Chinanews.com, Harbin, December 7th, title: "The Hometown of the Oriental White Stork in China": The international migration area of ​​the Oriental White Stork is expanding in the past 8 years of satellite tracking

  Chinanews reporter Wang Nina

  "We have carried out satellite tracking of Oriental white storks for 8 years. We have equipped 101 Oriental white storks with satellite trackers, and have basically mastered their international migration routes and activity areas. We have also discovered for the first time that Oriental white storks have traveled to South Korea, North Korea and other places. Overwintering." said Zhu Baoguang, chief of the scientific research and education section of the Heilongjiang Honghe National Nature Reserve Administration.

In 2015, the Honghe Reserve began satellite tracking of the oriental white stork.

Provided by Heilongjiang Honghe National Nature Reserve Administration

  The oriental white stork is a first-class protected bird in China and an internationally endangered species. In the early 1990s, there were only more than 3,000 in the world.

At present, the two main breeding areas of the Oriental White Stork in the world are the Sanjiang Plain in the Heilongjiang River Basin of China and the Far East of Russia.

Among them, China's Heilongjiang Honghe National Nature Reserve (hereinafter referred to as "Honghe Reserve") is an internationally important wetland. Habitat.

  According to Li Xiaomin, a professor at the College of Wildlife and Nature Reserves of Northeast Forestry University, the oriental white stork is huge, about one meter high, has high requirements for the living environment, and is very sensitive to environmental changes. It is regarded as the flagship species of wetlands. Population recovery of a population is important.

  Since 2015, the Honghe Reserve has started satellite tracking of the oriental white stork, collecting data and information on the breeding, foraging and international migration routes of the oriental white stork.

  "We wear tracking equipment on some baby birds born in the reserve, and monitor their activities through satellites," Zhu Baoguang said.

  Through these 8 years of satellite tracking, the Honghe Reserve has basically mastered the basic activities of the young birds bred in this area after leaving the nest, as well as their migration cluster time, location, and international migration routes and processes. The point of pause in the middle, etc.

Groups of oriental white storks cluster in autumn.

Provided by Heilongjiang Honghe National Nature Reserve Administration

  This year, the Honghe Nature Reserve provided satellite trackers to 28 young oriental white storks. One bird flew over the Yalu River on October 5 and stayed in North Korea for three days. This is the first time that the oriental white stork has been tracked. Migration routes, showing that its migration area expanded again.

Satellite tracking also shows that some young birds will fly to Heilongjiang, Russian Jewish Autonomous Region across the Ussuri River, Khabarovsk Krai, Amur Region and Primorsky Krai after leaving the nest. The clusters move southward along the main rivers and lakes, and mainly survive the winter to Poyang Lake in Jiangxi.

  At present, the global population of oriental white storks is more than 8,500, which has tripled compared to 20 years. Through satellite tracking, the population recovery of oriental white storks can be better protected, and the population of oriental white storks in China and the Russian Far East Conservation has important scientific significance.

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