Storm's Stork Ciconia stormi Scientific name definitions

75–91 cm (1 Robson, C. (2000). A Field Guide to the Birds of South-east Asia. New Holland, London, UK. Close ). Bare facial skin far more extensive and brighter than in <em>C. episcopus</em> , which has white lower foreneck, dark bill and bronze coloration on inner wing-coverts. Bare parts: iris red with broad golden-yellow periorbital zone  , dull orange face, bill bright orange-red (culmen slightly concave with basal knob in male, straight in female), and legs  and feet pale orange (2 Wells, D. R. (1999). The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ). Non-breeding adult has bare parts duller. Immature has duller plumage and bare parts, e.g. bill has dusky or brownish tip and face and throat are marked with black (2 Wells, D. R. (1999). The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ).

Malay Peninsula (tiny populations in both S Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia) (3 Cutter, P., Boontua, P. and Sri-buarod, K. (2007). A recent record of Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Thailand. Forktail 23: 163–165. Close ), Sumatra (including Mentawai and North Pagai Is, off W coast) (4 van Marle, J. G., and K. H. Voous (1988). The Birds of Sumatra. An Annotated Check-list. B.O.U. Check-list 10. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ) and Borneo (where widespread but scarce) (5 Mann, C.F. (2008). The Birds of Borneo. An Annotated Checklist. B.O.U. Checklist 23. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ).

Undisturbed freshwater habitats, mangroves (at least in E Sumatra), tall evergreen, semi-evergreen and especially peat swamp forest, including selectively logged areas (2 Wells, D. R. (1999). The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ); densely forested tracts, often seen by rivers, e.g. on muddy banks. Unlike C. episcopus, not normally found in open areas. Recorded to 240 m above sea-level in Sabah (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ) (although see Movements).

Unknown, but individuals suspected to wander great distances (7 Mann, C. F. (2008). The Birds of Borneo: An Annotated Checklist. B.O.U. Checklist 23. British Ornithologists’ Union, and British Ornithologists’ Club, Peterborough. Close ), having been observed up to 20 km from suitable habita on Sumatra, with a record of a bird in flight at 1600 m on Mt Kinabalu considered to be moving in response to habitat loss (surrounding lowlands were on fire at the time) (8 Collar, N. J., A. V. Andreev, S. Chan, M. J. Crosby, S. Subramanya, and J. A. Tobias, Editors (2001). Threatened Birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK. Close ).

Apparently mainly fish, though very little known; probably also reptiles, amphibians, insects (e.g dragonfly larvae, grasshoppers) and possibly crabs (8 Collar, N. J., A. V. Andreev, S. Chan, M. J. Crosby, S. Subramanya, and J. A. Tobias, Editors (2001). Threatened Birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK. Close ). At nest in Sumatra, fish 2–7 cm long comprised 67% of prey fed to young, which were also brought worms (10–15 cm long), aquatic insect larvae and frogs (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ). Feeding habits even less known, but probably similar to other Ciconia storks, such as C. episcopus and C. nigra; has been seen feeding in small forest ponds, at banks of forest streams, in boggy gaps maintained by large mammals at mineral licks and once in former clearing maintained gaur (Bos gaurus) (2 Wells, D. R. (1999). The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ). Probably tends to be solitary in this aspect of its life, as in others, although has occasionally been recorded in small groups of up to seven individuals (9 Verheugt, W. J. M., H. Skov, and F. Danielsen (1993). Notes on the birds of the tidal lowlands and floodplains of South Sumatra Province, Indonesia. Kukila 6(2):53–84. Close ) and once a group of 12 in Brunei (10 Holmes, D. A. (1996). Sumatra Bird Report. Kukila 8(1):9–56. Close ).

Chicks give loud, harsh and repeated “krack” calls in captivity and a repeated frog-like “skhrekeh ... keh ... keh ... keh ...” audible up to 50 m distant in wild (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ), but no vocalizations recorded from adults (2 Wells, D. R. (1999). The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ), though give bill-clattering displays at nest (1 Robson, C. (2000). A Field Guide to the Birds of South-east Asia. New Holland, London, UK. Close ).

Season suspected to begin in Aug–Sept in Borneo (Kalimantan), with just-fledged juvenile found in Sarawak in Nov (7 Mann, C. F. (2008). The Birds of Borneo: An Annotated Checklist. B.O.U. Checklist 23. British Ornithologists’ Union, and British Ornithologists’ Club, Peterborough. Close ). Very poorly known, with only two occupied nests so far discovered, both since 1986: one occupied Apr–July in S Sumatra, with eggs laid in May and chicks fledged Jul (10 Holmes, D. A. (1996). Sumatra Bird Report. Kukila 8(1):9–56. Close ); one with chicks hatched in fourth week of Oct in Thailand. Solitary tree nester, with pairs perhaps maintaining alternative sites within regular territory, given discovery of two nests within 200 m of each other, one of them unoccupied (2 Wells, D. R. (1999). The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ); stick platform, 50 cm long × 15 cm deep, lined with dry leaves (e.g. Xylocarpus granatum) (8 Collar, N. J., A. V. Andreev, S. Chan, M. J. Crosby, S. Subramanya, and J. A. Tobias, Editors (2001). Threatened Birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK. Close ) and some down; one occupied nest 19 m up a large Dipterocarpus baudii, the other 8·3 m above ground in an 18 m tall Rhizophora mucronata mangrove (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ); unoccupied nest at 30 m above ground (2 Wells, D. R. (1999). The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ). Clutch 2–3 (10 Holmes, D. A. (1996). Sumatra Bird Report. Kukila 8(1):9–56. Close ) white eggs, size 41·9 mm × 60·2 mm (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ), incubated by both adults for less than 29 days (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ); fledging at c. 57 days, though fully feathered at c. 52 days (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ) (90 days in captivity) (2 Wells, D. R. (1999). The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ); chicks have white down, bald black crown and forehead, brown eyes, pale yellow legs, and dark grey to black bill with yellow-orange tip (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ); fed every 2–4 hours during first weeks of life, with adults favoured feeding area being 2–3 km distant from nest, and young tended mainly by female (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ).

ENDANGERED. Probably rarest of all storks after Leptotilus dubius. Overall population estimated by BirdLife International at 260–330 mature individuals within large range of 1,020,000 km². Most of world population in Indonesia, where estimate of 250 birds in Sumatra and Kalimantan, and 150 in Malaysia (including rest of Borneo). Has probably never been abundant given recent estimate in protected area on Sumatra of one bird per 3000–6000 ha of primary swamp forest (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ), but is now declining due to extensive logging activities throughout its range, e.g. on Sumatra since 1982, more than two-thirds of remaining primary swamp forest has been logged (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ) and Kalimantan lost nearly 25% of its evergreen forest during 1985–1997; transmigration plans of Indonesian government, in conjunction with World Bank, threaten vast areas of habitat and should be seriously reconsidered. Trapped by local people for food in Indonesia, and may also be caught in traps set for monitor lizards (Varanus salvator) (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ). Not well adapted to disturbed habitat, although up to 12 were seen in E Kalimantan, Borneo, in an area where the swamp forest had been devastated two years earlier by fire. Solitary habits make it less openly vulnerable to human persecution, but also hamper research work on feeding and breeding requirements, as well as on numbers and methods of effective protection of a viable population. Known nesting area in SE Sumatra included within large proposed Sembilang Wildlife Reserve (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ). In Malaysia is rare resident with records from seven river systems. Recently discovered Thai population known from just two records, a nesting pair in 1986 and two birds photographed by camera-traps in Apr 2004, both in Klong Saeng Wildlife Sanctuary (11 Cutter, P., Boontua, P. and Sri-Buarod, K. (2007). A recent record of Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Thailand. Forktail. 23: 163-165. Close ); results of recent survey in C Kalimantan indicate that camera-traps might be most effective means of detecting species in many areas (12 Posa, M. R. C., and D. A. Marques (2012). Peat swamp forest birds of the Tuanan research station, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia, with notes on habitat specialists. Forktail 28:29–37. Close ). Legally protected in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, and has been recorded in numerous protected areas: at least five (and one proposed) in Kalimantan, at least four (and a further four proposed) on Sumatra (including Padang Sugihan Wildlife Reserve (6 Danielsen, F., Kadarisman, R., Skov, H., Suwarman, U. and Verheugt, W.J.M. (1997). The Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi in Indonesia: breeding biology, population and conservation. Ibis. 139(1): 67-75. Close ), Way Kambas and Gunung Leuser National Parks) (13 Buij, R., E. A. Fox, and S. A. Wich (2006). Birds of Gunung Leuser National Park, northern Sumatra. Kukila 13:23–47. Close ) and up to five (including Taman Negara, Lower Kinabatangan and Malua Forest Reserve) in Malaysia (2 Wells, D. R. (1999). The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ). A small-scale nest protection scheme and awareness campaign is ongoing in West Kalimantan including compensation payments to poachers for nest protection, permitting at least four chicks to fledge in 2009–2011.