The local administration of Poyang Lake, China's biggest freshwater lake located in east China's Jiangxi Province, has banned bird watching and photography at the lake to prevent the spread of bird flu.

Tourists and vehicles from bird flu-affected areas are banned from visiting the lake, and those from other areas are only allowed to watch and photograph birds at a distance, according to the Administration of the Poyang Lake National Nature Reserve.

Covering an area of 5,000 sq km on the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, China's longest, the Poyang Lake wetland is listed as one of the most crucial wetlands in the world. It has rich varieties of fish and shrimps, and does not freeze in winter, attracting thousands of birds of over 300 kinds from Siberia and other places each year, including 95 percent of the world's white cranes.

A total of 300,000 migrant birds in 116 varieties came to Poyang this winter, including a dozen of the world's most endangered species.

February and March are the best times to observe birds at Poyang Lake. However, since the deadly bird flu is sweeping over the country nowadays, the administration has carried out intensive measures to prevent the epidemic spreading to the lake area, including disinfection, quarantine measures, and the setting up of monitoring spots around the lake. So far, no cases of bird flu have been reported in the area, according to the administration.

(Xinhua News Agency February 22, 2004)