Early White Stork in Baden Wurtemberg (1 Viewer)

[Gooberdon]

Driving up a damp A5 north of Offenburg on Saturday (Feb 21) was surprised to see a White Stork flying over the damp fields (where a Great White Egret was hunting). Is this a really early returnee or one of the storks, which, I seem to remember hearing about, reside full-time in Alsace?

 

[dalat]

Rather an over winterring bird than a returnee. Could be part of the population in Alsace, that were reared and fed in winter. But there are increasingly othter storks that don't migrate south any more, or only when conditions get too harsh. The Rhine valley in Southern Germany /Alsace has a relatively mild climate, so in many years warm enough for storks to stay year round.

 

[Gooberdon]

Thanks, Florian. Certainly makes sense although the snow just a few miles away might have made it pine for the South!

 

[Lanhua]

it's correct, many White storch stay over the winter in South Germany, where I'm living. I took this Picture on February 5th. The birds are staying in the Rhein river. You can see, that one of them was beringed in Switzerland.
The white small points on the picture are snow flocks.

Mietek

 

[trooper]

Hi, we have 2 White storks that have overwintered in the Leinepolder by Einbeck in Lower Saxony, since 5th Febuary we have 8 storks in the Leinepolder in and around the permanent nesting sites, and since the 28th Febuary we have got 12 storks in the area.