White Stork

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White Stork in the UK

A scarce migrant from the Continent and now a reintroduced breeder. The White Stork Project began in 2016 and has released birds each year at Knepp in West Sussex and Wadhurst Park in East Sussex. Free-flying pairs first raised young at Knepp in 2020, when four chicks fledged, the first in Britain for about 600 years. The colony fledged 53 wild chicks in 2024, 45 in 2025 and 42 from 16 nests in 2026. Wild migrants still arrive in small numbers, mostly in spring in southern England.

Where and when to see a White Stork

Knepp Wildland near Horsham in West Sussex is the place. Public footpaths cross the estate and nests in open oaks can be watched from them between March and July. Young birds wander widely in late summer and autumn, so storks now turn up on farmland and floodplains across southern England. On warm days look up from late morning, when birds soar on thermals. Check any stork for leg rings.

Habitat, diet and field notes

Habitat: Open farmland, village rooftops.
Diet: Frogs, fish, small mammals.
Field note: Bill-clatters at the nest.

How to identify a White Stork

A very large bird, about a metre tall. White with black flight feathers, a long straight red bill and long red legs. Juveniles have a duller, dark-tipped bill. On the ground it walks slowly through grassland with the neck upright. In flight the neck is stretched forward and the legs trail, and the black-and-white wing pattern is obvious from below. It soars in circles on flat wings and travels by gliding between thermals, often with others.

Call and song

Almost voiceless. Adults greet each other at the nest by throwing the head back and clattering the bill, a loud wooden rattle. Chicks hiss and mew. Heard something you cannot place? Bird Hear identifies UK birds from a 10 second recording, free in your browser.

Confusion species

• Common Crane: Crane is grey with a black-and-white head and a dark bill and legs.
• Grey Heron: Grey Heron is grey, has a yellowish bill and flies with its neck folded back.
• Black Stork: Black Stork is glossy black on the head, neck and upperparts, with white only on the belly and wingpits.

Related guide Bird migration in Britain.

Conservation status and Birdedex points

In the Birdedex the White Stork is a Rare tier bird, worth +8 points when you log one. It is not on the Red or Amber lists in Birds of Conservation Concern 5.

Recent UK sightings

Similar birds

• Black StorkEpic · Forested rivers
• Eurasian SkylarkCommon · Open farmland
• Lesser KestrelEpic · Open farmland
• Ortolan BuntingEpic · Open farmland
• Black KiteRare · Open country (passage)
• Cirl BuntingRare · Sunny mixed farmland

White Stork: quick answers

Where can I see a White Stork in the UK?

Knepp in West Sussex, where the breeding colony can be seen from public footpaths in spring and summer. Away from Sussex, sightings are unpredictable, but wandering birds are reported in many southern counties each year. Bird news services list them daily.

Is the White Stork rare in the UK?

Wild migrants are scarce. The picture has changed since the reintroduction, and it is now hard to tell a wild bird from a wandering project bird unless you can read a ring. In Sussex it is a local breeder with a colony that is producing dozens of young a year.

What does a White Stork eat?

Whatever it can catch on foot in open ground. Earthworms, grasshoppers and beetles make up much of the diet in Britain, with frogs, voles and small fish taken when available. It follows mowers and ploughs to pick up exposed prey.

Kit that helps

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