Black Stork; Cigüeña Negra

On the nest. Uncommon stork, very shy and wary.

Slightly smaller than the white stork, the black stork is still a large bird, 95 to 100 cm in length with a 145–155 cm wingspan.
It has long legs, a long neck, and a long, straight, pointed beak. The plumage is all black with a purplish green sheen, except for the white lower breast, belly, axillaries and undertail coverts. The breast feathers are long and shaggy forming a ruff which is used in some courtship displays. The bare skin around its eyes is red, as are its red bill and legs. The sexes are identical in appearance, except that males are larger than females on average.

It is a summer resident in Spain.

The black stork feeds on amphibians and insects.