Using Joomla!, 2nd Edition

Colophon

The animal on the cover of Using Joomla is a white stork (Ciconia ciconia). According to legends that originated in northern Germany, white storks are a symbol of fertility and prosperity. Found throughout Europe, the Middle East, and west-central Asia, white storks are long-necked wading birds whose bodies are mostly white except for their black flight feathers. Their bills and legs are red. Nothing but size (males are slightly larger than females) distinguishes the sexes from each other.

Monogamous during the breeding season, couples build their nests together, although finding materials is primarily the male’s responsibility. The nests are large and usually made up of twigs, grass, sod, and paper. Pairs will often reuse their nests year after year, adding new material each breeding season. To signify the completion of the next, they will often plant a leafy branch on one side.

Since the Middle Ages, white storks have built their nests on man-made structures like rooftops, chimneys, and telephone poles. Nests can also be found in trees and sometimes even on the ground. Females usually lay between three and five eggs. Both parents are responsible for feeding their young until the babies reach eight or nine weeks of age and leave the nest, after which time the young are known to return to their parents on occasion to beg for food.

The white stork’s diet is quite varied and includes frogs, fish, snakes, lizards, earthworms, crustaceans, and even sometimes the eggs and chicks ...