Earlier this year, many departments introduced measures to ban hunting, trading, transportation, and consumption of wild animals. However, reporters from Xinhua News recently conducted interviews in Hebei Province, Beijing and other places and found that hunting of wild birds is still rampant and illegal trading is still active during the migratory bird migration season.

Experts say that migratory birds come from all over the world and may carry infectious viruses. After being caught and flowed into the market, it will bring many hidden dangers.

Net-catching has become popular, wild birds died tragically, and weathered into "mummies"

"There is another bird net over there!" In a cornfield in Qiuwo Village, Dashimiao Town, Shuangqiao District, Chengde City, Hebei Province, wildlife conservation volunteer Xing Shijie shouted and rushed forward.

Following the sound, a bird catching net about 4 meters high and 20 meters long, standing quietly in a cornfield not far away, appearing grayish white under the backlight. The reporter approached, and the sight was horrible: more than 20 birds that had died tragically hanging on the birding net, some of which had been weathered into "mummies", and two other birds were struggling to escape.

As the weather turned cold, migratory birds began to fly south. Because it is located in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, one of the migration routes in the world, the coastal areas, inland wetlands and the Yanshan-Taihang Mountains in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region have become an important stop and concentrated activity area for migratory birds.

In the past few days, the reporter has visited and found that after illegal hunting using bird nets and other tools, the illegal trading in wild birds is still rampant.

Near Pingshanying Village, Duzhuang Town, Haigang District, Qinhuangdao City, Hebei Province, 28 bird nets entangled more than 50 wild birds. Among the wild birds rescued from the Internet on the spot, there were also national second-level protected animal Oriental Scops Owl; In the Dapaozi Wetland Area, Heyi Street, Nanyuan Township, Fengtai District, Beijing, a grid of 15 bird nets were hung with dozens of protected wild birds of important ecological, scientific and social values, including Bluethroat and skylark…

Some villagers set up bird nets in their yards to hunt wild birds illegally. In the houses of two villagers in Chagou Village, Chengde County, Hebei Province, the reporter found a birding net about 15 meters long and 3 meters high in the courtyard. There were more than 50 dead and remaining wild birds. In addition, there were more than 20 birds that have been peeled, waiting to be eaten and placed in the refrigerator.

Wildlife conservation volunteer Liu Yidan is worried that what poachers catch on migration channels are migratory birds, most of which come from all over the world, and there is a risk of carrying infectious viruses.

Illegal trade is active, and some wild birds are sold for tens of thousands of yuan on the black market

The reporter found that some villagers have a large number of birds catching tools such as bird nets and traps in their homes. Some villagers reported that most of the wild birds captured were taken to the flower and bird market for trading.

Recently, in Bifengmen Folk Culture Street, Shuangqiao District, Chengde City, which has a history of bird trading for many years, the reporter discovered that some wild birds such as white-eye, Common Rosefinch, and green linnet were publicly sold. At the flower and bird market in Dongjinzhuang Village, Lianchi District, Baoding City, Hebei Province, there is also the phenomenon of selling Fischer's lovebird and other national second-level protected birds.

Under the ban, some public shouts turned into secret transactions. In a bird shop that has been cleaned up in Chengde City, Hebei Province, the reporter asked the owner if could buy wild birds. The other party looked up and down and looked around, then replied that can buy grackles at a price of 1,600 yuan per one. The reporter found out that grackle is currently a protected animal of important ecological, scientific and social values. Another person familiar with the matter told reporter that a friend recently purchased throstle through an acquaintance, which also is of important ecological, scientific and social values protected animal.

In addition, the phenomenon of "actual trade" in the name of "rescue" is also worthy of attention.

The Wildlife Protection Law stipulates that the wildlife protection department of the people’s government at or above the county level shall organize and carry out the shelter and rescue of wild animals in accordance with relevant national regulations. It is forbidden to buy and sell wild animals and their products in the name of wild animal shelter and rescue.

The reporter learned from an animal science amusement park in Chengde that this park is also a local wildlife rescue station, including the Eurasian eagle owl and kestrel, which are the national second-level protected animals. The person in charge told reporter that the nationally protected animals in the rescue station come from the rescued injured wild animals sent by the local forestry law enforcement department and other channels. When asked if they could buy the Eurasian eagle owl they rescued, the other party said that if they have the relevant domestication certificate, they can buy it at the local market price of 5,000 yuan; In addition, he has channels to buy other wild birds.

"Some birds are highly profitable on the black market. Take the Siberian Rubythroat, the protected animal that is of ecological, scientific and social values as an example, a good-looking one can be sold for tens of thousands of yuan, so there are always criminals who take the risk.” Wildlife conservation volunteer Zhu Baoguang told reporter that after the vendors bought the birds from the bird catchers, some of these birds were sold to various flower and bird markets for viewing, and some were fattened and sold to Guangdong Province for food, a small part of them are kept for food by poachers. In recent years, the criminal cases of illegal hunting of wild birds reported and cracked by them are all attached to the complete interest chains.

E-commerce platforms sell bird catching nets publicly, production and sales are suitable for strict management

Recently, the Food and Drug Investigation Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security issued a notice requiring food and drug investigation departments at all levels of public security to take effective measures to crack down on criminal activities such as hunting and killing of migratory birds and other wild animals, illegal purchase, transportation, and sale of migratory birds and other wild animals and their products, advertising or providing services for hunting tools, migratory birds and other wild animals and their products that are prohibited for illegal transactions.

According to Jing Xinbo, head of the Forestry Law Enforcement Brigade of the Natural Resources and Planning Bureau of Tangshan City, Hebei Province, the tools and methods for catching birds are diverse, including poisoning, the use of slingshots and hunting clips, among which bird nets are the most “popular”.

The reporter searched for keywords such as "Bird Nets" on the online e-commerce platforms and found that there were massive products with a single price of between RMB 6 and RMB 30, accompanied by promotional activities such as "buy two get one free". Some bird catching nets appeared under the name of "bird-proof nets", but the people who bought the nets posted pictures of catching birds in their online reviews after purchase.

"The vast majority of these so-called'bird-proof nets' are actually bird catching nets." said Yang Han, a wildlife conservation volunteer. "Bird-proof nets" in orchards and vegetable gardens to prevent bird invasion have thicker wires, brighter colors, larger meshes, and no pocket-like structures, which will not cause fatal harm to birds; The wire of the bird net is as thin as the hair, the color is almost transparent, the mesh is small, and it has a pocket-like structure. After the bird hits it, it is "hard to escape".

The revised draft of the Wildlife Protection Law has been published and is currently seeking public opinions. Yang Zhaoxia, director of the Research Center for Ecological Law of Beijing Forestry University, believes that the use of nets and other methods for hunting is prohibited in the Wildlife Protection Law. However, banning the use is not enough. The production, transportation, sale, purchase, and use of hunting tools such as bird nets, electric shock devices, and electronic traps should be prohibited throughout the chain. Relevant departments should strengthen supervision of e-commerce platforms that publicly sell bird nets and other activities; E-commerce platforms should actively block relevant keywords, delete and remove relevant illegal products.

In the corn field next to Yingfang Village, Chengde County, Chengde City, Hebei Province, a bird was "sticked" by a bird net and has been dead for a long time. (Photo taken on October 18) (Photo credit: Li Jiwei)

Original Chinese article:

http://www.xinhuanet.com/2020-11/17/c_1126751765.htm

By / Maggie