Sückauer Stork on a trip to Asia: Dangerous search for food!

Sückauer Stork on a trip to Asia: Dangerous search for food!

These days the storks are on their way to their winter quarters and are once again causing a stir. Two stork experts from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Lower Saxony accompany the adventure of two storks who have been equipped with tracking devices. Your goal? Bulgaria before moving on to Africa. How NDR reports, Helmut Eggers and Gerd Dahms keep an eye on the storks and follow them to their destination.

The Sückau stork did a lot of work: on August 24, 2025, it set off from Burgas at 8 a.m. and reached the Asian continent at lunchtime. His travel plan includes a route that will ultimately take him south of the Sahara to Sudan and Chad. On its journey, the stork flew over the Danube on August 22nd and covered an impressive 200 to 400 kilometers every day, depending on the weather.

The challenges of storks

However, the journey is not without its challenges. Excessive drought in Germany has made raising chicks much more difficult. Loud MDR The young storks suffer from a lack of food and in some cases find themselves in the unfortunate position of having to be thrown out of the nest or eaten themselves. This makes the younger generation's chances of survival extremely slim.

These problems have led to many storks changing their migratory behavior in recent years. Instead of flying to southern climes, they have discovered landfills as a new source of food. The mild climate brings their staple food, crickets and grasshoppers, in abundance year-round, which is tempting. Also Action Animal has found that storks are increasingly staying in densely populated areas to find leftover food in garbage dumps. However, this could have long-term consequences for both the animals themselves and the ecosystems.

A game of chance between man and nature

Storks are pragmatic animals that adapt well. Although it is a practical solution, it also poses risks. Eating food at landfills can pose health risks such as injuries from plastic parts and other pollutants. And even though the breeding population in Germany is currently more than 12,000 pairs, the future of the storks is questionable, especially in times of climate change.

The storks themselves take care of thorough plumage care, important for their ability to fly, and the experts are excited to see how the two storks fare on their journey. The Sückau stork recently spent the night near a landfill, just 450 meters from the research teams, which made for exciting observation moments. From an eagle owl flying nearby to the sounds of scops owls, life in nature remains exciting, even on this chaotic journey.

The question remains: How will the behavior of the storks affect their population and the upcoming breeding seasons next year? Further developments are certain, and nature is showing us once again that we must be careful.