Legend of the park Vallcalent / La Mitjana in Lleida Legends in Erasmus+ KA229 "Green education in green environment"

2. GINA
THE
STORK
When the first rays of sunshine illuminate the day, the parents hurry and fly in search of food
for me and my sisters. Me, the youngest of the three, I was born six days after my older
sister.
I'm Gina, the stork of the family, and if I don't hurry up,
my hungry sisters will eat all the food that
the parents bring to the nest.
One rainy spring morning, Dad shelters us as he tells us
about the adventure that months ago had taken them
on the very long journey from a far, far away country
in central Africa to our home.
- Why did you go to Africa? -Gina asks, curious.
- In autumn there is not much food so it's time to get ready and go on a surprising and
dangerous journey to a warm place where we can spend the winter. - answers her father.
- And why did you come back here? - interrupts Gina.
- Each of us has in our memory the place where we were born, and an irresistible force
pushes us to come back to build our nest.

3. For days, we look for the safest place where we can build the nest with branches, straw and
grass.The mother sits and lays the eggs a few days apart. Afterwards, we both take care of
the eggs and protect and warm them all the time.
After 32 days, you and your little sisters come out of the egg
one after the other.
The first days of life, mom and I protect you from the sun,
rain and wind. One of us caresses and warms you,
while the other brings you food.
The days go by, and Gina barely grows,
she is very weak and,
even though she tries to catch some food,
she never gets a chance to eat.
One day, a strange noise alerts Gina.
Someone big and strong approaches the nest.
She feels the warmth of hands that grab her tenderly
and take her away from the nest.
She tries to escape, but it is useless! At first glance, she sees that the place she is in is
friendly. Again, she feels the proximity of a hand that brings him food. Gina is very hungry.
Day by day, Gina gains strength and weight.
After a week she is able to stand up and,
days later, she has become a young,
cheerful and curious stork.
Gina is at the wildlife center La Mitjana,
where many birds and mammals
arrive injured or sick.
The center's caretakers look after
them until they recover.
Days later, a big noise alerts Gina. Two people enter
the recovery room, capture some of her friends
and stick a tag with a number on it in their paws.
Gina believes she will soon be free, but she is scared,
she has never lived in freedom. Finally, hours later,
Gina's keeper picks her up and carefully says: Good luck!

4. Gina flaps her wings and takes off. She finds herself lost until
she meets Nico. He has built his nest on a very tall tower.
Gina and Nico become good friends and share the nest.
A few weeks later, Gina sits on the nest and lays the first egg.
Gina and Nico protect and warm three eggs until they open
and three stork chicks are born.
One spring afternoon, Gina and Nico explain
to their daughters some of the dangers
they will have to overcome to survive:
the electric wires, the polluted water and poisons,
the ropes and ribbons that humans
throw into the fields... you must avoid them!
The next day Gina and Nico teach the chicks
to fly for the first time. Afterwards, they go
to the pond and each one will catch their lunch:
they must be fast and accurate!
In the evening, Gina watches as her daughters
join the pack and set off on their first migration.
They will cross the Mediterranean Sea,
go through the lands of the African continent
where they will spend the autumn.
In mid-winter, they will push again the return journey to the place where they were born. And
this is how, year after year, a new generation is born.