'The storks were here before me': Pensioners live side-by-side with storks in this Croatian village

By Denis Loktev

Published on 02/07/2026 - 7:00 GMT+2

In the Croatian village of Cigoc, storks are not just visitors – they are residents. Each spring, white storks return from Africa to nest on the rooftops of the village's traditional wooden houses, in such numbers that they regularly outnumber the people who live there.

The phenomenon has earned Cigoc the title of Europe's first 'Stork Village', a status it has held for 32 years. Unlike most of the continent, where storks typically build nests in trees, on cliffs or near the coast, here they have settled directly into village life.

"Here, storks build their nests on the roofs of barns and houses, unlike elsewhere in Europe where they are typically found in oak forests, on cliffs, above the sea," says Davor Anzil, an employee of the Cigoc Information Centre. "Here, they live in close contact and coexistence with people."

A wetland that feeds the birds

Cigoc lies in the Lonjsko Polje nature park, roughly 90 kilometres southeast of Zagreb and Croatia's largest protected wetland area. The park's rich ecosystem supports as many as 250 bird species – more than two-thirds of all the bird species recorded in Croatia, including both white and black storks.

That abundance of food is closely linked to the storks' breeding success. Nearby wetlands provide plentiful frogs, fish, snakes and insects, allowing pairs in Cigoc to raise an average of three to four chicks per nest – roughly double the European average of one to two.

Fewer people, fewer storks

As Cigoc's population ages and younger residents move to cities, the number of storks nesting there has also declined, as farmland once used for foraging falls out of use.

Even so, those villagers who remain have no plans to disturb their feathered neighbours. "The storks were here before me, and I don't see how I could ever remove their nest or chase them away when they keep returning here," says pensioner Marijan Belosevic. "It is their habit, and I have a lot of respect for nature."

Cigoc's status of 'Stork Village' remains a point of local pride – and a reminder that, in this corner of Croatia, people and birds have learnt to share a roof.