Alarming report – Storks are gorging on garbage

[WhiteTara]

http://www.babwnews.com/2016/03/alarming-report-storks-are-gorging-on-garbage/

A startling new study from researchers at the University of East Anglia further reveals the extent of human activities on the world’s wildlife. According to a report from Gizmodo, scientists have found that white storks are increasingly giving up their traditional migration routes in favor of hanging around landfills to munch on garbage.

White storks migrate from Europe to Africa annually, but the number of birds that make this journey has been steadily declining since the 1980s. A growing mass of the storks is camping out in Spain and Portugal throughout the winter, where massive landfills provide easy pickings. The birds are even feeding the garbage to their young, causing concerns among biologists.

According to lead author and ecologist at the University of East Anglia Dr. Aldina Franco, “Portugal’s stork population has grown ten fold over the last 20 years. The country is now home to around 14,000 wintering birds, and numbers continue to grow.”

The study followed 48 storks fitted with GPS tracking devices. Researchers found that European storks are staking out plots in landfills rich in food and defending them ferociously. Storks’ taste for garbage has completely redefined their migratory paths, and the study mimics research that found similar patterns in eight different stork populations across Europe and Asia.

[Kip Humphrey]

1. Alarming Report: White storks are gorging on garbage - the Donald Trump campaign!

[valerief]

2. That does it! Feeding garbage to babies? These storks have lost their childbirthing gig! nt

[In_The_Wind]

3. That is sad news!

[Agnosticsherbet]

4. A species discovers and exploits a new food source.

In a few generations we may see a new species, the garbage stork.
Evolution in action.