Species › Birds

Black Stork

Ciconia nigra

Order: Ciconiiformes
Family: Ciconiidae
Presence in the Strait: Migrant
Abundance: scarce
Protection in Spain: In danger of extinction · Andalusian Catalogue
In Spanish: Cigüeña negra

55% of its open observations in the area are from September.

Photograph: Zinogre, CC BY-SA, vía iNaturalist

Length: 95–100 cm
Wingspan: 185–205 cm
Weight: 3,000 g

Presence in the Strait

Scarce migrant. Four records of winter visitors: Marismas del Palmones (2), La Janda (1) and finca Almoraima (1).

Identification

Mostly white underparts; rest of bird, black with a green metallic gloss. Juveniles are browner with less gloss and grey-green feet and bill.

Movements

Peaks in 2nd hf. March and 2nd hf. September. Postnuptial migration >2,000 birds.

Ring recoveries

Czech Republic (1).

Bioestrecho editorial text. Last revised: 8 September 2026.

Photographs from iNaturalist observations with the licence checked file by file. Those marked “Strait” were taken within the area; place and date are those of each observation.

Calendar in the Strait

55 %

Peak in September. Observations under CC0 or CC BY licences. The distribution also reflects observation effort.

Where it is seen

Open records from the atlas database, in cells of about 9.0 km. Opacity follows the square root of the count, and also reflects where people observe most.

See on the map

Sensitive species (cliff nest, exposed to plundering and disturbance): its observations are shown with the location generalised to about 11 km, here and in the explorer. The original source keeps the exact position.

First open record: 25 February 1966
Latest record: 28 October 2025

The oldest and the most recent open observation in the extended area. A recent first observation does not mean the species is new: it means nobody had published it openly before.

Conservation

The catalogues, Andalusian and Spanish, are what binds; the Red Book assesses the Spanish population with IUCN criteria, and the global Red List is the context.

LCNTVUENCR

Andalusian Catalogue: In danger of extinction
Spanish Catalogue: Vulnerable
Red Book of the Birds of Spain 2021: VU · Vulnerable · breeding
Global Red List (IUCN): LC · Least concern

Annex I of the Birds Directive

Andalusian Catalogue: Junta de Andalucía, list of 24 April 2025. Spanish Catalogue: MITECO, table of 30 June 2025. Red Book: SEO/BirdLife, 2021 (Annex I). IUCN: via GBIF, 6 September 2026. Red Book and IUCN categories are assessments; catalogue categories are legal obligations.

Phenology compared

Monthly distribution in proportion, by decade. It shows whether the passage is getting earlier or later.

1990–1999

2000–2009

2010–2026

Proportions, not totals: observation effort grew faster than any population.

Where they come from

1 birds ringed in other countries and recovered in the area.

Czech Republic1

See the journey on the map

Same genus in the Strait

White Stork100–115 cm · Resident · overlapping size

Species of the same genus that also occur here, ordered by how close they are in size. Being relatives does not mean they are confused in the field, but that is where the doubts start: compare size and season.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Ciconiiformes
Family: Ciconiidae
GBIF taxon key: 2481909

Sources

Distribution and calendar: Bioestrecho's own database, ingested from GBIF and OBIS
Photograph: Zinogre, CC BY-SA, vía iNaturalist
Taxonomy: GBIF backbone, pending WoRMS for marine taxa
Editorial text: written by Bioestrecho
Last revised: 8 September 2026

Black Stork

Presence in the Strait

Identification

Movements

Ring recoveries

Gallery