The pair of storks in their nest on the golf course.

Neum'nster (Germany) May 29: A pair of broody storks which tried to hatch golf balls pilfered from a German golf course have become parents after being given an abandoned egg to tend.

The baby stork, nicknamed Steven, is under guard at Golf Park Krogaspe, near Neum'nster in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein. The would-be parents had built their nest on the course, not high off the ground as is customary with storks. Because the chick is vulnerable to predators such as stoats or foxes, the nest will be raised in coming days.

“We need to get this little fellow off the ground as soon as possible, because he is at risk and it would be really horrible if Steven got nabbed by a stoat,” said Chris Parker, 53, the British owner of the course. “We are building a special contraption, a bit like wooden scaffolding. In a couple of days, when the experts tell me Steven’s old enough, we’re going to shift the entire nest on to the top where he can be safe.”

Storks are protective of their young, but there is a small risk that the parents might reject Steven once the nest is moved. However, Georg Fiedler, a stork expert with the German Nature Preservation Association, believes that the gamble is worth taking.