The Environment Protection Agency (EPA) revealed that a White Stork (Ciconia Ciconia) was sighted in the Maldives for the first time.
According to the agency, the bird was spotted on February 20th, 2022, in L. Hithadhoo. It is possibly the first recorded sighting of this species in the Maldives. The white stork is rarely seen in South India during the winter and vagrantly sighted in Sri Lanka as well, according to EPA.
The white stork is found throughout Europe, North Africa & the Middle East. Its populations have now decreased, and currently, large populations are now mainly found in Spain and Poland, in addition to the Baltic region.