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I have occasionally seen wood storks soaring at great altitudes while flying my private plane. Why are they flying so high?

April 26, 2017Altitudes flying great plane private seen Soaring storks wood

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I have occasionally seen wood storks soaring at great altitudes while flying my private plane. Why are they flying so high?

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Whereas storks are slow to take off in flight, requiring deep laborious wing beats to gain altitude due to their size and weight, they are graceful fliers once in flight and excellent high altitude fliers. Storks frequently seek out thermals (the upward convection of warm, rising air) during the summer months, which allows storks to attain great heights with little wing flapping. The use of thermals greatly conserves energy compared to flight with wing-flapping. Once they reach the desired height, the storks will glide with little wing-flapping for great distances toward their foraging sites. Occasionally, storks will use a series of thermals (thermal hopping) to get to their ultimate destination, similar to humans flying gliders.