The beauty of the Gray Spotted Plover in Baoshan Qinghua Sea: a global traveler who can fly 3,000 kilometers in one breath

vertebrate. black-bellied plover

Vertebrates, ornithischia, Plovers, Plovers. It is widely distributed around the world and is found in all provinces of China. It breeds in the humid tundra of the high Arctic latitudes, migrates through much of eastern China, overwinters along the coast south of Jiangsu, and passes inland during the migration season. Photo taken in Qinghuahai National Wetland Park, Baoshan, Yunnan.

The grey-spotted plover belongs to the group of plovers. The Plover is a typical example of migratory birds around the world. Every year, when the migration season comes, many of the plovers migrating along the East Asian-Australasian International Migratory Bird Migration Route will stop on the eastern coast of China to replenish food. The eastern coast is a transit point for the energy supply of the plover migration, which is of great significance for the protection of international migratory birds. The grey-spotted plover is protected by the Agreements of the Governments of China and Japan and China and Australia for the Protection of Migratory Birds and their Habitats (Note: These two agreements are intended to reduce harm to the main areas visited by migratory birds between the two countries, and the signatory countries must prohibit the capture of migratory birds and their eggs).

In Baoshan, if you are lucky, you can see the gray-spotted plover during the migration season. As the bird is named, the non-breeding grey-spotted plover has a grey-brown upperparts with dense white spots, and a white underparts with an elegant color scheme. During the breeding season, the grey-spotted plover has a black face and abdomen. How to quickly recognize this friend, the easiest recognition feature is that they can see the obvious black armpits when they fly. It is a large man of the order Plover, with a stout body, a slightly hunchback, and a less upright posture than similar golden-spotted plovers.

It mainly inhabits the mudflats along the beach, estuaries, and intertidal zones, and also occurs in inland wetlands during the migration season. When they are foraging, they will stay still for a while and then run out to catch their prey. They mainly eat insects when breeding, and mainly eat mollusks, sand silkworms, shrimp and crabs when they overwinter. Their beaks are thick and strong, strong enough to insert their beaks into the dirt and then pull out the sandworms inside. In addition, they have good eyesight and can forage in the moonlight at night.

The grey-spotted plover is one of the fastest and most powerful seabirds, and can easily fly in strong winds, which facilitates its long-distance migration. Studies have shown that they can fly 3,000 kilometers continuously (about the distance from Baoshan to Beijing). Imagine how much physical exertion it would take. Although the grey-spotted plover has a narrow breeding range, it overwinters widely, migrating mainly along the coast and sometimes envying the fact that they can travel around the world.

Migratory bird migration is a difficult process, and it is hoped that all migratory birds can reach their homes safely.

(Source: Baoshan Qinghuahai National Wetland Park)