Birds · Ciconiiformes · Ciconiidae

Black Stork

Ciconia nigra

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

A slender, dark-toned wader, somewhat smaller than the white stork. Head, neck, breast, back, wings and tail are black with intense green and purple iridescence, and the underparts white. Bill, legs and eye-ring are red. The breast feathers form a hanging ruff that it fans out in courtship.

Weight

3 kg on average

Size

95 cm – 1.1 m

Diet

Carnivore

Feeds mainly on other animals.

Activity

Diurnal

Active mainly during the day.

Social structure

In pairs

Usually lives in pairs, sometimes for life.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

Estimated population

386 pairs on the Iberian Peninsula according to the 2017 SEO/BirdLife survey (346 confirmed and 40 probable). Some 50 pairs remain in Germany and the eastern European population is around 500

Carnivore Diurnal In pairs Bird

46countries 15parks6same family

Fun facts

comportamientoUnlike the white stork it avoids towns, preferring quiet woodland beside rivers, and is far shyer and harder to see.
Unlike the white stork, it avoids people altogether and seeks out the most isolated corners in which to breed.
On migration between Europe and Africa it avoids long sea crossings and skirts the Mediterranean by way of Gibraltar, Sicily or the Levant.
There is a southern African population that does not migrate at all.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
Habitat & environment: Remote spots in sierras and woodland, far from any human presence, where it nests on rock or in large trees. It winters in the Guadalquivir marshes and on some Extremaduran reservoirs
Sexual maturity: 3 years
Gestation / incubation: 38-42 days, with both parents incubating
Litter / clutch size: 3-5 white eggs, from April to June. One of the parents always stays with the chicks for the first 10-15 days, and they fledge at 63-71 days

Sources consulted: SEO/BirdLife (ficha y censo nacional 2017); IUCN Red List; Kahl 1987, Colonial Waterbirds 10(2); Wood 1984, Journal of Ornithology 125