After a Year Away, They've Returned to Beijing!
On March 15th, globally critically endangered black-headed ducks appeared at the Big Stone River in Red Flag Park, Fangshan District. This bird species has only about 400 individuals worldwide, rarer than giant pandas. It caused a sensation when it first visited Beijing’s Big Stone River and Nanhai Zi area in the spring of 2019.
Black-headed ducks are migratory birds, usually migrating from southern wintering grounds to northern breeding grounds in mid-March, and starting to fly south in mid-October. It used to be one of China’s common migratory birds, but with the destruction of habitats and human hunting, the population has decreased dramatically, and it has been listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species.
When black-headed ducks first appeared in Beijing in 2019, some experts believed it was due to the city’s recent small river channel management and wetland planting of aquatic plants, as well as a series of water environmental protection measures, which gradually expanded the wetland area of rivers and lakes and improved water quality, and aquatic plants flourished, providing a comfortable ‘green home’ for rare migratory birds to rest and forage.
After hearing the news that black-headed ducks had appeared in Beijing again, Beijing Elk Ecological Experiment Center researcher Guo Geng rushed to the Big Stone River on March 15th, and luckily, two black-headed ducks ‘flew’ into his lens. They would dive into the water to catch small fish, and sometimes they would stir up waves to groom their feathers. As a ( -), Guo Geng speculated that the black-headed ducks were passing through Beijing on their way north. ‘This bird species has extremely high environmental requirements and likes natural wetlands. Beijing’s gradually improved natural environment is an ideal ‘gas station’ for them.’
In one morning, besides the black-headed ducks, other birds such as the bone-crowned pheasant, the crested grebe, the Far Eastern Mountain Finch, and the Dongzhou Sparrow also entered Guo Geng’s lens. It is reported that since 2017, Fangshan has attracted hundreds of bird species, including swans, egrets, black storks, Dongzhou Sparrow, and mountain pigeons.
Source: Beijing Daily Client | Reporter Chen Qiang, Correspondent Guo Geng
Photography Guo Geng
Process editing: TF020
