Recently, the staff of the Mengjin Management Center of the Yellow River Wetland National Nature Reserve in Henan Province found more than 80 rare wild birds, Yellow-breasted bunting, which has been listed as a critically endangered species by the IUCN Red List.
"A few days ago, I found this group of yellow-breasted buntings in the rice fields, there are probably more than 80." Speaking of the discovery experience, Ma Chaohong, a senior engineer at the management center, was very excited. "I often conduct field monitoring. It is not uncommon to encounter yellow-breasted buntings, but it is the first time I have encountered so many yellow-breasted buntings."
Ma Chaohong is more concerned about yellow-breasted buntings. She said: "The yellow-breasted bunting belongs to the passerine bunting family, named after its yellow breast feathers. It is commonly known as Emberiza aureola (rice bird)."
The yellow-breasted bunting "has a fairly high level of appearance", and the appearance of male and female birds is different. The upper body of the male bird is chestnut or maroon red, the lower body is bright yellow, and the chest has a dark chestnut horizontal band. The upper body of the female bird is brown or yellowish brown, the lower body is light yellow, and there is no horizontal band on the chest.
Yellow-breasted buntings like to move in groups, and only in the breeding period, they move alone or in pairs. "In winter, they overwinter in Southeast Asia and South Asia, and in summer they breed in Europe and Northeast China. It is autumn, and they are going to the south to overwinter. These yellow-breasted buntings should rest here on their way south. " Ma Chaohong introduced that yellow-breasted buntings often live in grasses, reeds and rice fields. They feed on grass seeds and rice. They also eat a lot of insects during the breeding season. The Yellow River Wetland has a beautiful environment, and they regard it as a "post" when they move south.
In the 1990s, yellow-breasted buntings and sparrows had a relatively large population, but now they are only one step away from extinction in the wild. What caused the yellow-breasted bunting to become a "critically endangered" species? "It's mainly because people prey in large quantities!" Ma Chaohong said. Yellow-breasted buntings are considered by people in some places to have a tonic effect, and then they have been hunted in large numbers. The number of yellow-breasted buntings has been decreasing year by year.
Until 2004, the IUCN considered the yellow-breasted bunting to be a species of least concern. Since 2004, it has been gradually upgraded to a status of Critically Endangered due to rapid drops in population sizes. It is subject to heavy hunting pressure in China, through which most specimens pass during migration. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow-breasted_bunting)
"In recent years, yellow-breasted buntings have received social attention, and relevant departments have stepped up efforts to combat illegal capture, transportation, and trafficking, and yellow-breasted buntings have been protected. This spring, I found yellow-breasted bunting five or six times. " Ma Chaohong smiled. "As our city (Luoyang) continues to strengthen the protection and management of the Yellow River wetland and ecological restoration, the species and number of birds in the Mengjin Yellow River wetland has increased significantly. Not only large populations of rare birds such as black storks, grey cranes, mandarin ducks, Platalea leucorodia (white spoonbills), but also new species such as Prairie eagle, flamingos, and Mute Swan have been discovered for the first time. I believe that the yellow-breasted bunting will definitely become a frequent visitor here. "
Reference Chinese link:
http://news.lyd.com.cn/system/2020/08/20/031780866.shtml
By / Niu Jingmei
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