Gould observed '...its great size, noble and attractive bearing and semi-domestic disposition render it a general favourite for everyone. In Holland and Germany, it seldom breeds in the marsh or forest...it seeks a closer association with man by resorting to high chimneys, the gable ends of houses, the towers of churches... and thereon constructs its nests and rears its young - each individual, if no mishap attends during its winter sojourn elsewhere, returns in spring to the same site, and is greeted with a hearty welcome.'

The illustration shows a lifesize adult bird feeding its young in the nest. After a search for ten years, Gould was grateful to Dr. Kaup of Darmstadt, for sending a specimen of the stork's chick and a drawing from life.

DISTRIBUTION: Breeds discontinuously Iberia and northwest Africa, central Europe to Iran, Turkestan, and Manchuria; also in south Africa. European populations winter in Africa south of the Sahara. In Britain the number of sightings has risen considerably in the last 20 years, though there is a difficulty in separating truly wild and feral individuals, particularly now there are a number of reintroduction schemes in the Netherlands