White storks might once again breed in London, thanks to a rewilding project that hopes to reintroduce this elegant bird to the capital – and is now canvassing local opinions on the idea.
The white stork is a symbol of hope, joy and new life. Standing over 1m tall, with a wingspan around twice that, these big-billed beauties used to breed in the UK before hunting and habitat loss drove them to extinction over 600 years ago.
Now Citizen Zoo, a conservation charity that specialises in community-led urban rewilding, is testing the water to see if London could once again become a “white-stork-friendly city”.
Though storks prefer wetlands, pastures and farmlands, they can and do thrive near human towns and cities, including Strasbourg and Madrid.
In 2016, the The White Stork Project of Sussex was launched to reintroduce the species to that county, and birds from Poland formed the nucleus of a new breeding colony. Last year, 53 white storks fledged from the wild at the Knepp Estate in West Sussex.
European white storks overwinter in Africa, then return north to breed in spring. Now the hope is that the UK birds will do the same, and perhaps even bring new wild storks back with them.
White storks in London”
In the four decades before the White Stork Project was launched, there were just 27 records of white storks across Greater London. In the past 10 years, more than 450 sightings have been recorded in the capital, including birds from Sussex exploring the area.
Buoyed by this success, Citizen Zoo has now launched a programme to gauge opinions from authorities and the public about the potential return of white storks to London, and to map out possible habitat.
Researchers working for the project will reach out to the Mayor of London and the city’s 33 local authorities to assess whether they are receptive, as well as engaging with local communities through in-person and virtual events. They are also collaborating with Greenspace Information for Greater London (GiGL), the capital’s ecological records centre, to examine habitat data and identify areas capable of supporting white stork populations.
“The London White Stork project aspires for a wilder London, where people can interact and engage with nature on a daily basis,” says the White Storks London working group. “We believe that white storks have the potential to thrive in London, and could become a symbol for nature recovery within the capital.”
Top image: white stork. Credit: Getty
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