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Across China: Chinese villages gain feathered fortune through bird conservation

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E-mail Xinhua, July 06, 2023

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ZHENGZHOU, July 6 (Xinhua) -- At a pond's edge, over 10 cameras focus on a long-tailed bird perched on a tree. As the bird dips into the water and back out again, photographers, who had waited all day for this moment, celebrate their captured shots.

For this spectacle, photographers arrived as early as 2:30 a.m. in Hongtang Village, Luoshan County, in central China's Henan Province. These enthusiasts came from afar, some even traveling from major cities like Beijing and Shanghai, and they perch in what was once a pigsty.

Chen Fujin, a local resident, constructed this makeshift observatory, adjacent to his home by the pond. In the past, Chen's pigsty, coupled with the pollution from pig manure, was a concern for the local community, especially during the summers when flies became rampant.

In response to the community's complaints, Chen stopped pig farming in 2019. The following year, a pair of Asian Paradise-flycatchers built a nest in the trees by the pond, bringing Chen greater returns than pig farming ever did.

Each photography spot costs 100 yuan (about 13.9 U.S. dollars) a day, and the place is always packed during the bird-watching peak season from May to July. The pair of Asian Paradise-flycatchers have been breeding there for four years now.

"This bird's nest has become a 'gold nest' for my family," Chen said.

Hongtang Village is on the edge of the Henan Dongzhai National Nature Reserve. The reserve, spread over an area of 46,800 hectares, is a sanctuary for 334 bird species, including 74 nationally protected ones. Among these are rare species such as the crested ibis, the Reeves's pheasant, and the Asian Paradise-flycatcher.

Before the establishment of the People's Republic of China, the reserve experienced severe deforestation due to war and land reclamation for farming. A state-owned forest farm was established in 1955, initiating ecological restoration. Several generations later, a thriving forest ecosystem has emerged, rich in biodiversity and home to 23 percent of China's bird species. The reserve is hailed as a "bird paradise."

This change caught the eye of Guo Mingpeng. After spending a few years working in a city post-graduation, Guo decided to follow in his father's footsteps and became a professional bird guide in 2015 in the village. His team now leads birdwatching tours, guiding over 20,000 visitors to the area each year.

These birdwatchers not only contribute to bird conservation awareness but also to the local economy, significantly boosting the income of villagers through their patronage of local homestays, eateries, and tour services.

"The public's awareness of bird protection has been enhanced, with few cases of bird hunt or harm reported," Guo said. "Therefore, in recent years, many birds have flown to the village, possibly due to the richer food sources in the village, or the continuous expansion of the population."

Huang Zhixue, an engineer at the crested ibis breeding station in the Dongzhai reserve, echoed the view. "We have received many phone calls from the public reporting trapped crested ibis or other birds. The staff in the reserve is limited, and we can only rely on the public to protect these birds," Huang said.

Guo noted that the spending power of bird photographers is quite strong, typically investing at least 300 yuan daily on meals, lodging, and photography. Therefore, the number of local agritainment and homestays is continuously increasing.

Dongqiao, another village in Luoshan County, was once a poor mountain village, but it has since become famous for photography of the Reeve's pheasant and crested ibis.

Since 2010, more than 10 farmers in the village have become "bird guides," and the village has developed 13 agritainment and six homestays. Many villagers have found prosperity through this bird-focused economy.

According to Duan Wenke, the founder of "birdnet.cn," a popular ecological website for bird photography, bird-watching tourism has shown explosive growth in China in recent years.

China is one of the countries with the richest bird species in the world, with more than 1,400 species discovered so far. Among them, 394 species are key nationally protected wild birds. Of the nine global migratory bird routes, four pass through China.

"China has over 1,000 fixed bird-watching spots. Bird-watching associations or organizations have been established where conditions are favorable," Duan said.

The thriving "bird economy" has transformed many remote mountain villages into tourist destinations.

Baihualing Village in southwest China's Yunnan Province, which was relatively unknown 20 years ago, is now home to up to 300 bird species that breed between October and May, making it a popular bird-watching base nationally and internationally.

"Birds have a memory. If you protect their habitat, they will return the following year. If it's destroyed, they won't," said Duan. "So, the locals place great emphasis on environmental protection. It's the only way to create a virtuous cycle, achieving a balance between protection and development." Enditem