05.06.2002

The Stork Family is complete

With the hatching of four chicks, Envi, Nabi, Peace and Timmi, "our" stork family is complete. The second brood consisted of five eggs. One egg still remains in the nest, but the time is past for hatching another chick. Whether all young storks will thrive and become fledglings depends first of all on sufficient and suitable food. Only if the parent storks find sufficient food within a radius of 5/8 of one mile (1000 m) of the eyrie, will there be enough for all young storks.
After the chicks' hatching, a parent stork remains at the nest for protection and care of the young. The parent storks alternate in this. One remains with the young while the other searches for food. Only after the young ones are sufficiently developed (after about three weeks), both parent storks fly away in search for food. With such a large family, the food requirements grow to nearly nine pounds (4 kg) per day. These amounts cannot be supplied by just one stork. At this time it is fun to observe how the parent stork provides shade for the young ones by opening his/her(?) wings at an angle. If it becomes hotter still, the parent storks will also bring water to the young ones.

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