"If lucky, we might see glossy ibis again! I've shot it here for several times over the past few days!" Bird enthusiast Yue Hengwere excitedly talking with his companions on May 13 in the Danjiang Wetland National Nature Reserve in Dashiqiao town, Xichuan county, Nanyang city, Central China's Henan province.
Photo by Li Bo for Henan Daily
Glossy ibis, a species of bird in the ibis family, Threskiornithidae, is a close relative of the endangered crested ibis, dubbed the "Oriental Jewel" in China. Glossy ibish as a dark chestnut coat, characterized by its long, downward-curved beak, making it easily recognizable. Glossy ibis has a wide distribution around the world, but few population. In China, it is mainly found scattered in provinces of Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan. Glossy ibisis currently under China's top level of state protection based on the List of Key Protected Wildlife Species of China 2021 Edition.
Verified by prominent experts in ornithology, including Li Changkan from Zhengzhou Normal University and Wang Chunping from the Wetland Station of Henan Forestry Resources Monitoring Institute, it was the first time that glossy ibis appeared in Xichuan, updating the records of bird species in the Danjiang Wetland National Nature Reserve.
Xichuan has monitored a stable overwintering population of black storks for 10 years. Crested ibises reappeared in the Danjiang Wetland National Nature Reserve after a 70-year absence. And 28 oriental white storks, dubbed the "National Treasure of the Bird World" in China, spent winter in Xichuan. The number of bird species in the Danjiang Wetland National Nature Reserve has increased from over 100 in 2008 to more than 410 now, reflecting the continuous improvement of the local ecological environment. (Chinese source: Henan Daily Reporter: Meng Xiangdong and Zhao Yifan Translator: Yang Jiaxin Proofreader: Jiao Dan & Zhan Hanqing)
