STORKS have been spotted in Brighton as part of a project to introduce them to the South Coast.
The birds were pictured on the Hollingbury golf course after being released from Knepp Wildland, near Horsham, last week.
The birds have been spotted all over the south coast. Image Credit: Rose Jones
The aim of the White Stork Project is to have 50 breeding pairs on the South Coast by 2030 and 37 birds have been released.
Rose Jones, who took stunning pictures of the birds on the golf course, said: “It has been a really positive experience. I followed them and watched in amazement.
The birds are part of a large reintroduction of storks to the south coast. Image Credit: Rose Jones
“Watching the golfers trying to hit the balls away from the storks was quite funny.
“We were raised on storks – these are the stories we were given, so to see this large number just walking calmly around, we can only hope that when they come back maybe we will get some in other places.”
The project to reintroduce storks to the South Coast has been one that has been ongoing for some time.
The project to reintroduce the birds has been ongoing since 2016. Image Credit: Rose Jones
The White Stork Project began in 2016 and has been looking to introduce more and more storks each year.
The birds migrate and return to Sussex. So far, they have been spotted as far north as Aberdeen and as far south as Morocco.
This year, some of the birds have been fitted with GPS tracking, and members of the public are being urged to keep an eye out for them and to report where they are spotted.
The storks were released at Knepp Wildlands last week
A spokesperson for the White Stork Project said: “There has been quite a buzz on social media.
“What we think they are doing is preparing to cross the Channel. Hopefully as they get older they will learn to go South and then come back.
“If people see one let us know. We’re trying to find out where these birds are ending up.”
As well as being spotted at the golf course, the birds have been spotted more recently sitting on a railway bridge during the rail strikes on Thursday.
Storks were also spotted on a railway bridge at the time of the rail strikes. Image Credit: Jo Whiting
Wild Stork Project said it has tracked two separate groups of birds, one which headed west to Cornwall and the other which were seen in Kent.