Lotus flowers bloom on Shaobo Lake, and the "water phoenix" pheasant comes here to make a home.
The weather is about to pass, and for bird watchers and bird shooters, the good season for shooting summer migratory birds has also arrived. Recently, in the waters of Shaobo Lake, bird friends of the Wildlife and Birds Branch of yangzhou photographers association (hereinafter referred to as "bird branches") found a "bird paradise". There are lotus flowers, mustards, wild diamonds, and a variety of birds, such as the "water phoenix" pheasant, the rare Chinese bird Aurora jay, commonly known as the "osprey", the whiskered floating gull, which is one square kilometer large.
There is a "bird paradise" on Shaobo Lake
There is a place called "Three Willows" in Hanjiang District, next to the three willows is Shaobo Lake, where bird friends call "bird paradise".
"In the past summer, we used to go to Gaoyou Lake to watch birds and shoot birds, but this year we stumbled upon this place." Wan Changnian, head of the Bird Branch, said that the place has a beautiful environment, especially in this season.
How beautiful is the environment here? On the lake, lotus flowers are blooming one after another, the emerald green leaves of mustard (commonly known as chicken head rice) float on the surface of the lake, and wild diamond horns are also swaying in the water.
The abundance of aquatic plants attracts many birds. Wan Changnian said that this "bird paradise" has thousands of whiskered gulls and more than 10 pheasants.
"You can watch birds, shoot birds, and enjoy lotus." Wan Changnian said that such a place is a favorite of photography enthusiasts. In the film of bird friends, beautiful lotus flowers appear together with high-value birds.
How big is this "bird paradise"? Wan Changnian said that this place is 1 square kilometer and is a good place for sightseeing and tourism in the summer.
Thousands of floating gulls nest on the lake
Wan Changnian said that there are thousands of floating gulls in this water. In addition to the beautiful environment of Shaobo Lake, fish and shrimp resources are also very rich, which is the main reason why the bearded floating gulls "love" here.
The whiskered gull is a typical nesting bird. This "bird paradise" is rich in aquatic plants, which is suitable for them to nest on the surface of the water. In particular, the leaves are large and prickly, and many birds like to nest on the leaves, because the spikes on the leaves can help the chicks avoid some predators.
In addition to photographing the flying posture of the whiskered gulls, bird lovers can also track and photograph their hatching process. Usually, the sight of the floating gulls nesting on the surface of the water in flocks is shocking, and when the birds come out of their shells, the birds will take turns to breed their chicks, and the bird friends can take pictures of the loving brooding scenes.
The "Water Phoenix" has begun to hatch
In 2017, Bird Friends successfully filmed the incubation process of the "Water Phoenix" pheasant in Gaoyou Lake, and photos and videos were also on CCTV. Wan Changnian said that this "bird paradise" on Shaobo Lake also has a small flock of pheasants, with more than 10 in number. At present, pheasants have laid eggs and begun to hatch.
As of this year, pheasants have been found in many places in Yangzhou, such as Jiulong Lake, Jiangdu Huayu Pond, Gongdao River and other places. Like the floating gulls, the pheasant is a summer migratory bird in Yangzhou, and when the chicks grow up in autumn, they will leave Yangzhou and fly to the south for wintering.
In addition to the floating gulls and pheasants, this "bird paradise" also includes Aurora birds, grass herons, great egrets and so on. Especially the Aurora Crow, in the past, bird friends used to shoot in the reeds of Gaoyou Lake.
In order to facilitate bird watching and bird shooting, bird lovers have built a platform on the lake. Wan Changnian said that in order not to affect the breeding of birds, they put the platform far away from the birds, and the bird shooting platform was also camouflaged with a special camouflage bird camouflage net. "Birds are shot with telephoto lenses, and even if you don't get close, you can shoot clearly."
At present, many bird friends have heard the news and rushed to come, "Such a beautiful place, many people have heard about it, and they rushed over." Intern Shen Wei reporter Xiang Jiafu (courtesy of Wan Changnian photo)
【Link】These summer migratory birds are more common in Yangzhou
At present, Yangzhou has recorded more than 270 species of birds, of which there are more than 50 species of summer migratory birds. The more common summer migratory birds are water pheasant, yellow reed flounder, chestnut reed flounder, night heron, green heron, pond heron, oxback heron, egret, gray-headed wheat chicken, common swallow, whiskered floating gull, noisy crane, eagle crane, small cuckoo, four-voice cuckoo, middle cuckoo, large cuckoo, small gray mountain pepper bird, tiger striped berau, red-tailed burrow, black pillow yellow oriole, black curlytail, house swallow, golden-waisted swallow, Far Eastern tree warbler, oriental reed warbler, black-browed reed warbler, white-browed chick, mountain wagtail and so on.