Wang Yongduan, chief reporter of Peninsula All Media
Seagulls on the front line began to return to their native Siberia, and tens of thousands of large sandpipers appeared in the waters of Jiaozhou Bay, followed by regurgitated sandpipers, black-winged sandpipers, peregrine falcons, pine eagles, goshawks and swallow falcons... The diverse geomorphological environment not only creates Qingdao's rich biodiversity and magnificent natural landscape, but also nurtures countless brilliant beings. At present, at the peak of the transit of migratory birds, Qingdao is an important passage for bird migration in Northeast Asia, with millions of migratory birds migrating every year.
Over the years, in order to make the home for birds to survive, Qingdao has not only launched the bird love and bird protection action, but also carried out ecological restoration, a series of actions have enabled more than 400 species of wild birds to live here or raise chicks. Qingdao's bird love bird protection case was selected as the "Guardian of Colorful Homeland" in the 15th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity in 2021. Behind a series of initiatives, an ecological business card of harmonious coexistence between man and nature is depicted.
Anti-billed sandpipers migrate to Qingdao in droves
After completing the wintering, 100,000 seagulls returned to the north
When the army of seagulls began to return to their hometown of Siberia, the retired Zhang Wen walked on the front line of the Qianhai sea with a camera, following the last seagull figure in the spring with the camera.
"Recently, I have been walking around Qingdao Bay and found that there are significantly fewer seagulls here." Zhang Wen told reporters that starting in October every year, seagulls fly from distant Siberia to Qingdao for wintering, stay until mid-to-late April of the following year, and then return to Siberia in groups to roost and breed offspring.
In fact, as many as 100,000 seagulls fly from Siberia to Qingdao for the winter every year, and these seagulls fly back to Siberia in the spring and then to Qingdao in late October. "Before returning, seagulls will gather together and spin low in the sea and air." Zhang Wen said, "This is a typical precursor to the return to the north, they are assembling at low altitudes and mobilizing in their words and ways." ”
Just as seagulls are mobilizing en masse and flying back to Siberia in batches, other migratory birds that have overwintered here are either on their way to other places or are migrating in large quantities with their appetites flapping their wings.
Xu Liqiang who saved wild birds
Xu Liqiang, head of the Qingdao Volunteer Alliance of the China Wildlife Conservation Association, said that in addition to seagulls, there are more than 40 species of birds such as hong geese, bean geese, mandarin ducks, green-headed ducks, red-necked ducks, and Rowan ducks.
Spending the summer here, the great sandpiper returned
Just as seagulls, geese, mandarin ducks, mallard ducks and other birds moved from Qingdao to other places, tens of thousands of large sandpipers appeared in the waters near Jiaozhou Bay, and in addition to gathering on the beach, there were also a large number at the mouth of the Baisha River and the Ink River. The reporter saw that some of the sandpipers were foraging on the beach or at the mouth of the sea, and some were flying in the sea space.
Xu Liqiang introduced that the sandpiper mainly spends winter in Taiwan, Fujian and Hong Kong on the mainland, and when spring comes, they will migrate collectively to other places, and Qingdao will become their place of stay or summer.
In Xu Liqiang's view, the stay of the big sandpiper in Qingdao is based on the attraction of the rich fishery resources of the beach. "At this time of year, tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of large sandpipers appear in the waters of Jiaozhou Bay." Xu Liqiang said that after a long migration, these big sandpipers will stay in Qingdao for physical replenishment, and after the replenishment, some of them will continue to go north, and some will stay here for summer.
Xu Liqiang who saved wild birds
The Great Sandpiper is not the only bird to spend the summer in Qingdao, such as the anti-billed sandpiper, the black-winged long-legged sandpiper, the crane sandpiper, and the gray-spotted sandpiper have also landed in Qingdao. In addition, there are birds of prey peregrine falcons, pine sparrowhawks, red-bellied eagles, gray-faced wild eagles, sparrowhawks, goshawks and swallow falcons, these birds of prey that fly back to Qingdao from other places, will find a suitable place for them to survive in the dense forests, grass beaches, cliffs, and breed their next generation in the hot summer.
More than 400 species, wild birds gathered
The diverse geomorphological environment not only creates Qingdao's rich biodiversity and magnificent natural landscape, but also nurtures countless brilliant beings. Qingdao is an important passage for bird migration in Northeast Asia, with millions of migratory birds migrating every year, and it is currently at the peak of migratory bird transit. Statistics from relevant departments show that there are currently more than 400 species of wild birds in Qingdao.
Some birds migrate to Qingdao
Xu Liqiang introduced that as of now, the birds found to spend summer or transit in Qingdao mainly include insectivorous birds such as the Plover family, the Grebe family, and the warbler family, such as the spotted plover, the gray-backed plover, the yellow-browed willow warbler, the yellow-waisted willow warbler, the far northern willow warbler, and the bunting. There are also omnivorous birds, such as the common Suzaku, black-tailed wax-billed finch, yellow-browed bunting, chestnut bunting, gray-headed bunting, small bunting, gray starling and so on. Migrating birds of prey mainly include pine sparrowhawks, red-bellied eagles, gray-faced wild eagles, sparrowhawks, goshawks, swallow falcons, peregrine falcons and so on. Common wetland waterbirds include black-winged sandpiper, regurgitated sandpiper, grey-spotted sandpiper, ring-necked sandpiper, golden-eyed sandpiper, sharp-tailed sandpiper, three-toed sandpiper, large sandpiper, middle-aged sandpiper, large shore sandpiper, long-toed sandpiper, black-tailed sandpiper and so on. Common birds in the forest are the red-tailed burrow, the grey mountain pepperbird, the hill sandpiper, the great cuckoo, the four-voiced cuckoo, the three-fold bird, the common nightingale and so on.
Behind the scenes
Ecological protection preserves migratory birds
In addition to the diversified geomorphological environment, it is inseparable from the guidance of relevant departments, the crackdown on lawbreakers by law enforcement departments, and the spontaneous actions of bird lovers and bird protectors.
An artificial bird's nest built by volunteers in the mountains and forests
When many birds land in Qingdao or pass through qingdao in this spring, some fishermen also lay nets or cages in the channel. As everyone knows, while these nets or cages catch some fish, some birds will also be buried here when they eat the small fish and shrimp in the net or cage.
"Almost every year, we find nets or cages in some of the waterways." Xu Liqiang, head of the Qingdao Volunteer Alliance of the China Wildlife Conservation Association, said, "Our volunteer team will take the initiative to dismantle illegal fishing nets or fish cages. ”
In fact, Xu Liqiang not only works with volunteers to dismantle fishing nets and cages, but their footsteps also appear in the mountains and forests for a long time. "There are also a lot of bird nets in the mountains and forests, and we found that they will also be demolished." "We will not only dismantle, but also notify the police, prosecutors and natural resources departments of the illegal situation, which will severely crack down on illegal bird catchers," Xu said. ”
From April 23 to 29 every year, it is the "Bird Love Week" in Shandong Province. Before this year's Bird Love Week, Xu Liqiang took the island city bird love bird volunteers and primary school students to community and village to install more than 60 bird nests for birds. Since 2014, the Qingdao volunteer team has produced nearly 20,000 artificial bird nests and participated in nearly 60,000 volunteers.
Volunteers build artificial bird nests in the mountain forest
The improvement of ecology is the reason why Qingdao has become a bird to stop and stay. For many years, Qingdao has banned the exploitation of mountain forests and mineral deposits, and ecological wetlands have been restored. Xu Liqiang said that the ecological restoration of the estuary of the Baisha River and the Ink River, the improvement of the ecology of jiaozhou bay wetland, Jiangshan wetland and Laixi lake have allowed fish and shellfish to multiply rapidly, and the formation of biological chains has attracted more and more birds to come. The qingdao bird love bird protection case was also selected in 2021 for the 15th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity" "Guarding the Colorful Homeland".
Behind a series of measures in Qingdao, it depicts the ecological business card of harmonious coexistence between man and nature.