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To those outside Türkiye, the tale of a migratory bird returning to the same village may sound simple. A stork returns each spring, and a fisherman greets it. But in the tiny lakeside village of Eskikaraagac, this annual rendezvous carries a much deeper meaning.
Retired fisherman Adem Yilmaz has shared a bond with a white stork named Yaren for more than a decade. Each year, she arrives from Africa to land directly on his boat.
In a world where human connections often come and go, the story of Yaren and Adem feels almost timeless. The friendship began by chance: Many years ago, a stork landed on Adem’s fishing boat while he was casting his nets. Instead of flying off, she stayed, and he offered her fish, a gesture that sparked a bond witnessed by villagers and later captured by photographers.
Since then, Yaren has continued to return each spring, year after year, often perching confidently on the same boat as if greeting an old companion.
In Eskikaraagac, the first sighting of Yaren has become an annual beacon of hope and celebration. Villagers, wildlife lovers, and visitors gather in anticipation as the stork completes her long journey and returns to her nest overlooking the lake, sometimes with her mate Nazli already there. Last year, observers even monitored Yaren’s chicks, tagging them for scientific research to track future migrations.
What began as a charming local curiosity has grown into an internationally followed tradition, inspiring documentaries, live nest cams, and yearly festivities.
For Adem Yilmaz, waiting for Yaren’s arrival is more than a matter of habit, it is an emotional marker of the changing seasons and a personal reunion he cherishes. Each year, he watches the skies with hope, scanning the horizon until he sees the familiar silhouette descend.
When Yaren finally alights whether on the boat, the roof of his home, or beside her nest, Adem smiles, happy to see his friend again.
Wildlife photographer Alper Tuydes documented this reunion once more. For villagers and nature enthusiasts, these iconic photos have become a beloved tradition, showing how human and animal friendships can create timeless moments.
Eskikaraagac isn’t just a regular village, it’s Türkiye’s only official representative in the European Stork Villages Network, a conservation initiative that highlights rural communities committed to protecting white storks and their habitats. The village lies on a vital stretch of the European‑African migratory route, where tens of thousands of storks pass through each year as they journey between continents.
Locals help maintain more than 100 stork nests, often naming them after village families, and host an annual International Stork Festival that celebrates both the birds and the community’s conservation efforts.
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