Birds have been loved by people since ancient times, as flying animals, not only add infinite vitality to nature, but also an important source of inspiration for human beings in literature, artistic creation and other aspects.
At present, there are more than 9900 kinds of birds recorded in the world, China's territory is vast, the land is vast, providing a variety of habitats for various birds, the existing bird 1300 kinds, is one of the most abundant bird diversity in the world.
Black-faced spoonbills
Many countries in the world have established their own "national bird", the United States is the first country to select the national bird, in order to protect the endangered bald eagle, the United States designated it as the national bird in 1782. In addition to the United States, more than 40 countries have selected the national bird.
American national bird - bald eagle
However, China is one of the countries with the richest bird resources in the world, and for various reasons, it has not yet been designated as a "national bird".
At present, the country that has established its own national bird is basically selected through the selection of non-governmental selection or legislative procedures, and the "national bird" is not only a condensation of a nation's excellent culture, but also a symbol of a country's image and national spirit.
Japan's national bird - green pheasant
The criteria for selecting national birds are not uniform for each country, but most will be judged according to the following criteria:
The country is endemic to rare birds, which is conducive to the protection of rare birds;
It has a close connection with the feelings and lives of its own people and is deeply loved by the Chinese people;
Have important values, such as economic value, ornamental value, cultural connotation or symbolic meaning;
Appearance, of course, is also one of the important criteria.
As early as 1996, the relevant departments carried out the national bird selection activities nationwide, and many provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions in China have established city birds, provincial birds or district birds, but China's "national birds" have not been determined for a long time.
Korean national bird - magpie
It is reasonable to say that China is the country of origin of many birds, and there are countless candidates for national birds, so it should not be difficult to select "national birds". In fact, it is precisely because of the vast territory of our country, the rich variety of birds, and the profound and profound traditional culture that it is difficult to choose the "only one" among many birds.
Brown horse chicken
Moreover, the national bird has a high degree of nationality, culture and mass nature, and the national flag, the national emblem and other such differences, the national bird and the love of the People are closely related, not only need to be fully discussed by experts, but also to listen to the opinions of the people, for a big country like us, it is a bit difficult to choose.
Falcon Hunt
In 2001, at the opening ceremony of the "World Six Games" held in Beijing, all countries used their own "national bird" pattern as the background of the guide board, unfortunately, China has not yet established its own "national bird", it temporarily used the second-level protected animal red-bellied golden pheasant as a "national bird" rescue field.
Red-bellied pheasant
In 2003, the State Forestry Administration and the China Wildlife Conservation Association launched the National Bird Selection Campaign, and after several years of debate, 10 high-profile "National Bird Candidates" were selected.
One of the "candidate national birds" rode to the dust and crushed all sentient beings, and even submitted it to the State Council for review, but it has not yet been determined...
The 10 species of birds included in the national bird selection that year were red-crowned cranes, red-bellied golden pheasants, black-faced spoonbills, falcons, green peacocks, brown horse chickens, crested ibises, acacia birds, white swans, and magpies.
Green peacock
In the voting of 5 million netizens, and after layers of standard screening, red-crowned cranes, red-bellied golden pheasants, crested ibises, etc. have become the most powerful contenders, at the same time, accompanied by some controversy, let's take a look at the things behind the top three national bird candidates.
Crested ibises - success is also rare and rare
Crested ibis, also known as the crested ibis, commonly known as the red crane, is a first-class protected animal in China, with snow-white feathers around it, pink wings and tail, and vermilion on the top of the head and facial skin, and the whole image is both elegant and holy.
Crested ibis
In the world enjoys the reputation of "Pearl of Oriental Birds", and the crested ibis is the only world's critically endangered rare bird that exists in China, in order to save this endangered species, China has made many efforts in recent years.
In the folk, people also regard it as an "auspicious bird", in 2002 the 23rd International Bird Congress was held, the organizing committee also used the crested ibis as the emblem of the conference.
When the national bird was selected that year, the crested ibis's voice was very high, but one point caused controversy. When the "National Bird" was selected in 2004, the entire population of crested ibises was still in a very dangerous situation, with only about 200 in the country, and could be at risk of extinction at any time.
People are worried that if the crested ibis is the "national bird", what if it becomes extinct one day? The crested ibis, which is also rare and rare, was forced to withdraw from the ranks of the candidates of the "national bird".
Red-bellied golden pheasant - agent "national bird"
Red-bellied golden pheasant, commonly known as "golden rooster", although there is "chicken" in the name, but people are veritable birds.
The red-bellied golden pheasant has developed crown feathers and dazzling brilliance, and the color of the whole body feathers includes six colors of red, yellow, green, blue, black and brown, which is a unique bird species in China and belongs to the second-class protected animals.
The red-bellied golden pheasant is really high in appearance and beautiful in shape, like the sacred bird "phoenix" in traditional Chinese culture, and the standing red-bellied golden pheasant reveals a magnificent majesty.
Many people believe that the red-bellied golden pheasant is simply too suitable to be a "national bird", and the color of the feathers is joyful and gorgeous, especially golden yellow and bright red, which are the popular colors of our country, and also echo the color of our national flag.
In addition, the map of our country resembles a rooster pattern, and the red-bellied golden pheasant will also be reminiscent of the great motherland.
In fact, China has not yet determined the national bird, the red-bellied golden pheasant has also been the "agent national bird", its pattern is the emblem of China's bird academia, non-governmental organizations mass organizations, in the traditional culture symbolizes "splendid future, happiness and auspiciousness".
However, there is a point that the red-bellied golden chicken has made people talk about it, the hall "national bird", the name contains "chicken", it sounds a little unreliable?
Although the red-bellied golden pheasant is a bird, it is not as good at flying as other birds, and usually walks on the ground and only goes to the trees at night.
Moreover, the legally farmed red-bellied golden pheasant can be eaten for medicinal purposes, how can the "national bird" be sent to the table? In this way, the red-bellied golden pheasant will also rub shoulders with the "national bird", which is not a veritable national bird.
Red-crowned crane - the only candidate for China's "national bird"
Red-crowned crane, also known as "crane", is China's first-class protected animal, in the vote of 5 million netizens, the red-crowned crane with 64.92% of the vote rate is far ahead, the most expected to become China's "national bird".
Red-crowned crane
Red-crowned crane with a red crown on its head, simple and pure feathers, elegant and dignified posture, docile temperament, life expectancy of up to 50-60 years, in traditional culture, symbolizing auspiciousness, nobility, longevity, deeply loved by people. And the red-crowned crane is a "monogamous" system, loyal to its partner throughout his life.
Whether it is cultural connotation or its own image, it is very much in line with the standards of the national bird. However, when the State Forestry Administration reported the only candidate, China's "national bird", the red-crowned crane, another problem arose.
The red-crowned crane is very much in line with the standards of the national bird in all aspects, but the literal translations of its English name (japanese crane) and Latin literary name (grusjaponensis) are "Japanese cranes" and cannot be changed.
China's "national bird", but the English name contains "Japan", which has aroused the objections of some Chinese people.
Why does the scientific name of the red-crowned crane refer to the name of another country? In fact, when naming the red-crowned crane, there were red-crowned cranes in China, and because it was in the closed period at that time, the scientists who compiled the naming could only find the red-crowned crane in Japan first, so they named it the Japanese crane.
The only candidate for China's "national bird" of the red-crowned crane, due to the literal English translation of the name, missed the title of "national bird".
mahjong
In addition to the above three birds with high voices, sparrows have a high approval rating in a vote initiated by netizens.
What is the "national bird" in everyone's mind? Tell us what you think