2 New Sheqalim Stork and Fir Tree

This piece belongs to Israel's long-running wildlife series, which the Bank of Israel used through the 1990s to highlight species protected under the country's Wildlife Protection Law — legislation that had gained urgency as rapid urban expansion along the coastal plain was destroying migratory bird habitat at a measurable rate. The white stork passes through Israel in extraordinary numbers each spring and autumn, with the Jordan Valley serving as one of the most concentrated raptor and stork migration corridors on earth.