God's Bird List: November 2026

Storks are big birds! The only stork in the U.S. is the wood stork, which I have seen in Florida, maybe only once. They are definitely a bird of the far South, but a few wander further west or up the Atlantic coast. Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, where I live, has only one recorded wood stork historically (on eBird); in August 2022 a single stork visited for a few weeks. And I didn’t see it.

The wood stork is a very large white bird with partially black wings. It has a bald wrinkly, gray head and a very thick greyish bill. This bird lives in wetlands. It is not to be confused with another large-ish wetlands bird; the smaller, grayer, and more streamlined great blue heron has a much more attractive head. Non-birders commonly misidentify the great blue heron as a stork, due to its impressive size and tall upright stance.

The Bible mentions storks, which are among the unclean animals, and it acknowledges different kinds of storks. “And the stork, the heron in its kinds, and the hoopoe, and the bat” (Leviticus 11:19). “The stork, and the heron in their kinds, and the hoopoe and the bat” (Deuteronomy 14:18).

Another passage focuses on the distinct wings of storks. “Then I lifted up my eyes and looked, and there two women were coming out with the wind in their wings; and they had wings like the wings of a stork, and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heavens” (Zechariah 5:9). There is a reason God chose stork wings and not crow wings or hummingbird wings. The white stork, common in the Middle East, has a wingspan of five to seven feet. In addition to being very long, the wings are also exceptionally broad. I looked at a photo of this bird in flight, and it looks like all wings! Okay, maybe 80% wings. These strong wings are used for powerful flapping interspersed with efficient gliding, making storks capable of long flights.

The Bible also talks about the storks’ nesting habits. “Where the birds build their nests, and the stork, whose home is in the fir trees” (Psalm 104:17). The verse is speaking of the cedars of Lebanon, so I researched the storks that would be found in that country. There are two. The black stork (mostly black, with white underneath) lives in coniferous forests and builds bulky nests of sticks high in trees. The white stork (mostly white, with black toward the tail) also builds bulky stick nests high in trees.

Finally, the Bible speaks of the stork in relation to migration. “Even the stork in the sky knows her seasons; and the turtledove and the swift and the thrush observe the time of their migration; but My people do not know the ordinance of the LORD” (Jeremiah 8:7). Storks know their time to relocate for the winter and summer. In the country of Lebanon, black stork sightings peak in late March through mid-May, then again in September and October. The white stork peaks mid-March through May, then again in August. They are daytime migrators and can be seen in impressive flocks of hundreds.

In the U.S., the wood stork is considered a partial migrant, meaning that some birds remain for the winter. In the big picture, the birds leave the southeastern U.S. in October to November, wintering in Central and South America, before returning in March and April. However, some birds will remain year-round, as long as their habitat remains flooded and they can find food; these birds may move locally or regionally in pursuit of better conditions.

One final note. In the Zechariah passage quoted above, the women with stork-like wings are carrying an ephah (probably like a bushel basket). Those storks are not using the basket to deliver babies to their new families! But there was a woman sitting inside the basket that the others carried. So maybe this passage contributed to the tradition of storks carrying babies. Certainly it is in keeping with the reality of their powerful wings.

Raptors! Some birders love them and come alive only during raptor migration. Backyard birders might not love them, because of the threat they present to the smaller visitors that frequent their feeders. And some birders are just confused by them because of the challenges in identification.

I’ve always been closest to the third group. My guiding principle was “If it’s a big, hungry-looking bird sitting in a tree or soaring overhead, it’s probably a red-tailed hawk.” Three years ago I decided to do something about my ignorance, and I started to regularly visit a local raptor migration spot. I asked lots of questions, I listened a lot, I studied the materials provided, and I tried to learn to distinguish the various raptors that flew past. I still don’t consider myself a raptor expert, but I’m a lot better than I used to be.

The hawk watch I visit counts migrating vultures, osprey, eagles, hawks, and falcons. The hawk species that could be seen during migration in the eastern U.S. include the northern harrier, sharp-shinned hawk, Cooper’s hawk, American goshawk (rare), red-shouldered hawk, red-tailed hawk, broad-winged hawk, and rough-legged hawk (rare).

The Bible acknowledges this element of diversity, stating that there are different kinds of hawks. “And the ostrich and the owl and the sea gull and the hawk in its kind” (Leviticus 11:16). “And the ostrich, the owl, the sea gull, and the hawk in their kinds” (Deuteronomy 14:15). These birds are listed among the unclean species in the Jewish dietary laws.

The Bible has four references to hawks, utilizing two different Hebrew words. For neither word are translators 100% sure that hawk is the precise translation, but both are confidently birds of prey. The more common Hebrew word (used in the two verses above and in Job below) could be a hawk, falcon, or even an extinct bird of prey. The other word (in Isaiah below) could be a hawk or kite.

“The tree snake will make its nest and lay eggs there, and it will hatch and gather them under its protection. Yes, the hawks will be gathered there, every one with its kind” (Isaiah 34:15). This passage refers to a desolate and burned-out land where most birds and creatures will not live. There are only a few creatures that tolerate and can survive in that harsh environment, and hawks are one such group. Again, the Bible refers to multiple kinds of hawks, as well as to their tendency to gather with others of their own kind.

The final verse refers to how the hawk flies – both its soaring in the sky and its seasonal migration. “Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars, stretching his wings toward the south?” (Job 39:26).

I have learned some interesting things about the soaring of hawks. When hawks reach their soaring height, they rarely flap. They can glide, soar, and circle for a long time. The sharp-shinned hawk gives itself away by its flapping pattern – flap, flap, flap, glide – flap, flap, flap, glide. It is also more unstable and tossed about in its flight compared to the other accipiter, the Cooper’s hawk. Red-tailed hawks do something called kiting; they suddenly stop their forward progress and hover in place, high up in the sky.

During migration, the broad-winged hawks typically travel in groups. (The other hawk species travel through as individuals.) A group is called a kettle, and when the hawks lift off the for the day, or when they start to lose altitude, they form a kettle. In a kettle, the hawks circle round and round, gradually higher, seeking a thermal to give them altitude. When they finally get the right conditions, they will stream out of the kettle one by one. It’s amazing to see a kettle of one hundred or so hawks! Of course, some kettles are very small. When only two or three hawks are traveling together, we jokingly call it a teacup.

Hawks are among the species that have been tagged regularly, and this has allowed naturalists to study migration patterns and even track individual birds. Hawk Mountain Sanctuary provides data and interactive maps on migrating raptors. (Broad-winged Hawk Tracking Maps | Hawk Mountain Sanctuary: Learn Visit Join) These hawks go to the Great Lakes area for the summer, or to eastern Canada. During migration they follow the Appalachian ridge or the Mississippi River, then down through Mexico. Most of them end up for the winter in Central America or Columbia, and a few travel further south, just below the Amazon basin. For each bird, the starting point, travel path, and ending point are consistent year after year.

Typical season for fall migration is August 15 through December 15. You can visit www.hawkcount.org to locate hawkwatch sites and statistics. The site I visit is called Second Mountain. For the 2025 season, we counted 58 northern harriers, 1054 sharp-shinned hawks, 108 Cooper’s hawks, 1 American goshawk, 55 red-shouldered hawks, 4332 broad-winged hawks, and 531 red-tailed hawks.

I still don’t consider myself to be a raptor afficionado. I prefer the smaller birds. However, I have learned to appreciate the raptors more as I have learned about them and have embraced them more fully within my birding repertoire.