Stork visits old fisherman friend for 11th year running

BURSA

The story of a unique friendship between a fisherman and a stork is celebrating its 11th anniversary this year.

For the past 11 years, Adem Yılmaz, 69, meets up with a white stork in a village called Eskikaraağaç in Turkey’s northwestern province of Bursa’s Karacabey district.

Yılmaz and the stork’s friendship started when the fowl perched on Yılmaz’s fishing boat at Lake Uluabat and was fed by him.

Since that day, the white stork became a regular on the boat every morning during the half-year it spends in Turkey.

The last visit of the stork named Yaren, which settles on Yılmaz’s boat every time it migrates, was welcomed by residents of Eskikaraağaç, known locally as “the village of storks” and which in 2011 joined the European Stork Villages Network.

Having arrived on time, way-worn Yaren landed on the boat of the fisherman early on March 7, just like in previous years, and ate her first fish.

Those moments were captured by Alper Tüydeş, a well-known nature photographer.

“Finally, Yaren reunited with Uncle Adem [Yılmaz] in its 11th year. He had reached the village yesterday at the end of his migration journey that he had set out days ago,” Tüydeş said, noting that the stork got its place on Yılmaz’s boat in no time flat.

“Now, they will be fishing together all summer. Happy 11th anniversary of the reunion; they shall live long,” he noted.

The photographer also said that he included the 10 most beautiful photographs of the story of Yaren and Yılmaz in a collection as NFT.

“Some 10 percent of the income will be donated to the association founded by village [Eskikaraağaç] women, and we will divide the remainder with Uncle Adem,” he added.

Meanwhile, the website where Yaren’s journey can be followed and NFTs can be seen crashed in a short time due to excessive interest.