After a female stork was electrocuted on a power cable, the residents of the town of Mladé Buky in the Czech Republic decided to help her partner and four babies.
“We bring them a bit of everything, some fish, earthworms and even mice,” said Jiří Zeman, a local engineer. Zeman and his friend Šándor Havrán climb a ladder three times a day to bring the food to the birds, who live in a nest on top of a chimney.
They have named the father Bukacek, a reference to the name of their village. Zeman has installed a camera over the nest and live streams the stork family’s life on YouTube.
“At the beginning, only about 50 people were connected, but since the mother died, we have had more than 2,000 viewers, including many from abroad,” Zeman said.
People can donate to help with the birds. So far, they’ve collected more than 300,000 Czech korunas (11,800 euros). “It’s far too much money for five birds, but we are donating a large part to bird keepers in a center near here who help animals in difficulty,” Zeman said.
“They are following the video (of the stork family) online and are giving us precious advice,” he added.
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