500-550 Oriental White Storks in Beidagang, Tianjin (1 Viewer)

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lrobbizl

Member

• Nov 9, 2009

• #1

Last Sunday morning (8th, Nov.), one of my friend and I caught sight of 500-550 Oriental White Storks Ciconia boyciana at Beidagang, a wetland in Tianjin, near the Bohai coast line. That means we have saw more than one to sixth of this endangered species' global population at one site on one morning !

Although this site just a stopover of Oriental Stork's southward wintering migration, I'm still very very exicting and delightful to be the eyewitness of this large flock beautiful big birds, hehehe.

I'm write this mail for sharing my cheers with you guys ! o

 

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Hanno

Ho Ho Ho

• Nov 9, 2009

• #2

Excellent, that is amazing! I ever only saw one near Beijing and was happy

 

rockfowl

Mark Andrews

• Nov 10, 2009

• #3

Congratulations Irobizl!

A great find and count and a record you should submit to the China Bird Report team. Keep looking, there should be more on the way, Beidaihe has had no records it seems so far this Autumn, so these have crept by. This sighting and the area may prove to be important for the conservation of this highly threatened species.

Mark

 

mcaribou

Migration coming

• Nov 11, 2009

• #4

Pity that this area may also face the stress of reclaimation/construction,as happening in other areas around Bohai Bay,Tianjin.

 

L

lrobbizl

Member

• Nov 11, 2009

• #5

"Pity that this area may also face the stress of reclaimation/construction,as happening in other areas around Bohai Bay,Tianjin."

to Mcaribou, and poaching... just last Sunday afternoon when we finished our suevey back to BJ, some local friend told us, some bad guy shot birds in that wetland...

 

xiaoming

Well-known member

• Nov 11, 2009

• #6

I'm very glad to know that White Srorks also stoped at Tianjin, but very sad to hear the gun.
There are too many bird catcher in Tianjin. It's said that a Sparrowhawk only sold 10 Yuan(1.5 USD) in bird market and some restaurants also sold wild birds around Beidagang.

 

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Gretchen

Well-known member

• Nov 13, 2009

• #7

I wonder why someone would buy a Sparrowhawk... not for eating, right? But it's not a songbird. Do you think it is just a matter of buying it on a whim as a new pet, or something to show off, which the buyer will get tired of soon? Surely costing only 10 yuan it's not really a status symbol!

 

china guy

A taff living in Sichuan

• Nov 13, 2009

• #8

BOP's are used as traditional medicine - because of their long migration they are supposed to be a tonic for travel fatigue - and the bigger they are - well I suppose theres a myth that they do something for the vigour of a "man" - that's hopefully going to "perform" during various business trips and official meetings at the KTV.

The idiotic reasons why these birds are killed and consumed - makes the whole business far far sadder - and in this respect the North of China seems to be quite horrible.

 

Last edited: Nov 13, 2009

G

Gretchen

Well-known member

• Nov 13, 2009

• #9

china guy said:

BOP's are used as traditional medicine ....

Click to expand...

Right, I think of that with other animals, but forget that birds are seen that way too.

Still, I'm rather astonished at that market price - it seems so low to me! (you could hardly buy a chicken for that price I would think) That seems to indicate that there are either a lot being sold, or that sellers are desperate to get rid of something that isn't highly valued. Of course the mark up will me significant later on I'm sure, but I'm surprised that the "raw material" would be so cheap.

PS - sorry to go off topic on storks!

 

Last edited: Nov 13, 2009

Hanno

Ho Ho Ho

• Nov 13, 2009

• #10

Sparrowhawks are common, thus the low prize. In Vietnam a lot of raptors are also trapped so the owner can display them on a perch outside his house/business/ Crested Serpent-eagles often end up that way:-(