Abstract
This paper presents how weather conditions affect survival of White Stork Ciconia ciconia nestlings. The main goals of the present study are to determine the most critical period for breeding output and to investigate factors influencing reproductive efficiency of the studied population. The mean survival rate of the whole nesting period (day 52 from egg laying to day 20 of nestlings life) was 0.668 (95% CL: 0.611–0.725) and did not differ between years, while mean survival for incubation period was 0.721 (0.681–0.761) and also was not significantly different between years. Finally, the mean survival rate for the nestling period was 0.903 (0.869–0.937) and was different between years. This study shows that the most critical period in the breeding cycle is the time of incubation and the first days of the nestling's life. The period from egg laying to day 20 of the nestling's life is characterised by the highest hazard ratio. Finally, the study demonstrates that, like many other bird species, White Stork nestlings' survival is affected by low temperatures and a high level of precipitation.
Published Version
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