Erratic Weather Blamed for Empty Stork Nests in Hungary

An unseasonably wet and stormy June is responsible for a precipitous drop in the number of stork nestlings in Hungary this year, according to the Hungarian Ornithological and Nature Conservation Association.

It has been estimated that in the Hungarian county of Baranya the number of surviving new-born storks will be much lower than 2009, which itself witnessed a 10-percent decline in stork numbers compared to 2008. Since 1996, Baranya county has seen a 38-percent fall in its stork population. (Source for information in this paragraph: http://inforadio.hu/hir/belfold/hir-364897)

Other areas of Hungary have also reported a substantial decline in the stork population.