White storks in Poland are getting heavier as they increasingly feed on landfill sites, new research suggests, offering a short-term energy boost but potentially causing long-term health damage. Scientists warn that while the easy meals help boost population numbers, they expose the birds to toxins and plastic waste, with early signs of DNA damage already detected in chicks.
Researchers studying white stork populations in Poland found that the birds are turning to garbage dumps mainly during the middle of the breeding season, when their chicks need the most food. The findings, presented at the Society for Experimental Biology conference in Florence, show that storks feeding on landfills have greater body mass and more energy reserves than those foraging in natural habitats like fields and wetlands.
Anustup Bandyopadhyay, a doctoral student at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna involved in the study, explained that the ready availability of food waste allows storks to save energy. – They may spend less time searching for food and potentially allocate that time and energy to other activities, such as reproduction – said Bandyopadhyay. – Our partners in Poland also discovered that white storks use landfills mainly in the middle of the breeding season, when the chicks’ demand for food peaks – he added.
Fast food with hidden costs
Prof. Aldina Franco, an ecologist at the University of East Anglia, described the landfill food as a kind of bird fast food. – It is rotting food of low quality but very high in calories – said Franco. However, she noted that while individual birds may die from toxins or infections, for the population as a whole the extra food source often brings more benefit than harm.
Researchers detected signs of DNA damage in young storks much earlier than expected – when the chicks were only about a week old. The findings also suggest that landfill feeding may alter migration patterns, as has already happened with western European white stork populations. – White storks from the Iberian Peninsula have switched from fully migratory to partially migratory and even sedentary, mainly due to favorable weather conditions and, importantly, the availability of additional food at landfills – explained Bandyopadhyay.
A growing dilemma for conservation
White stork numbers in Europe declined sharply until the 1980s, disappearing from several countries. They have since rebounded in Sweden and recently in the United Kingdom. The new research, cited by The Guardian, highlights a paradox: landfills offer an easy food source that can help endangered species recover, but they also expose wildlife to plastic, wire, glass, and heavy metals.
The issue is becoming more urgent as the European Union tightens waste management policies, limiting free access to landfill sites. Such changes could impact the abundance, migration, and breeding of white storks. – Landfills are waste we do not use, and the question arises: should we not allow some species to benefit from these resources we no longer need? – said Franco.
Bandyopadhyay added that the increasing volume of global waste is creating new feeding opportunities for wild animals. The Polish study, part of a broader European research effort, underscores the need for a careful balance between conservation benefits and potential health risks.
Źródło: Polsat News, Fot. Polsat News
