Golden October, the sky is blue and the clouds are white. The Mengzhou section of the Yellow River Wetland National Nature Reserve welcomed a group of "mysterious" guests. They have snow-white feathers, slender and graceful figures, and long black legs. The most prominent feature is the flat, wide and long mouth that resembles a pipa. These "mysterious" guests are the rare national second-level key protected wild bird - white spoonbill.
The Mengzhou section of the Yellow River Wetland has become a paradise for birds to live in peace—a glimpse of ordinary cormorants. Photo by Wang Jiaming. During the simultaneous monitoring and investigation of water birds in Henan Province in autumn, staff used telescopes and high-power cameras to identify and observe birds on the sandwich beach in Mengzhou, Jiaozuo. The recorder on the side carefully recorded the types, numbers, activity status and other information of birds according to the description of the observer. This water bird survey has monitored more than 20 species of birds, including white spoonbills, red-backed duck , ordinary cormorants, spot-billed duck , among which the white spoonbill population is more than 100. More than 520 new birds such as black kite , white-tailed harrier , and osprey national second-class protected animals were found.
The good ecology of the Mengzhou section of the Yellow River Wetland attracts a large number of three-protected animals, black-winged stilts, overwintering here. Photo by Wang Jiaming. Is the ecological environment good? Birds can use their wings to "vote"? This is the most intuitive feeling of experts, scholars and photographers who have followed birds all year round. "This is definitely a good thing! This is the best evidence for the continuous improvement of the ecological environment in Mengzhou section of the Yellow River Beach area." Niu Junying, the top ten science and technology volunteers in Henan Province, bird research expert, and associate professor of of Jiaozuo Teachers College. With the efforts of Mengzhou City to vigorously rectify the ecological governance and restoration of the Yellow River Wetland Reserve, the ecological environment of Yellow River Beach Area has been significantly improved, human activities interfere with less and less, migratory birds have more food, and living habitats are getting bigger and bigger. The living conditions of carnivorous birds are guaranteed, so naturally the more birds, and the more hiccups are more.
National Class II protected animal white spoonbill dances in the Mengzhou section of the Yellow River Wetland. Photo by Wang Jiaming
In recent years, Mengzhou City has attached great importance to the protection of wild animals in the Yellow River basin, and has taken a series of measures to continuously improve the water quality of wetlands and make the wild animals and plants here increasingly rich. In order to strengthen bird protection this winter and next spring, and reduce the difficulty of migratory birds for foraging in severe weather such as rain and snow, according to the suggestions of bird experts and combined with the actual situation of the reserve, the relevant departments of the city selected three areas with a total area of about 300 mu to sow wheat, soybeans, corn and other crops, established bird foraging sites, and provide food sources for rare and endangered wild animals such as black storks and great bustards. At the same time, the city has also combined with the public security department to increase the crackdown on illegal poaching of wild animals in the Yellow River Wetland Reserve to ensure the safe wintering of migratory birds.
Source: Economic Daily News Client
