Black Stork

Black Stork
This species is defined as a Review Species . Please submit your records of this species via our record submission page .

Scientific Name: Ciconia nigra

Malay Name: Upih Hitam Besar

Chinese Name: 黑鹳

Range: Breeds across the Palearctic from Europe to East Russia; winters in Africa, India, and southern China.

Taxonomy: Monotypic.

Size: 95–100 cm

Identification: Distinguished from Asian Openbill, Milky Stork, Painted Stork and Woolly-necked Stork (unrecorded in Singapore) by black neck and straight red or orange bill. From Storm’s Stork (unrecorded in Singapore, but present in Johor in very low numbers) by black neck and white belly instead of white neck and black belly. Black-necked Stork (also unrecorded in Singapore) similarly has black neck and white belly, but with black bill and whiter underwing coverts.

Habitat: Freshwater marshes and flooded fields, typically near wooded areas.

Behaviour/Ecology:

Local Status: Vagrant

Conservation Status: Least Concern (BirdLife International 2024)

Past records in our database:

Showing only accepted records. Note that records currently under review are also not displayed, and the list may not be a full list of records of this species in Singapore. For more details, check the database here.

Black Stork in Assam, India. Photo credit: Raghav Narayanswamy
Black Stork at Jelutong Tower on 31 Dec 2024. Photo credit: Tony W
External Links:

Conservation Status: IUCN Red List Page

Sound Recordings: xeno-canto Link

Wikipedia Entry: Wikipedia Link

References:

Robson, C. (2014). Field guide to the birds of South-East Asia (Second Edition). Bloomsbury Publishing, London.

RECOMMENDED CITATION

Bird Society of Singapore. (n.d.). Black Stork. Retrieved on January 17, 2025 from https://singaporebirds.com/species/black-stork.

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