Landfill Closures in Spain and Morocco Threaten European Stork Migration

Indeed, these storks from the Zwin in Knokke-Heist usually migrate to Africa - particularly West Africa - during the winter. But according to Belga, this trip could be disrupted by the imminent closure of landfills in Spain and Morocco. European authorities have also criticized Spain’s waste management. "It risks being a deadly trap. From one year to the next, these Spanish landfills, which are probably the last in Europe, will have to close. Overnight, these tens of thousands of storks will no longer find food during the winter. This is what we want to study," says Didier Vangeluwe, ornithologist at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS), a partner in the project led by Zwin scientists.

In 2019, Zwin researchers equipped 23 storks with transmitters to better understand their winter behavior. Unfortunately, 10 of them are no longer alive. For the year 2023, six other storks have been fitted with trackers. According to Vangeluwe, these transmitters are a combination of GPS, GSM, computer and solar panel, the latter ensuring continuous battery recharging. "We install the transmitter with a harness on the back of the bird. It needs to be well positioned so that it corresponds to the bird’s body so that it disturbs it as little as possible," adds the specialist.