From bird photographer to bird guardian: septuagenarians witness the ecological changes of the largest lagoon in North China-China.com video

Located in Beidaihe New District, Qinhuangdao City, Hebei Province, Qilihai is a semi-enclosed lagoon on the inner side of the southern dune belt and the largest lagoon in North China. Fei Mingjian, 70, is the captain of the Beidaihe New Area Flying Escort Team of the China Wildlife Conservation Association, and he was born in Houli Village, near Qilihai, where he remembers the abundance of grass and beautiful environment of Qilihai, where various birds inhabit and breed. He often uses his camera to photograph the wild birds around him.

【During the same period】Fei Mingjian, captain of the Beidaihe New Area Flight Protection Team of the China Wildlife Conservation Association

(Before the ecology of Qilihai was not destroyed) I took a camera (shooting birds) in Qilihai, and then I met photographers (shooting here), (saw them) bird shooting facilities, large lenses and long heads, as soon as I looked at (photos) clearly, I felt very envious, and I had the idea that I had to buy lenses, buy machines, and follow the photographers to learn to shoot good birds.

According to Fei Mingjian, in the 80s of last century, many people valued the geographical advantages of the Qilihai Sea and began to bulldoze the soil into ponds in the lagoon and artificially cultivate fish and shrimp and sea cucumbers. The surface area of the lagoon is getting smaller and smaller, the wetland ecology is being destroyed, and wild birds are beginning to decline.

【During the same period】Fei Mingjian, captain of the Beidaihe New Area Flight Protection Team of the China Wildlife Conservation Association

After (the 80s of the last century) (Seven Mile Sea) developed shrimp pond to raise shrimp, (shrimp farmers) pushed all this beach into a shrimp pond, the water was placed in the shrimp pond, the area of the Seven Mile Sea was reduced, and after shrinking, the birds hatched on the beach and it could not stay.

Fei Mingjian said that because there were many fishing nets around farmed fish and shrimp at that time, some birds often flew into the net by mistake and were trapped when preying, and he and local villagers have been patrolling near Qilihai to rescue these trapped wild birds. In 2021, he was elected as the captain of the Beidaihe New Area Flying Escort Team of the China Wildlife Conservation Association, and over the years, hundreds of wild birds have been rescued by them.

【During the same period】Fei Mingjian, captain of the Beidaihe New Area Flight Protection Team of the China Wildlife Conservation Association

When we were patrolling, there was a (wild) duck drilled into a net over there. It was very cold at that time, (it was) winter. I saw the (wild) ducks in the (fishing net) getting in, and (tossing) crackled in this whole thing. Hurry up and put on your fork (pants), (that is) you can't get into the water and run out of clothes. This time I went in and I caught it out (and put it). These are the birds we encounter during our patrol, and if all kinds of birds are injured, we immediately protect (rescue) them.

It is understood that since 2016, Qinhuangdao City has promoted the "Blue Bay" rectification action, carrying out ecological restoration such as dredging and dredging, recuperation and wetness. The Qilihai Lagoon Wetland Ecological Restoration Project is one of them. After the renovation, the lagoon surface area has been expanded, increasing the tide volume of the Seven Mile Sea, and also providing a space for birds to rest and feed. Today, Fei Mingjian patrols around the Seven Mile Sea every day. During this period, he and the members of the escort team took many photos of rare birds in the Qilihai, which have become a good witness of the gradual recovery of the local ecology.

【During the same period】Fei Mingjian, captain of the Beidaihe New Area Flight Protection Team of the China Wildlife Conservation Association

After the recovery of this seven-mile sea (ecology), the area is larger, and the (birds) that have not been here before are now also here, you like that white spoonbill, red-crowned crane, gray crane all kinds of precious birds have come here, we have all photographed, my mood is more happy than before, from the spirit of protecting birds, is more and more confident to protect it, not let others interfere with it or hit it, can not destroy all (and) the environment of birds in the wetland.

Reporting by Chen Shiyu, Li Yang, Zhu Wenbin, and Qinhuangdao

Responsible Editor: [Liu Pai]