Black is the new white, or at least so it would seem from my latest sightings. The only addition to my year list over the past ten days was this pair of immature Black Storks, part of a group of 11 which had found some flooded fields in Flemish Brabant to their liking. The fields also held quite a few Common Sandpipers; I counted at least five of them running around on the mud before the numerous and very persistent mosquitoes had me beating a hasty retreat. Back in Brussels, this Black Swan was fighting with the pigeons and Egyptian Geese for bread in a city park. Black Swan is an introduced exotic which breeds in small numbers in Belgium but I have never seen one in Brussels before. It being out of the water, I managed to read the inscription on its metal ring and so am waiting to find out where exactly it has come from.
BE #213 (Black Stork)
BRU #112 (Black Swan, White Stork)
