From frogs to plastic. The alarming shift in storks’ diets

Discussing the harbingers of spring, one cannot omit the white stork. The first individuals have already settled throughout Europe. Have you ever wondered what storks eat? Most will say frogs, but the truth is much more complex.

As a large bird, the white stork finds seeds and fruits insufficient for its diet. In its diet, there are mainly small animals it can easily catch. Storks often forage in wetlands, hunting snails, beetles, and leeches. In meadows, they catch mice, voles, and moles; sometimes, they even take chicks from another bird's nest!

Frogs are often thought to be the main food of storks. Indeed, storks eat them, but not as frequently as we think. Frogs are merely a supplement to the stork's diet, as the number of amphibians has significantly decreased in recent years. Interestingly, young storks are primarily fed earthworms right after hatching, and only later do they receive larger prey. If four little storks are in the nest, the parents must provide approximately 6.6 pounds of food per day.

Storks cannot digest bones, shells, and fur, so these "wastes" end up as regurgitated pellets, which form in the stork’s stomach. There are plenty of these pellets around and under the nest, and scientists use them to verify the diet of storks.

The information above about storks' diets is very current, but a recent study has detected another, more troubling component. Birds have started to eat trash, mainly plastic waste and cigarette filters. Storks are beginning to alter their diet based on what is most readily available, which, unfortunately, includes trash near their nests. Mistaking it for natural food, some storks have begun to consume it.

This is an alarming phenomenon that concerns biologists worldwide. Eating trash can threaten the future population of storks, which could start to die off massively due to poisoning by human waste. Nature is starting to change its course, but not for the better. Unless people adopt more ecological lifestyles, the majestic storks may face extinction, turning the first sign of spring into a mere memory.