Beijing, 5 Jun (Xinhua) -- Topic: Migratory birds move and dance their destiny and share a common destiny -- China's ecological civilization practice observation
Xinhua News Agency reporters Luo Qi, Wei Mengjia, and Cheng Yunjie
The setting sun shines in the west, the Five Dragons Pavilion of Beihai Park, hundreds of birds circling.
"Very excited, old friend is back." One day in early April, Beijing citizen Zhang Liting quickly recorded the location and number of these birds and shared the news with volunteer friends in the WeChat group.
Every spring, Beijing swifts wintering from southern Africa make an epic flight across the Red Sea across Inner Mongolia to Beijing, their important habitat and breeding ground.
Zhang Liting is the team leader of the Beihai Park observation point of the Beijing Swift Scientific Survey Project. She and her volunteer partners make a special trip to Beihai Park at least once a week to take photos of the swift population here, which not only provides basic monitoring data for the survey of migratory birds, but also contributes to the protection of migratory birds.
Every year, billions of migratory birds migrate intercontinentally. Four of the world's nine migratory bird migration routes pass through China. On the important migration routes related to the survival and reproduction of global migratory bird populations, more and more Chinese love birds and protect birds with the wisdom of fate and common heart, ecological innovation, and the modern vision of harmonious coexistence between man and nature is becoming a tangible reality.
Care – Building a "migratory bird-friendly" city
Beijing swift, that is, the common swift Beijing subspecies. In 1870, a British scientist first discovered a specimen of a swift in Beijing and named the bird, which resembled a sickle with narrow wings, "Beijing swift."
In the eyes of many Beijing residents like Zhang Liting, Beijing Swift is Beijing's "image ambassador". It is the only bird named after "Beijing", and the Beijing swift was the prototype of the mascot of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, "Nini".
In addition to the Beijing swift, every spring, a large number of migratory birds such as grey cranes, black storks, and silver gulls migrate from the south through Beijing to the north.
During the investigation and interview, the reporter found that there are many bird-friendly buildings in Beijing. The Guanting Reservoir National Wetland Park Museum, located northwest of Beijing, is a typical example. The gaps between the skins of the building allow birds to nest, and its glass curtain wall is deliberately designed with a more visual sensitive grid-like design to effectively prevent bird strikes.
A flock of gray cranes flying in the Guanting Reservoir National Wetland Park in Huailai County. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Yang Shiyao
In addition, Beijing is working to improve the quality of mountain forests, restore wetland ecosystems, and provide essential habitat, food and water for birds. Since 2017, Beijing has built nearly 60 urban forests with "near-nature" characteristics, artificial shrubs and ecological islands.
Volunteers from the Beijing Swift Science Survey Project have found that more and more swifts are building "new homes" between overpasses and skyscrapers. "Swifts are gradually adapting to urban life in Beijing." Zhang Liting said.
In February this year, China officially launched a national bird migration corridor protection campaign. The State Forestry and Grassland Administration issued the National Action Plan for the Protection of Bird Migration Channels (2021-2035), which identified 1,140 places, including the Shisanling Reservoir in Changping District of Beijing and Poyang Lake in Jiangxi Province, as important breeding grounds, wintering grounds and migration stops.
"With the restoration of the ecological environment and the strengthening of people's awareness of ecological protection, it is hoped that in the future city, people and birds can become the best 'neighbors' and can live more harmoniously under the same sky." Jia Yifei, a young researcher at the East Asia-Australasian Migratory Bird Migration Research Center at Beijing Forestry University, said.
Guardianship – bringing migratory bird homes back to life
Bird migration is a long and dangerous process, often thousands of kilometers long. Every year from October to April, the globally endangered black-faced spoonbill, along with tens of thousands of migratory birds, flock to Fujian's Funing Bay and Luoyuan Bay to winter along China's southeast coast.
"Black-faced spoonbills used to be hard to see, but now they appear every year, and the number is basically stable in the hundreds." Zheng Zhiwu, a veteran birdwatcher in Fujian, said that the wetland environment has improved year by year, and rare birds have become "frequent visitors".
The reporter saw in Luoyuan Bay that tens of thousands of acres of lush mangroves formed green waves under the sea breeze, separating the beach inhabited by birds from the activity area of local residents, greatly reducing the impact of human activities on migratory birds.
Curly-feathered pelicans swim in the waters of Luoyuan Bay in Luoyuan County. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Mei Yongcun
Yu Sun Li, a resident near Luoyuan Bay, told reporters that local villagers have relied on the sea for generations, and aquaculture is the main industry. Improper farming practices have had an impact on local waterbird habitats, and the ecological balance has been disrupted.
In order to revitalize the wetland, the local marine ecological protection and restoration project has been implemented, and a large number of breeding ponds have been transformed into high-tide waterbird habitats. Many bird-watching boardwalks have also been built in nearby fishing villages, and ecological bird-watching tourism has become a "new business card" for local development.
Yu Sun Li opened a hotel near Luoyuan Bay Mangrove Wetland Park. "In recent years, the ecology of Luoyuan Bay has improved, which has not only made it a paradise for migratory birds and birdfriends, but also brought tangible benefits to our locals." Yusun Li said.
From excessive demand from nature to careful care of nature, the development of Luoyuan Bay is a microcosm of China's comprehensive promotion of wetland protection and restoration.
Since joining the Convention on Wetlands in 1992, China has successively passed the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Wetlands and a number of local regulations on wetland protection, building a legal barrier for wetland protection.
At present, China has 82 wetlands of international importance, ranking fourth in the world. Thirteen cities have won the title of international wetland cities, and more than 600 wetland nature reserves and more than 900 national wetland parks have been established, and wetlands account for more than 50% of all kinds of nature reserves.
"Year after year, migratory birds return. The living environment of birds has improved, and there are more people who protect birds and love birds. This is the change and the power brought about by social progress. Zheng Zhiwu said.
Cooperation - a common destiny that transcends time and space
The spoon-billed sandpiper is one of the rarest waterbirds in the East Asian-Australasian bird migration lane, the world's busiest migratory bird lifeline. During the migration, the spoon-billed sandpiper will stop in the Dongtai Tiaozi Mud Wetland in Yancheng, Jiangsu Province, and Beijia Tujiao, Zhanjiang, Guangdong, to forage for supplies and moulting.
The world's rarest bird, the spoon-billed sandpiper, feeds in the wetlands of Danzhou Bay, Hainan. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Pu Xiaoxu
"The migratory characteristics of migratory birds determine that their conservation results are closely related to every link in the passage path. The East Asian-Australasian bird migration corridor involves more than 20 countries and regions, and strengthening international cooperation is a must. Guan Lei, project manager of Ren Birdfei of the Beijing Entrepreneur Environmental Protection Foundation, said.
The reporter learned that at present, the protection of migratory bird migration channels still faces challenges such as habitat fragmentation, insufficient capital investment, and regional imbalance.
"Only by using global forces to protect the habitat of migratory birds and promote the construction of a community of life can we provide more effective protection for migratory bird migration." Jia Yifei said.
At present, China has signed bilateral agreements on the protection of migratory birds with Japan, South Korea, Australia, Russia, New Zealand and other countries, is carrying out international cooperation on the East Asia-Australasia Waterbird Partnership and other related content, and actively participates in the "Belt and Road" migratory bird protection work.
Jia Yifei introduced that in the project to save the spoon-billed sandpiper, the Chinese scientific research team actively participated in the investigation and protection of breeding grounds and wintering grounds in countries along the migration route such as Russia and Myanmar, organized synchronous investigation and monitoring, carried out breeding site management education and training and expert technical services, and achieved good results.
In 2019, the Yellow (Bohai) Sea Migratory Bird Habitat Heritage Nomination (Phase I) of China was officially inscribed on the World Heritage List, becoming one of only two intertidal wetland heritage sites in the world.
Guan Lei said: "This achievement will not only help promote the global protection of the East Asian-Australian bird migration route, but also inject strong impetus into the construction of a community of life on earth."
Another gratifying thing for the guardians of migratory birds is that the younger generation continues to join the team of bird lovers. In Beijing, Zhang Liting has one more partner — her 13-year-old daughter — during her weekly swift surveys.
"I believe that the figure of the Beijing swift will also become a beautiful memory of the sky for the next generation." Zhang Liting said.
Source: Xinhuanet