgench area, up to 250 birds were recorded in the winter months of 1989. It is believed that the partial sedentism of white storks in the Fergana Valley contributed to the general increase in their number in the region. Wintering of an irregular nature was observed in the Syr Darya valley and on the river. Panj in South. Tajikistan (Mitropolsky, 2007).

Ringed in the former In the USSR, white storks were found wintering mainly in South Africa, individual birds - in Ethiopia, Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Namibia, West. Africa (Lebedeva, 1979; Smogorzhevsky, 1979).

As H. Schulz (1988) established, the distribution of storks in wintering areas in Africa is determined primarily by food supplies. First of all, birds choose wet biotopes, but they can also stay in dry places rich in food. Large flocks are found even in deserts and mountains. In Lesotho in 1987, a flock of 200 storks was discovered at an altitude of approx. 2,000 m. Birds fed on reservoirs that abounded in amphibians. In places rich in food, storks can accumulate in huge numbers. In January 1987, about 100 thousand individuals were counted in Tanzania on an area of ​​25 km2. The birds were feeding in the alfalfa fields, where the caterpillars of one of the local butterflies had multiplied en masse. In South In Africa, white storks were almost never seen this season.

Thanks to the results of ringing and satellite telemetry, it has been established that the wintering areas of the western and eastern populations are not isolated from each other. To the Center In Africa there is a mixed wintering zone where birds from both populations are found. Here, individuals from one population can be carried away by flocks of storks from another population and return in the spring by a different route and to other nesting sites (Berthold et al., 1997; Brouwer et al., 2003).

Migrations

The white stork is a long-distance migrant. Birds from the northeastern part of their range fly over 10 thousand km. There are two main geographical populations of the European subspecies, differing in their flight routes and wintering areas. The dividing line between them passes through Holland, Harz, Bavaria, and the Alps (Schuz, 1953, 1962; Creutz, 1988; Schulz, 1988, 1998). Birds nesting to the west of it migrate in the fall to the southwest through France, Spain, and Gibraltar. Next, the flight goes through Morocco, Mauritania, and the western part of the Sahara. These birds winter in the West. Africa. Storks nesting east of this dividing line fly in the southeast in the fall, and from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and the Baltic states in the south. Three main flyways pass through the territory of Ukraine in the fall, which merge into a powerful migration flow passing along the western coast of the Black Sea (Grischtschenko, Serebryakov, 1992; Grischtschenko et al., 1995). Next, the storks fly through the Balkans and Turkey, through the Bosphorus, and Asia Minor. From Iskander they go to the Mediterranean coast, where they again turn south and migrate in a narrow stream through Lebanon, Israel, the Sinai Peninsula to the Nile Valley. Along this river and the Rift Valley there is further migration to the main wintering grounds in the East. and Yuzh. Africa. In East Sudanese storks make a long stopover of 4-6 weeks and feed intensively to restore fat reserves to continue migration (Schulz, 1988, 1998).

The stork, as a land soarer, avoids long flights over the sea, which is why migration flows are formed along the coasts. Storks from the western, northern and central regions of Ukraine migrate along the western coast of the Black Sea and across the Bosphorus, and birds from the East. The Ukrainians fly southeast to the eastern coast of the Black Sea. Storks from the eastern part of their range in Russia also fly here. Some storks, although insignificant, still fly directly across the sea. There is an "intermediate" flyway through Italy and Sicily to Tunisia. In 1990-1992 At Cape Bon in Tunisia, 1,378 migrating storks were counted and 67 near Messina in Sicily (Kisling and Horst, 1999). It is assumed that this route is used by birds from both western and eastern populations (Schulz, 1998). An individual ringed in Latvia was found in September near Naples (Lebedeva, 1979). And one stork with a satellite transmitter flew across the Mediterranean Sea directly from St. Tropez in France to Tunisia; the route across the sea was at least 752 km (Chemetsov et al., 2005). Perhaps some of the storks fly across the Black Sea, crossing Crimea.

The migrations of storks from Transcaucasia, Iraq and Iran have not been studied enough. It is assumed that they fly southeast to Yuzh. Asia (Schtiz, 1963; Schulz, 1998). The bird, ringed in Armenia, was found in the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, 160 km to the southeast (Lebedeva, 1979). The dividing line between populations migrating to Africa and Asia is not yet known. Apparently, it takes place somewhere in eastern Turkey. At least in this region, flocks of birds are observed migrating both southeast and west in the fall (Schtiz, 1963).

Turkestan storks migrate south through Afghanistan to India in the fall, crossing the Hindu Kush via the Salang Pass (Schtiz, 1963; Schulz, 1998). Storks ringed in Uzbekistan were caught in the spring in Afghanistan and Pakistan (Lebedeva, 1979).

An analysis of satellite tracking of 140 German storks showed that these birds can change their migration routes and timing, wintering and stopping places over a fairly wide range, but, if possible, they remain constant. Changes are caused by natural factors, primarily feeding conditions (Berthold et al., 2004). The timing of departure from wintering sites depends on the meteorological situation. Under unfavorable conditions, birds may be delayed. Thus, in the extremely unfavorable year of 1997, storks started from their wintering grounds a month later than usual (Kosarev, 2006). Added to this was a delay due to prolonged cold weather in the Middle East. Storks equipped with transmitters made long stops in Syria and Turkey. A return flight has been observed (Kaatz, 1999). As a result, in 1997, only 20% of birds from the eastern population arrived at normal times, while the majority arrived with a delay of 4-6 weeks (Schulz, 1998).

From wintering sites, a massive movement in the opposite direction occurs at the end of January or in February. In Israel, the beginning of the spring migration of adult birds becomes noticeable in mid-February, the peak of migration occurs in the second half of March, and especially noticeable movements end at the end of April; young birds migrate through Israel in April-May (van den Bossche et al., 2002). Storks appear in nesting areas in northern Africa as early as December-February. The peak of flight over Gibraltar is noted in February-March, over the Bosphorus - from the end of March to the end of April (Schulz, 1998).

In Moldova, arriving storks have been recorded since the first ten days of March (Averin et al., 1971). On the territory of Ukraine, arrivals are registered from the first days of March to the second half of April, the average arrival dates fall on the third ten days of March - early April. Birds appear first in the Lviv and Chernivtsi regions, flying around the Carpathians; then migration occurs in two streams: some birds fly to the northeast, others to the east across the southern regions of Ukraine. Storks appear later in the eastern regions and in the Crimea (Grischtschenko, Serebryakov, 1992; Grischtschenko et al., 1995). In the north of Sumy region. arrival was recorded from March 18 to April 26, the average date for 16 years was March 30 (Afanasyev, 1998). In the southwest of Belarus, the arrival of storks is noted in the third ten days of March - the first half of April (Shokalo, Shokalo, 1992). Storks nesting in the European part of Russia reach their homeland in early March - the first half of May. On the territory of the Kaliningrad region. in the first half of the 20th century. the first birds appeared on the nests in the period from March 19 to April 12 (data for 23 years, Tischler, 1941). In the 1970s the arrival of storks occurred from the beginning of March (Belyakov, Yakovchik, 1980). In 1990, the first birds on nests in the Kaliningrad region. noted on March 18 (Grishanov, Savchuk, 1992). In the Sebezhsky district of the Pskov region. arrival was observed at the end of March - the first ten days of April (Fetisov et al., 1986). For the period from 1989 to 1999. the earliest registration in the Kaluga region. recorded on March 20 (1990), the latest was April 8 (1991 and 1997), with an average of March 30. In some years, the earliest birds appear in the spring when the snow cover in the fields is 30-40 cm high. The peak of the first storks arriving at nests in the Kaluga region. falls on the second five-day period of April (1990-1999) (Galchenkov, 2000). In the Voronezh region. the first storks were observed in the same periods: from March 19 to April 8, on average March 30 (1995-1998) (Numerov, Makagonova, 2000). Storks arrive at the northeastern border of their range 2-4 weeks later. To the Yaroslavl region. birds arrived on April 22-26 (1994), April 16 (1996), May 2 (1995) (Golubev, 2000). In the eastern regions of the Leningrad region. the earliest arrival was noted on April 20, 1999 (Tikhvin district), the usual dates are from May 1 to May 8 (1983-1999) (Brave, 2000). In the southern regions of Karelia, the first birds appear in late April - mid-May; in the very early spring of 1990, a single bird was seen at the beginning of the second ten days of April (Lapshin, 2000). In the Kirov region. The earliest record of a white stork was April 17, 1992. (Sotnikov, 2000). On the Black Sea coast of the North. In the Caucasus, spring migration is observed from the first ten days of March to the second half of April, in the Rostov region. and Krasnodar Territory, the first birds were noted in April (Kazakov et al., 2004). In Dagestan, the first individuals appear in early and mid-March (Mamataeva, Umakhanova, 2000).

The appearance of white storks in spring in Central Asia occurs at the end of February - beginning of March and is observed almost simultaneously in most of the territory (Dementyev, 1952; Mitropolsky, 2007). At the Chokpak pass they were recorded on March 11-14, 1974 (Gavrilov, Gistsov, 1985), intensive migration was noted on March 24 (Sema, 1989).

In Kaluga region. in 69% of cases, the white stork’s arrival took place according to the 1+1 scheme: first one bird from the pair arrived, and some time after that the second one arrived. The first individual appears from March 20 to May 18, on average (n = 176) - on April 10, the second - from March 25 to May 26, on average (n = 150) - on April 14. The delay of the second bird occurs in the range from several hours to 31 days, on average by 4 days. In the indicated flight pattern, there are rare variants: in the first, each of the individuals of the pair flies up with one or two other birds, which do not remain on the nest, but fly further; in the second case, a pair flies to a single stork and drives it away. In 31% of cases, two birds flew to the nest at once.

Breeding birds of the Eastern European population fly away in August. Young birds, as a rule, fly away earlier than adult birds. In Kaluga region. the young left the nests starting on August 8, more often in the second ten days of this month. Adult birds leave their homeland later, the departure of the last individuals ends on average on August 30 (1985-1999) (Galchenkov, 2000). In the Tver region. storks fly away August 28 - September 5 (Nikolaev, 2000). In the Yaroslavl region. the birds flew away on August 23 (1996) and August 29 (1995) (Golubev, 2000). Individuals and pairs linger until September - October. In the southwestern regions of Russia, before departure, they form clusters of tens and up to 100 or more individuals, such as in the Smolensk region. (Bicherev, Barnev, 1998). To the North In the Caucasus, autumn migration is observed from the first half of August to the end of September (Kazakov et al., 2004). The migration routes and wintering areas of Dagestan storks have not been clarified: it is known that the last of them leave the nesting area from October 25 to November 10, sometimes staying until the middle or end of this month (November 25, 2003 and November 15, 2004). Most likely storks , nesting in the Terek-Sunzhenskaya lowland, follow along the western shore of the Caspian Sea, where birds of this species were recorded on October 23, 1998 in the area of ​​​​the city of Kaspiysk (E.V. Vilkov, personal communication).

In Moldova, departure begins at the end of August and continues until mid-September. Some birds may linger until the first half of October. The latest meeting is November 9, 1964 (Averin, Ganya, Uspensky, 1971). In Ukraine, the first migratory flocks are observed from the first ten days of August to September and early October. The average departure dates fall on the third ten days of August - the first ten days of September. The earliest flight begins in the Lviv, Zhitomir and Poltava regions. The last birds were observed from the second half of August until October. The average dates of last observation in most regions of Ukraine fall on the first and second ten days of September. Storks stay the longest in the Zaporozhye region. and in Crimea (Grischtschenko, Serebryakov, 1992; Grischtschenko et al., 1995). Some belated individuals may also be observed in November. Sometimes very late you can meet whole flocks. Thus, on December 4, 1985, a flock of several dozen storks was observed over Ivano-Frankivsk (Shtyrkalo, 1990). On November 5, 1997, a flock of 40 individuals was seen over Brest (Shokalo, Shokalo, 1992). Flight along the eastern coast of the Black Sea was noted from August 29 to October 4 (Abuladze, Eligulashvili, 1986).

Central Asian storks fly away from late August to mid-October (Dolgushin, 1960; Tretyakov, 1990).

Flight of three young storks marked on nests in the Zelenograd and Guryev districts of the Kaliningrad region. satellite transmitters, was tracked in 2000. One bird left for the winter on August 10, the other two on the 14th. The flight path passed through northeastern Poland, the extreme southwest of Belarus, the western part of Ukraine, eastern Romania and Bulgaria, then through the Bosphorus Strait, Turkey, Palestine, and the Sinai Peninsula. The storks reached the Bosphorus Strait on August 23, 25 and 26, respectively, i.e. 13, 11 and 12 days after the start of migration. At the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, storks were present on August 29, 31, and September 1, respectively (19, 17, and 18 days after the start of migration, or 6 days after each bird crossed the Bosphorus); here the storks made a stop. The storks then proceeded along the Nile Valley in continental Egypt. The birds stopped their rapid movement to the south on September 6, 7 and 10, by which time two of them were moving towards the center. Sudan, one is in eastern Chad near the Sudanese border (Chemetsov et al., 2004).

During autumn migrations, the average length of daily movements of storks of the eastern population according to telemetry data is: in Europe - 218 km (for adult birds from 52 to 504, for young birds - from 51 to 475 km), in the Middle East - 275 km (for adult birds from 52 to 490, for young people - from 55 to 408 km), in the North. Africa - 288 km (for adult birds from 70 to 503, for young birds - from 108 to 403 km) (van den Bossche et al., 1999).

A comprehensive study of the migrations of the white stork showed that this species, at least its eastern population, has a very special type of migration, not yet known for other birds. It is characterized by a very fast flight from nesting sites to the resting area in Vost. Africa. Both adult and young birds cover a distance of 4,600 km in an average of 18-19 days. Under normal conditions, storks fly every day, spending 8-10 hours on the way. Long stops, especially multi-day stops, occur only as an exception and are associated primarily with unfavorable weather conditions. Storks, unlike other migratory birds, have insignificant fat reserves during migration. There is no noticeable hyperphagia during the flight. Storks practically do not regain weight until Africa (Berthold et al., 2001).

Most immature storks spend the summer months away from their nesting sites. After the first winter, the birds migrate towards the nesting area, but rarely reach it. Only a third of one-year-old storks were found closer than 1000 km from the banding site. With age, the proportion of “defectors” quickly decreases. A significant part of 1-2-year-old storks spend the summer south of the Sahara, but 3-year-old birds are not found there at all during the nesting period. Banding has shown that in most cases, storks first appear at nesting sites at 3 years of age (Libbert, 1954; Kania, 1985; Bairlein, 1992).

Migratory storks can be found significantly north and east of the border of the breeding range. In Russia, they were observed on the shores of the White Sea in the Murmansk region. (Kokhanov, 1987), near the village. Kholmogory in the Arkhangelsk region. (Pleshak, 1987), in Bashkiria (Karyakin, 1998a), Tatarstan (Askeev, Askeev, 1999), Perm region. (Demidova, 1997; Karyakin, 19986), Sverdlovsk region. (Zelentsov, 1995), in the southern steppes. Ural (Davygora, 2006). According to insufficiently reliable data, two birds were observed in August in the Kurgan region. (Tarasov et al., 2003). Flights of white storks are also recorded in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Great Britain, Ireland, and Iceland (Hancock et al., 1992; Birina, 2003). During migration, true infestations may occur when large flocks find themselves away from the main flyways. Thus, on September 15, 1984, a flock of 3,000 storks appeared near Abu Dhabi in the east of the Arabian Peninsula (Reza Khan, 1989). On August 27-29, 2000, a cluster of 300-400 individuals stayed in the valley of the river. Teberda on the North. Caucasus (Polivanov et al., 2001). Sometimes migrating flocks of storks are blown far out to sea by the wind. Such birds are even recorded on the Seychelles Islands, which lie 1,000 km from the African coast (Stork, 1999).

Habitat

The white stork is a typical inhabitant of open landscapes; Avoids continuous forests and overgrown swamps. Prefers areas with wet biotopes - meadows, swamps, pastures, irrigated lands, rice fields, etc. It is also found in steppes and savannas with single large trees or human structures. The optimal biotope in our conditions is the vast floodplains of rivers with normal hydraulic regime and extensive agricultural use. In such places, the population density can reach tens of couples per 100 km2. As a rule, it inhabits flat areas, but can also nest low in the mountains with suitable conditions.

To the Center In Europe, white storks rarely nest above 500 m a.s.l. u.m (Schulz, 1998). In the Carpathians they rise to 700-900 m (Smogorzhevsky, 1979; Rejman, 1989; Stollmann, 1989), in Armenia and Georgia - up to 2,000 m above sea level. (Adamyan, 1990; Gavashelishvili, 1999), in Turkey up to 2,300 m (Creutz, 1988), and in Morocco even up to 2,500 m above sea level (Sauter, Schiiz, 1954). In Bulgaria, 78.8% of stork pairs nest at altitudes from 50 to 499 m above sea level. and only 0.2% - from 1,000 to 1,300 m (Petrov et al., 1999). In Poland, storks have been noted to spread to higher altitudes as their numbers increase (Tryjanowski et al., 2005). The white stork prefers to feed in open areas with low grassy vegetation, in shallow waters of standing and slow-flowing reservoirs. Less common on the banks of large rivers and mountain streams. Arable lands and intensively cultivated meadows and fields of perennial grasses are also used by storks for feeding, but the favorable period for collecting food in such places is very short - immediately after plowing or harvesting.

Stork nests are found on the periphery of colonies of herons and other wading birds. But most often it nests in populated areas. It can even settle among dense buildings in large cities, from where it has to fly 2-3 km for food. The white stork usually leaves villages abandoned by people over time. Thus, these birds stopped nesting in most of the evicted villages of the Chernobyl zone (Samusenko, 2000; Hasek, 2002).

During migration, the white stork also prefers open landscapes; it tries to fly around large expanses of water and forests, since, as we believe, flying over them with a specialized soarer requires more energy consumption.

Number

The total number of white storks according to the results of the V International census in 1994-1995. one can estimate a minimum of 170-180 thousand pairs, of which the eastern population accounts for 140-150 thousand pairs (Grischenko, 2000). Compared to the previous census in 1984, the total number increased by 23%. Moreover, the size of the western population increased significantly more - by 75%, in the eastern - by 15% (Schulz, 1999). The largest number of white storks was recorded in Poland. In 1995, about 40,900 pairs were counted there, 34% more than in 1984. The average nesting density in Poland is 13.1 pairs/100 km2 (Guziak, Jakubiec, 1999). In Spain, where the bulk of the western population breeds, the population was estimated at 18,000 pairs in 1996. This country has seen the greatest growth: between two international censuses it more than doubled (Marti, 1999).

According to the preliminary results of the VI International census, which took place in 2004-2005, the total number of white storks is estimated at 230 thousand pairs. The largest number is in Poland - 52.5 thousand pairs, followed by Spain - 33.2 thousand pairs, Ukraine - approx. 30 thousand pairs, Belarus - 20.3 thousand pairs, Lithuania - 13 thousand pairs, Latvia - 10.7 thousand pairs, Russia - 10.2 thousand pairs. The largest increase in numbers was noted in France - 209%, Sweden - 164%, Portugal - 133%, Italy - 117%, Spain - 100%. The number decreased (by half) only in Denmark. There are only 3 nests left there. For the Asian subspecies, data are provided only for Uzbekistan, where 745 pairs were recorded; the number decreased by 49%.

According to materials collected in Russia in 1994-1997, as well as expert estimates for areas where the census was not carried out or was incomplete, the total number of the breeding group was at least 7,100-8,400 pairs (Cherevichko et al., 1999). The Kaliningrad and Pskov regions are most densely populated by storks. - respectively, 2,371 and 1,910 pairs. In the Bryansk region. about 600 pairs were counted, however, most likely between 800 and 1,000 pairs nested here; at least 600 pairs bred in the Smolensk region. (in 12 western out of 25 administrative districts of the region, 449 pairs were noted). In the Kursk region. 325 pairs were counted, in Novgorodskaya - 316, in Tverskaya 200-230, in Kaluga - about 200, in Leningradskaya - at least 100 pairs. From several dozen to 100 pairs lived in the Oryol and Belgorod regions, in the Moscow region. 23 pairs were counted, in Voronezh - 10, Yaroslavl - 15-20, Lipetsk - 5, Ryazan - 216, Kirov - 1, Mordovia - 1 pair (Galchenkov, 2000a; Golubev, 2000; Dylyuk, 2000).

During the VI International Census, according to preliminary data, the following were taken into account: Kursk region. - 929 pairs (+186% compared to the V International Census, data from V.I. Mironov), Bryansk region. - 844 (+31%, S. M. Kosenko), Kaluga region. - 285 (+58%, Yu. D. Galchenkov), Leningrad region. - 160 (+344%, V.G. Pchelintsev), Oryol region. - 129 (S.V. Nedosekin), Moscow region. - 80 (+248%, M.V. Kalyakin).

The current population in Armenia is estimated at 1-1.5 thousand pairs, in Azerbaijan - 1-5 thousand pairs, in Moldova - 400-600 pairs (Birds in Europe, 2004).

Throughout the 20th century, the number of white storks underwent significant changes (see Grishchenko, 2000). In the first half of the century (and in some places even earlier), its rapid decline began in many European countries. By the end of the 1940s. in Central Europe it has almost halved. Conducted in 1934, 1958, 1974, 1984. International white stork surveys showed a steady decline in the number of occupied nests. Thus, if in 1907 there were 7-8 thousand breeding pairs in Germany (Wassmann, 1984), then by 1984 their number decreased to 649 in Germany (Heckenroth, 1986) and 2,724 in the GDR (Creutz, 1985) . In the Netherlands in the 19th century. The white stork was one of the common birds, and there were thousands of nests in the country. But already in 1910 there were only 500 breeding pairs left, the number continued to decline rapidly: 209 pairs in 1929, 85 in 1950, 5 in 1985 (Jonkers, 1989). After 1991, not a single “wild” pair remained; only birds released from special nurseries nested (Vos, 1995). Storks stopped nesting in Belgium, Switzerland, Sweden, and came to the brink of extinction in France, Denmark and some other countries. The western white stork population turned out to be the most vulnerable. According to the IV International Census in 1984, in just 10 years its numbers decreased by 20%, the eastern population - by 12% (Rheinwald, 1989).

A radical change in the situation began in the 1980s, most notably in Spain. Around 1987, the number of storks began to increase. Over 11 years, it increased by more than 2.5 times and soon exceeded the level of half a century ago (Gomez Manzaneque, 1992; Martinez Rodriguez, 1995). The number in Portugal has also more than doubled (Rosa et al., 1999). All this was explained primarily by climatic reasons. In the second half of the 1980s. The long period of drought in the Sahel zone, which significantly worsened the wintering conditions of the western white stork population, has finally ended. The growth in numbers was also facilitated by a significant improvement in the food supply at the nesting sites. In Spain, for example, the area of ​​irrigated land has increased; In addition, the South American crayfish Procambarus clarkii, which is readily eaten by storks, has taken root in the canals (Schulz, 1994; 1999). In Spain and Portugal, many more birds began to remain for the winter, which also reduced mortality (Gomez Manzaneque, 1992; Rosa et al., 1999). The surge in white stork numbers on the Iberian Peninsula contributed to the rapid growth of the entire western population. Soon, the rise in numbers and resettlement of these birds began in France, and the connection with the processes taking place in Spain was proven: in 1990 and 1991. found storks that nested on the Atlantic coast of France, and were ringed in Spain. It is assumed that some of the storks nesting in the departments along the coast of the Bay of Biscay settled from Spain. Storks from Alsace, Switzerland and the Netherlands have appeared in the north-east and center of France. In 1995, a stork nested in the Charente-Maritime department, which was ringed as a chick in Poland in 1986. The rapid spread of storks to Holland, Switzerland, Italy, Germany and other countries has also been noted. In France from 1984 to 1995. numbers increased by 830% (Duquet, 1999).

The eastern population did not have such sharp jumps in numbers as the western one, but its positive trend was noted. We emphasize that, despite a general decrease in numbers, the spread of storks to the east in Russia and Ukraine and its growth at the border of the range continued. The increase in the size of the eastern population began at approximately the same time as the western one, although the growth rate was much lower. The situation in the Asian subspecies has changed almost simultaneously. From 1984 to 1994, the number of white storks in Central Asia increased more than 7 times (Shemazarov, 1999), and by 2005 the number of these birds here was estimated at 700-1,000 breeding pairs (Mitropolsky, 2007).

According to monitoring data on permanent trial plots in Ukraine, in the 1990s. there was a wave of population growth. It began to emerge already in the first half of the 1990s, somewhat earlier in the northeast of Ukraine, and later in the western regions. In 1992-1994. in villages along the river Seimas in Sumy region. there was an increase in numbers by 25-30% annually (Grischenko, 1995a, 20006). Since 1994, the average increase in Ukraine has been increasing all the time (a decline was noted only in 1997, which was extremely unfavorable for the white stork throughout Europe), reaching a maximum in 1996 and 1998. - 13.7±2.9 and 16.3±3.6%, respectively. Then the growth rate began to decrease, and in 2001-2003. the population has stabilized. (Grischenko, 2004).

During the same period, settlement to the east intensified in the eastern regions of Ukraine and Russia. In Kharkov region. by 1994, a shift in the range boundary to the east was noted compared to the distribution in 1974-1987; in 1998, nests were discovered on the right bank of the river. Oskol (Atemasova, Atemasov, 2003). In the Lugansk region, where the white stork was found east to the river. Aidar, in 1998, 2 nests were found in the floodplain of the river. Derkul on the border with Russia (Vetrov, 1998). In the Rostov region. in 1996, storks nested again after a 5-year break - a nest was discovered in the Manych valley (Kazakov et al., 1997). Storks began nesting in the Krasnodar Territory in the mid-1990s. (Mnatsekanov, 2000). In 1993, nesting was first recorded in the Kirov region. (Sotnikov, 1997, 1998), in 1994 - in the Tambov region. (Evdokishin, 1999), in 1995 - in Mordovia (Lapshin, Lysenkov, 1997,2000), in 1996 - in the Vologda region. (Dylyuk, 2000). In 1996, a sharp increase in the number of birds was noted (by 20.1%) in the Kaluga region. (Galchenkov, 2000).

Reproduction

Daily activity, behavior

The white stork is a diurnal bird, but there are known cases of feeding chicks on bright nights (Schuz, Schuz, 1932). At night, birds can be active on the nest: copulation, feather care, change of brooding partners, etc. have been noted. During migration, the stork flies during the day, but in northwestern Africa, with high daytime temperatures, migratory flocks have also been observed at night (Bauer, Glutz von Blotzheim, 1966). Large flocks are often crowded and disordered; birds fly at different heights (Molodovsky, 2001).

On the ground, the white stork moves in steps, less often runs. Active flight is quite heavy, with slow flapping of the wings. Under favorable conditions, it prefers soaring, especially when flying over long distances. In rising currents, concentrations of birds gaining altitude often form. The white stork can swim, although it does so reluctantly. When the wind is favorable, it is able to take off from the surface of the water (Bauer, Glutz von Blotzheim, 1966; Creutz, 1988).

During the non-nesting period, the white stork leads a gregarious lifestyle. During nesting, colonies and aggregations may also form in feeding areas. Non-breeding birds in the summer keep in flocks, the number of which reaches tens and even hundreds of individuals. They stay in places rich in food, leading a wandering lifestyle. The number of such flocks gradually increases from May to June; in July their size increases noticeably; they become even more numerous in August, due to the formation of pre-departure aggregations. According to observations in the Kaluga region. in the 1990s, the average number of birds in summer flocks was: in May - 3.4 individuals, in June - 4.0, in July - 7.8, in August - 10.5 (n = 50). After departure, broods unite into flocks, which gradually become larger as migration progresses. Thus, if in Ukraine the usual size of migratory flocks in autumn is tens, less often hundreds of individuals, then already on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria the average flock size is 577.5 individuals (Michev, Profirov, 1989). In the Middle East and North-East. In Africa, huge aggregations of more than 100 thousand individuals are often noted (Schulz, 1988, 1998). It has been established that the efficiency of migration (speed of movement, compensation for wind drift, etc.) is higher in large flocks (several thousand individuals) than in small groups or in individual birds (Liechti et al., 1996).

Storks rest mainly at night. During the nesting period, the amount of time left for resting and preening depends on the abundance of food and the number of chicks. Given its abundance, storks can rest for hours during the day or clean their plumage. The pose of a resting bird is very characteristic: the stork most often stands on one leg, pulling its head into its shoulders and hiding its beak in the fluffy plumage of its neck. As a rule, storks rest on high perches with a good view - on dry trees, poles, roofs.

White storks use a rather unusual method of thermoregulation - they defecate on their legs. On a hot day you can see many birds with white “stockings” on their feet. Apparently, liquid uric acid evaporates, cooling the surface of the tarsus. Its skin is abundantly penetrated with blood vessels, through which the blood cools (Prinzinger, Hund, 1982; Schulz, 1987). Experiments on the American wood stork (Mycteria americana) have shown that with intense defecation on the legs, body temperature decreases (Kahl, 1972). H. Schulz (1987), observing storks in Africa, found that the frequency of bowel movements depends on air temperature. The temperature threshold after which birds with droppings-splattered legs begin to be encountered regularly is approximately 28 °C. At 40°, the frequency of bowel movements reaches 1.5 times per minute. White droppings, in addition, shield the legs from the scorching rays of the sun. When the weather is cloudy, the frequency of bowel movements decreases. Observations in Ukraine have shown that in nesting areas, storks also begin to use this method of thermoregulation at temperatures of about 30 °C (Grischtschenko, 1992).

When white and black storks and herons feed together, the white stork dominates (Kozulin, 1996).

Nutrition

The white stork's diet is very varied. It eats various small animals from earthworms to rodents and small birds: leeches, mollusks, spiders, crustaceans, insects and their larvae, fish, amphibians, reptiles, etc. It can destroy the nests of ground-nesting birds or catch a hare. Even small predators, such as weasel (Mustela nivalis) are noted in the diet (Lohmer et al, 1980; Shtyrkalo, 1990). The size of the prey is limited only by the ability to swallow it. The diet depends on the conditions of the area and the number of hunting objects. In dry places it can consist almost entirely of insects; in meadows and swamps their proportion is much smaller. Thus, according to E.G. Samusenko (1994), in Belarus the proportion of various groups of animals in the diet of the white stork varies within significant limits. In the Sozh and Berezina floodplains, invertebrates accounted for 51.6-56.8% of the frequency of encounters, in non-floodplain biotopes - up to 99%.

Storks swallow their prey whole. Small animals are swallowed immediately, large insects and rodents are first killed with beak blows. Sometimes you can see a white stork “chewing” a caught vole or mole with its beak for some time. If there is water nearby, the bird rinses large dry prey for some time until it can be easily swallowed. In the same way, storks wash frogs or pbi6y dirty in mud (Creutz, 1988).

Undigested food remains are regurgitated in the form of pellets. The pellets are formed within 36-48 hours. They consist of chitinous remains of insects, fur and bones of mammals, scales of fish and reptiles, bristles of worms, etc. The size of the pellets is 20-100×20-60 mm, weight 16–65 g. In chicks they are somewhat smaller - 20-45×20-25 mm (Creutz, 1988; Muzinic, Rasajski, 1992; Schulz, 1998).

Storks feed in a variety of open biotopes - meadows, pastures, swamps, banks of reservoirs, fields, vegetable gardens, etc. Favorite feeding places are areas with disturbed vegetation or soil layer, where small animals without shelters become easy prey. The effectiveness of hunting in such situations can be quite significant. Thus, in Poland, a stork feeding behind a wheat harvester caught 33 rodents in 84 minutes (Pinowski et al., 1991). According to observations in the Elbe floodplain in Germany, the greatest hunting efficiency (an average of 5 g of prey per minute) was during or immediately after haymaking (Dziewiaty, 1992). Therefore, clusters of feeding storks can be seen in fresh meadows, cultivated fields, and even among burning grass. In Africa, these birds gather where local residents burn the savannah during the dry season. It is enough for them to see the smoke, and storks fly from everywhere, concentrating behind the wall of fire. They walk along the still smoking stems and catch insects. Sometimes hundreds of individuals gather at such fires (Creutz, 1988). Storks willingly accompany herds of livestock or wild animals in pastures. Ungulates scare away small animals, making it easier to prey on them. In meadows, storks most often feed in areas with short grass or in shallow water bodies. They rarely wander deeper than 20-30 cm. Storks most often collect earthworms after rains, when they crawl to the surface, or in freshly plowed fields. They readily feed on irrigated fields abounding in earthworms. Although the number of insects is higher in high vegetation, the hunting efficiency of the white stork is reduced. Thus, in Austria it was 61% in vegetation with a height of 25 cm and 52% with a plant height of 25-30 cm (Schulz, 1998).

The main method of hunting of the white stork is an active search for prey. The bird walks measuredly along the grass or shallow water, now slowing down, now speeding up its pace; can make sharp throws or freeze in place. Less often, storks lie in wait for prey, primarily rodents and large insects. Birds collect food on the ground, in shallow water, and less often on plants. They can also catch flying animals with their beak - dragonflies, beetles and other insects. Sometimes they even knock them down with their wings. Storks kept in captivity quickly learn to grab food thrown to them with their beaks in flight. Even cases of storks successfully hunting for passing sparrows and other small birds have been described (Niethammer, 1967; Creutz, 1988; Berthold, 2004). The bird gropes for earthworms and other soil invertebrates with its beak, plunging it several centimeters into the ground (Schulz, 1998). It was also observed that storks in flight grabbed fish from the surface of the water (Neuschulz, 1981; Schulz, 1998).

According to research by P. Sackl (Sackl, 1985, cited in: Schulz, 1998) in Austria, the average speed of movement of a stork during feeding is 1.7 km/h. At the same time, he takes from 1 to 90 steps per minute, on average 39.3. The time for stalking prey varies from 10.5 to 720 seconds, averaging 151.8 seconds. Occasionally, birds can freeze in place for up to 12 or even 20 minutes. A feeding stork makes an average of 5.3 pecks per minute, of which 4.0 are successful. When feeding with tadpoles and young frogs in shallow water in the floodplain of the river. Sava in Croatia had a pecking rate of 5.9 per minute, of which 2.9 were successful (Schulz, 1998).

The bird most often detects prey visually. Sometimes in muddy water in shallow water, white storks also use tactolocation, similar to storks of the genus Mycteria (Luhrl, 1957; Rezanov, 2001). According to the observations of A.G. Rezanov (2001) in the south of Ukraine, probing of muddy water and muddy bottom was carried out non-stop with a slightly open beak. The storks walked in shallow water, taking 43-89 steps per minute, constantly probing the areas of the bottom in front of them. 98.9% of pecks were single tactile probes. Feeding success was 2.3%.

Storks can also eat dead animals, for example, dead fish or chicks that died during haymaking, and even feed on garbage. In Spain in the 1990s. They have taken over landfills and now feed there along with gulls and corvids. Some birds even winter in landfills (Martin, 2002; Tortosa et al., 2002).

Storks feed both singly and in flocks. In places rich in food, huge accumulations can form, which sometimes reach tens of thousands of individuals in wintering grounds. Moreover, in aggregations, the feeding efficiency of storks increases, since they are better protected from predators and spend less time looking around (Carrascal et al., 1990).

During the nesting period, storks forage for food, as a rule, close to the nest, but they can fly for food several kilometers away. The success of reproduction largely depends on the distance to the main feeding grounds. Studies on the Elbe in Germany have shown that the average distance from nest to foraging sites is inversely proportional to the number of chicks raised (Dziewiaty, 1999). A significant correlation was found between the number of chicks fledged and the proportion of wet meadows, swamps and reservoirs in the nesting territory (Nowakowski, 2003). According to observations of one of the nests in Silesia in Poland, birds flew for food most often to several preferred sites located at a distance of 500 to 3,375 m, with an average of 1,900 m (Jakubiec and Szymocski, 2000). Observations of another pair in Pomerania in northern Poland showed that the storks were feeding over an area of ​​about 250 hectares. In more than half of the cases, they searched for prey in a few preferred areas, which made up only 12% of the total area. They fed 65% of the time in meadows and pastures, 24% in fields and 11% in the pond. The maximum flight distance for prey is 3,600 m, the average is 826 m. In 53% of cases, storks fed no further than 800 m from the nest. They flew the farthest when the chicks had already grown up. Interestingly, the male and female differed in their preferences, feeding predominantly in different places (Oigo and Bogucki, 1999). On the Elbe, in 80% of cases, storks collected food no further than 1 km from the nest (Dziewiaty, 1992). The maximum distance of flights for food determined for ringed birds in Western Europe. Europe is 10 km (Lakeberg, 1995).

An analysis of 242 food samples collected during the non-breeding period in Ukraine showed that amphibians and shield beetles are of greatest importance in the spring, and Orthoptera and various beetles in August. Storks feed their chicks mainly on amphibians and insects at various stages of development. Of the insects, Orthoptera and beetles are of greatest importance; in total, representatives of 19 families of 3 orders were found in the diet (Smogorzhevsky, 1979).

In pellets collected in the upper reaches of the Kyiv Reservoir. in the Chernigov region, 96.1% of the total fragments belonged to the remains of arthropods. Moreover, the diet of storks was very diverse: in one pellet they found up to 130 species of animals, including such small ones as ants. Among the insects, Coleoptera (35.3%), Hymenoptera (21.0%) and caddisflies (19.6%) predominated. Vertebrates played only a minor role in nutrition (Marisova, Samofalov, Serdyuk, 1992).

According to an analysis of 337 pellets collected in the southern and central parts of Belarus in 1986-1992, the basis of the white stork’s diet was invertebrates - 99% of the total number of certain specimens of food items. Aquatic beetles and bedbugs, abundant species of ground beetles, inhabiting predominantly moist habitats, and mollusks predominated. In populated areas, the proportion of small mammals and insects characteristic of dry biotopes increases (Samusenko, 1994). M.I. Lebedeva (1960) found 80 specimens among 187 food items in pellets collected in Belovezhskaya Pushcha. mollusks, 75 insects, 24 frogs, 8 viviparous lizards. Of the insects, 42 dragonflies, 20 larvae of swimming beetles and water-loving beetles, 9 mole crickets, 2 grasshoppers, and 1 caterpillar were found. According to A.P. Krapivny (1957), in the diet of white stork chicks in Belovezhskaya Pushcha, 72.5% by weight were vertebrates, of which 60.6% were frogs. The share of earthworms was only 1%.

In Kaluga region. An entomological analysis of the pellets showed the presence of representatives of 17 species belonging to 7 families of the Coleoptera order. The most common were representatives of the ground beetle family (Carabidae) - 41%. Next come lamellar beetles (Scarabaeidae) - 22%, water lovers (Hydrophilidae) - 15%, leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae) and rove beetles (Staphylinidae) - 7% each, diving beetles (Dytiscidae) and false elephant beetles (Anthribidae) - 4% each. The presented species of beetles were mainly inhabitants of moderately wet and dry meadows, as well as anthropogenic landscapes, and were characteristic of the soil surface - 44%, inhabited small ponds and puddles or were dung beetles - 19% each; they were followed by Coleoptera, inhabiting fields and living on vegetation, as well as inhabiting mixed forests and living on bark and leaves - 7% each. In the Tver region. representatives of 7 families of beetles were found in food, the majority of which are lamellar beetles and ground beetles (61.3%) (Nikolaev, 2000).

In Masuria in Poland, out of 669 collected pellets, 97.3% contained remains of insects (representatives of the families Carabidae, Silphidae, Dytiscidae, Scarabeidae predominated), 72.2% - small mammals (mainly moles, mice and voles), 1.6% - mollusks, 1.0% - small birds, 0.7% - amphibians. The proportion of insects in the diet was greatest in fields during the growth of grain and alfalfa and in mown meadows and fields after harvesting, and quite high in plowed fields (Pinowski et al., 1991). In Austria, during the nesting period, the food was dominated by Orthoptera (67.7%) and beetles (24.1%), by weight - by vertebrates (55.5%), primarily by small rodents (33.2%). Among insects, storks preferred locusts, ground beetles, leaf beetles and lamellar beetles. In April-June, the diet was more diverse, with a predominance of small rodents; in July-August, Orthoptera predominated (Sackl, 1987). The diet of summer flocks of non-breeding birds in meadows in Poland was dominated by insects (83%), primarily beetles, and by biomass - small mammals, mainly voles (58%), insects (22%) and earthworms (11.5%). ) (Antczak et al., 2002). Studies in Greece showed wide variability in diet in different habitats, but pellets everywhere were dominated by remains of insects, primarily Orthoptera and beetles (Tsachalidis and Goutner, 2002).

The diet of storks can vary from year to year, depending on weather conditions. Thus, in northern Germany in 1990, when there was a surge in the number of mouse-like rodents, the latter accounted for 59.1 and 68% of the weight of food in two areas where research was carried out, and in 1991 - only 3.6 and 3. 8%. In the very wet year of 1991, earthworms dominated the diet - 50 and 61.6% by weight (Thomsen and Struwe, 1994). In the south of Germany, over the years, the weight share of earthworms in the white stork’s diet ranged from 28.9 to 84%, arthropods - from 8.9 to 28.5%, leeches - 0 to 51.9%, rodents - from 1.5 up to 55.2%, frogs - from 1.2 to 5.4% (Lakeberg, 1995).

One of the main groups of insects that the white stork feeds on is Orthoptera, primarily locusts. It is most important in the diet in wintering areas in Africa, and therefore in the languages ​​of some African peoples the white stork is called the “locust bird.” Storks can eat huge amounts of locusts, sometimes eating so much that they cannot fly. During a locust raid on Hortobágy in Hungary in 1907, about 1,000 specimens were found in the digestive tract of one of the captured storks. locusts The bird's stomach and esophagus were stuffed right down to the throat. In one of the stork pellets they found 1,600 locust mandibles (Schenk, 1907). According to the last author, a flock of 100 storks is capable of destroying 100 thousand specimens in a day. these dangerous pests. In nesting areas, the white stork also destroys a large number of agricultural pests, primarily mole crickets (Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa), weevils, and wireworms. According to A.P. Krapivny (1957), in Belovezhskaya Pushcha, mole crickets accounted for 8% in number and almost 14% in weight in the diet of chicks. In the Masurian Lake District in Poland, 31% of pellets contained remains of wireworms, 14% of weevils, and 16% of mole crickets (Pinowska et al., 1991). In the West In France, the food that storks brought to the chicks was dominated by water beetles and mole crickets (Barbraud and Barbraud, 1998).

When kept in captivity, the daily food requirement of an adult stork ranges from 300 g in the warm season to 500 g in winter. A bird needs 110-130 kg per year (Bloesch, 1982). The daily energy requirement of a pair of storks feeding their chicks is estimated at 4,660 kJ. This amount gives the consumption of 1.4 kg of earthworms, 1,044 g of frogs or 742 g of small rodents (Profus, 1986). According to other data, a pair with 1-2 chicks consumes about 5200 kJ (B5hning-Gaese, 1992). On the river Sava in Croatia, a pair of storks daily brought chicks aged 3-6 weeks on average 1.4 kg of food per chick (Schulz, 1998), in northern Germany (chicks aged 3-8 weeks) - 1.2 kg (Struwe, Thomsen, 1991).

For the white stork, the most energy-efficient food is vertebrates. In humid habitats these are usually amphibians. However, due to reclamation and hydraulic engineering works, their numbers in many countries have decreased significantly. Thus, the food of a pair of storks under observation in the Swiss Jura consisted of 2/3 earthworms, vertebrates made up only 0.4% (Wermeille, Biber, 2003). In such conditions, rodents become increasingly important for storks. Observations in the river valley Obry in western Poland showed that breeding success and even the number of occupied nests was higher in years with high abundance of the common vole (Microtus arvalis) (Tryjanowski and Kuzniak, 2002).

Enemies, unfavorable factors

The white stork has few natural enemies. Nests can be destroyed by large birds of prey, corvids, and martens. Adult birds become victims of attacks by eagles, sea eagles, large four-legged predators - foxes, stray dogs, wolves, etc. However, the death of most adult white storks is directly or indirectly related to humans.

Power lines are most responsible for deaths. In 1986-1989 in Ukraine, out of 489 cases of death of adult storks with a known cause, 64.0% occurred on power lines. Among the victims of power lines, 80.8% died on poles from electric shock and 19.2% crashed against the wires. Power lines pose the greatest danger to young, poorly flying birds: 72.8% of deaths occur in storks that have recently left the nest. In second place was direct destruction by people - 12.7%. 8.8% of storks died as a result of fights on nests and when forming flocks before departure, 7.6% - due to unfavorable weather conditions, 2.9% - due to pesticide poisoning, 1.6% - due to collisions with transport, 1.2% - due to diseases, 0.8% - from predators, 0.4% - due to falling into large pipes. Thus, in total, only 18.4% of storks died for reasons unrelated to human activity. The main cause of death of chicks (742 cases with a known cause) is the throwing of chicks from their nests by their parents. It accounts for 41.9%. 20.2% of chicks died due to unfavorable weather conditions, 12.9% - due to falling nests, 7% - during fights between adult storks on nests, 6.2% - destroyed by humans, 4.5% - due to - for burning nests, 2.7% - as a result of the death of parents, 2.0% died from predators, 1.5% - were poisoned, 1.1% - died due to materials brought into the nest (Grishchenko, Gaber, 1990).

In Kaluga region. the picture is somewhat different. According to data collected in 1960-99, the main cause of death of adult birds is poaching. It accounts for 74% of cases with an established cause of death (n = 19). In 21% of cases, birds died on power lines; once, an adult bird died during a fight for a nest with other storks. The main cause of death of fledglings is contact with electrical communications: from electric shock on open transformers and power line supports, as well as when colliding with wires. Some cases of young birds disappearing shortly after leaving their nests should probably be attributed to poaching. Such differences are due to the fact that in territories recently inhabited by storks, people’s attitude towards them is much less favorable. There are even cases of destruction of emerging nests. Thus, the first nest in Mordovia was destroyed by local residents due to fears that storks would damage cucumber crops (Lapshin, Lysenkov, 1997). In the Nizhny Novgorod region. the main reason for the death of nests is persecution by humans (Bakka, Bakka, Kiseleva, 2000). The destruction of adult birds and the destruction of nests was noted in the southeast of Turkmenistan, where storks tried to nest in the 1980s. (Belousov, 1990). However, even in those regions where the white stork has lived for a long time, the attitude of the local population towards it has changed for the worse. This is evidenced by the high percentage of birds killed by humans among the causes of death and the destruction of nests on power line supports.

Among the causes of death of chicks, as mentioned above, parental infanticide comes first. A significant part of the chicks are thrown out of the nests or even eaten by adult storks. Thus, in Belovezhskaya Pushcha, almost 30% of pairs abandoned their chicks, and sometimes even all the chicks of the brood were destroyed (Fedyushin and Dolbik, 1967). In Spain, infanticide was observed in 18.9% of monitored nests. In all cases, the weakest chick was thrown away. The average age of abandoned storks is 7.3 days (Tortosa, Redondo, 1992). This behavior is usually associated with a lack of food. According to D. Lack (1957), the instinct to abort part of the laid eggs or hatched chicks is an adaptation that makes it possible to bring the family size into line with the amount of available food. It is assumed that the prevalence of infanticide in the white stork is associated with the absence of siblicide and competition for food in broods. Parents bring large amounts of small food, and larger chicks cannot monopolize it. Since the weakest chicks do not die on their own, their parents “have to” destroy them (Tortosa, Redondo, 1992; Zielicski, 2002).

A similar situation is observed not only in the territory of the former. USSR, but also in other countries. Most adult storks die on power lines; power lines pose the greatest danger to young, still poorly flying birds. This was noted in Bulgaria (Nankinov, 1992), Germany (Riegel, Winkel, 1971; Fiedler, Wissner, 1980), Spain (Garrido, Femandez-Cruz, 2003), Poland (Jakubiec, 1991), Slovakia (Fulin, 1984), Switzerland (Moritzi, Spaar, Biber, 2001). In the Rostock district of East Germany, of 116 white stork chicks that died, 55.2% were abandoned by their parents, 20.7% died due to falling nests, and 9.5% died from hypothermia (Zollick, 1986). On flight routes and in wintering areas, the main causes of death of storks are shooting and other forms of persecution by people, death on power lines, and pesticide poisoning (Schulz, 1988). If a stream of thousands of migrating storks crosses an area with a dense network of power lines, dozens of individuals die at the same time (Nankinov, 1992).

In many African countries, the white stork is traditionally a hunting species. According to ring returns, in the North. and Zap. In Africa, about 80% of deaths occur due to shooting. According to calculations by H. Schultz (1988), in the 1980s. On the eastern flyway, 5-10 thousand storks were shot annually, of which 4-6 thousand were shot in Lebanon.

Mass deaths of storks can be caused by catastrophic weather events - storms, large hail, etc. On August 5, 1932, near one of the villages in northern Bulgaria, during an unprecedented hailstorm (pieces of ice weighing up to half a kilogram fell from the sky!) About 200 storks died and about a hundred more were left with broken legs and wings (Schumann, 1932). In 1998, in two villages of the Lviv region. almost all the chicks in 19 nests under observation died during heavy rains (Gorbulshska et al., 2004). The return of cold weather after the arrival of storks can cause great damage. So, in 1962 in the Lviv region. hundreds of individuals died due to frost and snowfall in the third decade of March (Cherkashchenko, 1963).

Sometimes chicks die trying to swallow too large prey brought by their parents. For example, there was a case of death of a stork that choked on a snake (Kuppler, 2001). Some materials brought by parents to the nest are also dangerous to the chicks - pieces of twine, tow, in which the storks can become entangled; scraps of film or oilcloth in a tray on which water collects.

Unfavorable factors include environmental changes occurring in recent decades. Buildings with thatched and reed roofs, on which storks willingly nested, have practically disappeared from the villages. The number of old trees suitable for nesting in populated areas is also decreasing. Excessive reclamation, flooding of floodplains with reservoirs, disruption of the normal hydraulic regime of reservoirs leads to an impoverishment of the food supply. This is especially true for many Western countries. Europe, where amphibians have to be specially bred to feed storks. Recently, another problem has been added - the reduction in the areas of traditionally used meadows and pastures in many regions of the East. Europe and North Asia due to economic recession. The ever-increasing chemicalization of agriculture causes the accumulation of pesticides in food chains, which causes poisoning and disease in birds. This is most evident in wintering areas, where active control of locusts and other agricultural pests, which serve as the main food of storks, is carried out.

In Central Asia, the most important factor influencing changes in range and abundance was the development of new lands for crops with a predominance of cotton monoculture, cutting down trees in river valleys, draining swamps, and reducing the area of ​​rice fields. Thanks to the enlargement of fields, many forest belts were cut down. Modern architecture and urban planning trends are not conducive to white stork nesting in populated areas (Sagitov, 1990; Shernazarov et al., 1992).

In Russia, a significant factor limiting the number of nesting pairs is the destruction of nests in churches due to their restoration, on telegraph poles and power line supports when servicing electrical communications, as well as the dismantling of water towers for installation in a new location or scrap metal. The last factor seems especially threatening, since more than half of the Russian white stork group nests on water towers.

Unfavorable factors include the deterioration of the positive attitude of the local population towards the white stork and the loss of long-standing folk traditions. Thus, carried out in the Kyiv region. the survey showed that a significant part of rural residents not only do not know how to attract a white stork to nest, but also do not want to have a nest on their estate (Grischenko et al., 1992). This is despite the fact that the presence of a nest was previously considered a great blessing; attracting a white stork to nest was one of the elements of ancient agrarian magic (Grischenko, 19986, 2005). In Uzbekistan, the white stork was considered a sacred bird, but now the population in some places is engaged in destroying nests and collecting eggs (Sagitov, 1990).

In the south of Ukraine, 4 species of helminths have been registered in the white stork: Dyctimetra discoidea, Chaunocephalus ferox, Tylodelphys excavata, Histriorchis tricolor (Kornyushin et al., 2004).

About 70 representatives of different insect species, mainly beetles (Coleoptera) were found in white stork nests (Hicks, 1959).

Economic importance, protection

The white stork destroys a large number of agricultural pests, primarily insects and rodents. It is widely known as one of the most active locust killers. The stork can cause some damage to fishing and hunting by eating fish, chicks, hares, etc., but this is only accidental, and such food items do not occupy any noticeable place in the diet of the white stork. More or less significant damage to fisheries occurs only where large concentrations of storks form and there is practically no other food (for example, in fish farms in Israel). In the countries of the East. Europe and North This rarely happens in Asia.

The white stork is a long-time companion of man, it has great aesthetic significance, and is considered one of the most beloved and revered birds among many peoples. His cult was formed in ancient times, quite possibly soon after the emergence of a productive economy (Grischenko, 19986, 2005). The stork is an excellent object for environmental education and upbringing; it accepts human help and has a positive effect on the emotions of people living nearby. To protect the stork, active propaganda and explanatory work is needed, as well as the revival of long-standing folk traditions of helping this bird. At the same time, thanks to the great popularity of the white stork, it is possible to attract a significant number of people to environmental activities. Large-scale scientific and propaganda campaigns are more effective, for example, operations “Leleka” (“Stork”) and “Year of the White Stork” carried out in Ukraine (Grischenko, 1991, 19966; Grishchenko et al., 1992). Both propaganda work and practical assistance in the resettlement zone are especially important to secure birds in new nesting sites.

The white stork is listed in the Red Books of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and in the Russian Federation - in the Red Books of Karelia, Mordovia, Chechnya, Krasnodar and Stavropol Territories, Belgorod, Volgograd, Kaluga, Kirov, Lipetsk, Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, Penza, Rostov, Ryazan, Tambov , Tver and some other regions.