Across the region, skies are filled with the epic 2-metre wingspans of foraging storks, whilst the sounds of their characteristic bill-clattering echoes from rooftops, trees and church towers. Their impressive nests perch in trees lining roads and on top of buildings. In fact, many people attach specialised nesting platforms to roofs, a sight that has become a distinctive part of the skyline for villages across Alsace.  

Every Spring, the white storks return to Alsace from their migration through Africa and have become deeply embedded in the region's cultural identity - symbolising luck, fortune, and fertility. Walking around the urban centre of Strasbourg, community pride for their resident storks is reflected in an abundance of shop signs, hotel and restaurant names and street art depicting the bird. For the adventurous, there is even a stork-themed water park. 

But their sightings weren’t always so frequent. In the 1960’s and 70’s, white storks had almost disappeared from Alsace, with numbers estimated to have dramatically fallen from 148 breeding pairs in 1948 to just nine by 1974. Their decline is thought to be caused by a combination of factors, including over-hunting, collisions with electrical infrastructure, and the loss of suitable foraging habitat via urbanisation.  

In response, organisations across the region established breeding and reintroduction centres to help restore local populations of white stork. One of the first to open was in the Parc de l’Orangerie in 1971, a well-kept urban park in the centre of Strasbourg that shares many similarities with London’s Royal Parks. Further south, NaturOparC became another significant hub for breeding, conservation, and later for public engagement.  

The success of both these programmes has been extraordinary. By the 2010’s, active captive breeding efforts had largely come to an end, having achieved their goal of helping white storks recover across the region. Despite the closure of breeding facilities, many storks remain faithful to their birthplace, and both the Parc de l’Orangerie and NaturOparC continue to host thriving stork populations today. 

As the time for London’s own stork reintroduction comes closer (read more about the project here), these former reintroduction centres offer an inspiring glimpse of what could be possible in London over the decades ahead. 

To learn from one of Europe’s most celebrated white stork recovery programmes, members of the London Wildlife Trust Nature Recovery team and partners at Derek Gow Consultancy recently travelled to Alsace to visit both sites, meet local experts and see first-hand how people and storks live alongside one another.  

I spoke to Emily Fox (Head of Nature Recovery Programmes) and Layla Mapemba-Taylor (Senior Species Recovery Officer) at the Trust to get their thoughts and reflections on their time in Alsace and how lessons learnt could help shape the future of white storks in East London. 

Storks are present and thriving in several spots across Europe, including in Germany, Poland, Ukraine, the Baltics, and Spain. Why was Alsace in particular chosen to visit? 

Emily: Alsace really stood out because it’s one of the best examples anywhere of people and white storks living successfully alongside each other. The region has spent decades bringing the species back, and storks are deeply woven into it’s culture, heritage and identity, with nests on rooftops and in trees being a familiar part of everyday life. There’s a huge amount we can learn from that experience, and it’s an inspiring example of how iconic wildlife can become part of people’s daily lives again. This is something we’d love more people to experience closer to home, here in London.  

Can you describe the two sites you visited in Alsace and their relevance to London’s stork reintroduction programme? 

Emily: We visited two sites that offered different but equally valuable lessons for London's white stork programme. At Parc de l'Orangerie in Strasbourg, we were given a guided tour by a knowledgeable volunteer from LPO Alsace (Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux (League for the Protection of Birds)), who introduced us to the history, ecology and behaviour of the park's white storks. Following our visit, we also had the opportunity to talk with LPO Alsace's Wildlife Mediation Unit, which manages white stork nests across the Bas-Rhine and Haut-Rhine areas, to learn from their experience of nest management and helping people and storks successfully coexist. 

At NaturOparC in Hunawihr, we met colleagues who shared insights from their long-running white stork breeding programme (1976–2015), as well as best practice in habitat management, nesting and husbandry. 

Together, the two visits gave us a rounded picture of what's needed to make a reintroduction a long-term success. We saw first-hand how careful planning, expert management and ongoing monitoring can help white storks thrive, while also building public support and awareness and making them a valued part of everyday life. It was  exactly the kind of knowledge and inspiration we were looking to bring back to London as we work towards returning this charismatic species to the capital. 

How are storks viewed by residents in Strasbourg and by visitors to the former breeding sites? 

Emily: White storks are a source of pride in Strasbourg and across Alsace. They're deeply connected to the region's culture and identity, and people are very used to seeing them nesting in parks, on rooftops and even along residential streets. One of the most memorable moments for us was seeing nests in more than 15 pollarded London plane trees lining a residential street, while people simply went about their daily lives beneath them, walking dogs, cycling and carrying on as normal. 

Of course, living alongside wildlife sometimes isn't without its challenges. Storks can sometimes build nests in unsuitable places (particularly where their numbers are rapidly increasing), their droppings can affect historic buildings, and their distinctive bill-clattering can be noisy during the breeding season. What really stood out was how organisations like LPO Alsace, as well as local authorities, work closely with local communities and businesses to raise awareness, manage these issues through practical nest management (like providing artificial nesting structures to encourage nesting in desired locations), and provide advice. It was a great example of how, with the right planning and expertise, people and wildlife can successfully live alongside one another. 

What was the most surprising takeaway from the trip?  

 
Layla: One of the most surprising takeaways from our trip was how truly site-faithful white storks are. Despite knowing and teaching others of their natal philopatry (the tendency to return to their hatching site to nest and rear their young), to see it in practice was something quite other. As we walked around the city and drove out to more rural areas, there wasn’t even an inkling of a stork, until we were either very close to, or actually in, the reintroduction sites. I had started to tell the rest of the team that maybe we had been lied to, maybe there are no stork in Strasbourg (spoiler: my theory was very wrong).  
 
What was everywhere, however, was stork decoration, in every form you can think of: wine cork decorations, tile mosaics, graffiti and of course, new baby toys. Strasbourg is a city that is both adorned with and adores their high-flying neighbours. 

Having returned from the trip, how do you feel about the project in London, and what are you most looking forward to as preparations for the stork's arrival begin?  
 
Layla:  I think I can speak for our whole team when I say that our trip to Strasbourg made us all the more excited and, crucially, confident in London’s white stork reintroduction. After leaving Strasbourg, some of the team even said they could see storks when they closed their eyes! This excitement and confidence is energising us as we speed towards our autumn deadline. 
 
Building relationships with similar programmes several decades ahead provided us with a clear vision of what we can anticipate for a London reintroduction, opportunities for knowledge exchange - from which our project is already benefiting – and has opened more avenues for coordinated conservation efforts for our wonderful avian friends. 
 
Personally, I am most looking forward to continue developing and delivering our community engagement programme. I am excited to be connecting with local residents and grateful to be met with such enthusiasm, excitement and consideration for the stork’s welfare. Continuing to learn from residents on how they wish to engage with the project and shaping the engagement opportunities accordingly is an incredibly rewarding element of the project. It goes without saying that a successful species reintroduction must centre the local communities within which it is situated.  

Huge thanks go to Derek Gow and Hayley Pavis at the Derek Gow Consultancy for sharing their knowledge and expertise, and for accompanying us throughout the trip. We’d also like to thank Martyn Williams at Brittany Wildlife for his invaluable support and translation skills.

Our thanks also go to Anthony and Christophe at Naturoparc for their generosity in hosting us for the day and for giving so generously of their time and support. Finally, we’re grateful to Odile and Noam from LPO Alsace for their guidance and for generously sharing their knowledge and experience.