Cultural storks refuse man-made apartment in Kuldīga, Latvia

A pair of storks caused some public amusement last week in Kuldīga, making locals scratch their heads about their choice of residence, Skrunda Television reported.

Last week, having returned to their summer apartment – a chimney of the Kuldīga culture center – the storks found it was no longer there, since the center is undergoing reconstruction and the chimney has been dismantled. The storks, without hesitation, proceeded to build a nest on the nearby pole drill involved in the construction work.

The builders, discovering their new tenants, called for the help of nature experts and arborists. Nature experts said the eviction must happen as fast as possible before eggs are laid. The arborist, in the meantime, was constructing a council apartment in a nearby poplar tree to offer to the birds.

Having taken a look at the arborists' labor, the stork couple decided their family deserved a better residence than council living. They then moved to another chimney of the cultural center – right above the main stage.

The Kuldīga culture center senior communication specialist Krista Jansone said:

"Well, what can we say? Cultural workers are very determined and patient, and cultural birds possess the same traits. The storks have decided to stay at Raiņa Street 21 and supervise the construction process."

The locals, just like they would come to watch performers on the stage, are now coming to watch the centerpiece couple above the stage. Edīte, who is now a neighbor of the storks, said:

"I actually felt for them, I thought, they were making the nest on the pole drill, the builders won't be able to work, and something will happen. I couldn't sleep at night. The nest was built within a week. And I was watching it through the window, [the stork] brings a big branch, it slips, falls, he fights it and flies again. And so for a whole week."

Next year, the stork couple will not find their stagetop residence either. This part of the center will also be reconstructed. The municipality and nature experts promise to think about solutions, but whether the birds will accept them is not known.

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