The marabou stork is an African bird, massive in size. Its wings are filled with black feathers which contrast with its white chest and legs. The skin on the bird's head has a unique color scheme of red and black. The most important tool the marabou stork has is its beak. Long, sharp, perfect for getting into tiny crevasses or targeting small pieces of bone marrow. Native to countries such as Sudan, Kenya, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina, Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, and DR Congo. They are content in being in both wetlands and dry savannahs. However, they lurk near carrion. This could be from when big game leaves behind scraps on a carcass, scavenging around landfills, or when cattle herds die from lack of water. The marabou stork only has one primary predator, that being human beings. The lack of education in some African countries has led to the demise of the bird populations despite it thriving for so long.
The conflict that is taking place in East Africa is a repeated exchange that has gone on for decades amongst neighboring countries. Cattle raiding was seen as a battle among each nation's warriors and was a way to show one's own bravery. However, with the introduction of firearms acquired from countries such as Ethiopia, the methods of traditional raids would change. Firearms allowed for large herds of livestock to be claimed in minutes. These firearms are what changed the tradition of cattle raids into cattle rustling. Cattle rustling is a criminally organized operation that steals heard’s from pastoralists and sells them for commercial growth. Between the months of August through October, heard’s are targeted by these raids. The smugglers of these raids are all men, however, the youths of these nations are now participating in the act. Many of them lack education and have limited career opportunities. These conflicts often leave cattle behind that can't make it. This is where the marabou comes in. A bird that thrives off of all the chaos around it and cleans the lands. An animal that cleans up the unwanted scraps left by its fellow neighbors.
The climate crisis constantly creates drought in the countries of Africa. Leaving many species to die from lack of food, but not the Marabou. The bone-eating stork is in a unique scenario where it thrives off of others' demise. No matter the carcass, it does not discriminate. The more that climate change affects other animals, the better the stork's chances of survival. Their mating season revolves around the dry season. When the water holes dry up, food is more regularly available. Meaning the colonies of the stork can all gain important nutrients before they lay their eggs. However, some overlook the important role the species plays in an ecosystem. In Nigeria, the Marabou stork is used for medicines and provides traders with economic benefits. Meaning they are heavily targeted when it comes to hunting. Despite the fact that these birds mainly feast on dead carcasses, it is believed that different parts of their bodies can remedy different pains and aches. For example, the intestines and gular sac are believed to remedy forgetfulness and memory loss. The esophagus cures dizziness and bone marrow was a cure for rheumatism. Burnt feathers and fecal matter were said to protect against ghosts. If you were to mix the stork's meat with moringa seeds, cook it, and consume it, you would be repelling witchcraft. By mixing the heart of the bird with morning glory, crotalaria, and evolvulus alsinoides and eating it with other meat like fish, it is said that one can attract lovers or partners. Because the marabou stork provides so much for the people of Nigeria, they have completely wiped out their local population despite legislation that was created with the intent to protect the bird. This has created a market and hunters from all over West Africa are taking advantage. All over Nigeria and West Africa the populations are diminishing but a way to fix the situation is to begin a conservation plan, while also educating local populations about medicines created from natural things like plants. This would combat the idea that the stork has magical healing abilities or gifts that it can provide. Educating the public will allow for better protection of the species.
Hey Crawford, this was a great post. I never knew that different parts of the bird had different remedy's. Its really interesting to hear how you talked about how it could effect your mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health just from a bird. Its also great to hear that there is a legislation to protect the bird, not as great to hear that their population has been completely wiped out. I hope they can somehow breed the bird safely to make sure the population comes back in that area.
ReplyDeleteHey Crawford, great post! I didn't know all that much about the Marabou and their mating seasons. I also had no idea of the cultural significance of them for medicine. I never would have put together how the cattle raids would benefit them so much, so that was very interesting to find out.
ReplyDeleteHey Crawford, I really enjoyed your post! I didn't know that the bird was being hunted and used for cures. This makes the story of this stork more sad than it already is because they are affected by climate change and the migration of people to their habitats. Hopefully more restrictions will pass on the hunting of the storks so they don't go extinct!
ReplyDeleteGreat Post Crawford! I thought this was a really interesting topic to learn about and connected to Tropic of Chaos and cattle raiding in a unique way. At the end you mentioned that there was failed legislation to protect the stork which is very unfortunate, that made me curious about what kind of legislation it was and why it wasn't successful. That might be something I look up later!
ReplyDeleteHi Crawford, I enjoyed reading your post! I liked learning about a specific animal and then how it tied back to the cattle raids from the book. Normally we hear about the species that are going extinct because of climate change, so it was interesting to learn about one that was benefitting from it instead. It is so unfortunate how they were able to use their environment to their advantage, but that was impacted by the reoccurring problem of human choices.
ReplyDeleteHey Crawford, I really enjoyed reading your post! You did a great job of explaining the background and biology of the bird, explaining exactly why they are not only synonymous with drought but thrive in it. You also did well in explaining why they are struggling to maintain their populations, I had no idea that they were being hunted for medicinal purposes. With the future only holding more drought than what we see today, the conservation of this species is certainly going to be important for the mitigation of disease and cleaning of the ecosystem.
ReplyDeleteHey Crawford, I really liked how you incorporated how animals are also effected by the climate crisis. It was cool to learn more about a bird that I have very little knowledge about. The way that they are thriving in the wild in a drought because they are a bone eating stork is super interesting to me! The sad part about it is how they only have one predator and it is the human. I do hope that there is a push for conservation for these storks in Africa as they are a super cool bird!
ReplyDeleteHey Crawford, I have heard of the Shoebill Stork before, but never the Marabou Stork. They are both really cool animals. It's an interesting situation where these species actually thrive in conditions that are being altered by climate change. Has any foundations or groups started actively surveying the population rates and reproduction rates to see how much of an impact has already occurred on these animals due to human interaction?
ReplyDeleteHi Crawford, I really enjoyed your post.The connection between this subject and the Tropic of Chaos and livestock rustling struck me as particularly fascinating. It was surprising to learn about a species that was thriving as a result of climate change when we typically hear about those that are extinction due to it.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea there were other types of storks. I think this was a really interesting and specific point of view taken on Parenti's book. He talked a lot about how the drought was killing so many livestock and ruining livelihoods for subsistence farmers but it didn't occur to me that there could be other species thriving off of these tragedies. I also think it's really important that this species is conserved for their ecological role. Hopefully conservation efforts win out with education!
ReplyDeleteThere are so many animals and birds imperiled by climate change, in Africa and everywhere. Animals have deep connections with human society, as you describe in your post. Going beyond being just food, but also spiritual, medicinal, and just plain inspiration.
ReplyDelete