The painted stork is widely distributed over the plains of Asia.
They are found south of the Himalayan ranges and are bounded on the west by the Indus River system where they are rare and extend eastwards into Southeast Asia.
They are absent from very dry or desert regions, dense forests and the higher hill regions.
They are rare in most of Kerala and the species appears to have expanded into that region only in the 1990s.
They prefer freshwater wetlands in all seasons, but also use irrigation canals and crop fields, particularly flooded rice fields during the monsoon.
They are resident in most regions but make seasonal movements.
Young birds may disperse far from their breeding sites as demonstrated by a juvenile ringed at a nest in Keoladeo National Park that was recovered 800 kilometres away at Chilka in eastern India.
Breeding is always on large trees, usually in areas where nesting trees are secured over long periods of time, including in wetland reserves, along community-managed village ponds and lakes, inside villages when protection is also afforded to nesting birds like in Kokrebellur, protected tree patches in urban locations such as zoos, and on islands in urban wetlands.
The painted stork is widely distributed over the plains of Asia. They are found south of the Himalayan ranges and are bounded on the west by the Indus River system where they are rare and extend eastwards into Southeast Asia. They are absent from very dry or desert regions, dense forests and the higher hill regions. They are rare in most of Kerala and the species appears to have expanded into that region only in the 1990s. They prefer freshwater wetlands in all seasons, but also use irrigation canals and crop fields, particularly flooded rice fields during the monsoon. They are resident in most regions but make seasonal movements. Young birds may disperse far from their breeding sites as demonstrated by a juvenile ringed at a nest in Keoladeo National Park that was recovered 800 kilometres away at Chilka in eastern India. Breeding is always on large trees, usually in areas where nesting trees are secured over long periods of time, including in wetland reserves, along community-managed village ponds and lakes, inside villages when protection is also afforded to nesting birds like in Kokrebellur, protected tree patches in urban locations such as zoos, and on islands in urban wetlands.
Painted stork