Check Your Roof: The Storks Are Here
by Joyce Neuman
According to legend, wood storks had busy
careers delivering babies to the rooftops of expectant
families, what a job! If this is so, then they must have
retired to Kiawah Island, since they are now enjoying the
good life here, just as we do. The wood stork (Mycteria
americana) is the only North American resident stork out of
what is thought to be 18 stork species throughout the world.
Wood storks live in rookeries near Kiawah and come here
to dine on shrimp, clams and mussels. The truth of the
matter is that while there is no evidence that wood storks
actually deliver babies, what they do deliver is important
information about the health of our Island. According to
Jim Jordan, Town of Kiawah Island Wildlife Biologist,
wood storks no longer migrate to neighboring Georgia or
Florida for the winter months. Instead, habitat loss in those
states, has forced them to adapt and stay on Kiawah all
year round. On Kiawah, they are often seen in wetlands
locations such as Bass Pond.
Given their size, they are relatively easy to spot
in a marsh of green cordgrass. They are the largest of our
wading birds, standing about three feet tall with wing spans
of five and one-half feet, and adults typically weigh about
five pounds. White feathers cover most of their bodies
except for their black tails, wing-tips, heads, legs and pink
feet. A wood stork has no feathers on its head or neck. Its
blackish bill is slightly down-curved and about 10 inches
long. The males are a bit larger than the females, but there
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is no obvious difference in plumage between the sexes.
Silent except for the clatter of their bills, wood storks will
occasionally hiss like a snake or croak like a frog while
feeding. Wood stork chicks, like most babies, are able to
call out loudly.
The wood storks that feed on Kiawah can arrive
here from a significant distance. Flying with necks
extended, they reach altitudes of 6,000 feet and are able to
fly 50 miles in search of food. They use thermals (warm
rising air currents) to glide from nesting to feeding areas.
They may not arrive at feeding areas until later in the day,
since thermals do not form in the early morning. The best
time to see them feeding on Kiawah would be after the day
warms up. Thus, the wood stork is a b \