As promised, here’s another pretty cool webcam that I’ve followed over the years. It’s a live video feed of a stork nest in Vetschau, Germany. It’s a little early yet, to feature this cam, as the birds have not arrived back in Europe from their winter grounds in Africa.
Once the birds arrive, this cam will allow you to watch their mating rituals, hear their bill clattering (which is really the only vocalization these birds make and is quite unusual) and perhaps watch the chicks hatch. Over the summer, the chicks will grow and eventually leave the nest for their annual migration. Once they reach sexual maturity, they will migrate back from Africa to start their own families and will continue to pilgrimage annually throughout their lives.
I have not yet managed to catch a hatching, but I have seen first flights and fall leave-takings. I’ll be watching again this spring in the hopes of catching the elusive hatching experience.