THE BLACK STORK. 191 



brown, tips of feathers pale bumsh-brown ; upper -parts, wing- 

 coverts and secondaries brown-black with much less green and 

 purple gloss than in adult and wing -coverts, scapulars and upper 

 tail -coverts with slight pale tips. 



First winter and summer. — becomes like adult apparently 

 after first moult, but material is insufficient to say exactly when 

 this takes place but apparently between Feb. and Sept. in year 

 following hatching. 



Measurements and structure. — (J and 2 wing 52-60 cm. (measured 

 with tape), tail 190-240 mm., tarsus 180-200, bill from feathers 

 160-190 (9 measured, material insufficient for separate measure- 

 ments of sexes). Primaries : 3rd, 4th and 5th longest, 1st 60-85 

 mm. shorter, 2nd 10-20 shorter, 6th 20-50 shorter, 7th 80-130 

 shorter ; 2nd to 6th emarginated at base on outer webs. Rest of 

 structure as in White Stork. 



Soft parts. — Bill, bare skin on lores and round eye bright dark 

 crimson, paler at tip of bill ; legs and feet bright scarlet ; iris brown. 



Characters. — No subspecies. Glossy " black " head, throat, neck 

 and upper -parts and tail distinguish it from White Stork. 



Breeding-habits. — Much more retiring in habits than White 

 Stork, generally breeds in forests, but also recorded as nesting in 

 cave in steep river-bank, and on face of cliff . Never in colonies, but 

 always singly. Nest. — Old nest of previous year or an alternative 

 site. Built of sticks, earth and grass, flattened in shape, and in 

 my experience lined with big lumps of soft green moss, though other 

 observers have recorded grass, dung, hair, feathers, etc., in lining. 

 Eggs. — Normally 4, but 3 and 5 also met with ; white, often some- 

 what rounded in shape and looking deep greenish when held against 

 light instead of yellowish as in Wnite Stork. Average of 84 eggs, 

 65.3x48.7. Max.: 74.3x47.5 and 69.4x51.7. Min. : 61x48 

 and 60.3x45.2 mm. Breeding -seas on. — Usually in last fortnight 

 of April or first week of May. Incubation. — Probably male takes 

 some part, though Naumann says by female alone and gives period 

 as about 28 days. More evidence desirable. Single brooded. 

 Food. — Chiefly fish, including perch, rudd, roach, loach, small 

 eels and stickleback, and frogs and tadpoles. Also less frequently 

 crabs, lizards, snakes, worms, leeches, insects and their larvse, 

 including coleoptera, orthoptera, odonata, etc. Occasionally also 

 according to Naumann, small mammals (shrews, mice and moles) 

 and young birds from nests on ground. 



Distribution. — England. — -Very rare vagrant. Nineteen recorded : 

 Scilly Isles (2), Devon (1 and others seen), Somerset (1), Dorset (2), 

 Kent (4), Middlesex (1), Oxon. (1), Essex (1), Suffolk (1), Norfolk (2), 

 Yorks. (2), Durham (1). 



Distribution. — Abroad. — Breeds in Germany, Austria, Hungary, 

 south Sweden, Denmark, east Europe, Russia and temperate Asia. 



