(Central News Agency reporter Yang Shumin, Taipei, 25th) The Forestry Department said today that the “2024 Black-faced Spoonbill Global Synchronous Census” totaled 6,988 individuals worldwide, an increase of 355 individuals compared to last year, breaking the record; Taiwan is still the world’s largest winter area for Black-faced Spoonbills , a total of 4135, but the number decreased slightly to 93 for the first time; maintaining habitat is still the key.
The Forestry and Conservation Department of the Ministry of Agriculture released the results of the “Global Simultaneous Black-faced Spoonbill Census”, which is conducted regularly in January every year by the Hong Kong Bird Watching Society in contact with various countries. This year it will be held from January 20 to 21, commissioned by the Forestry Department of the Republic of China. Co-ordinated by the Ornithological Society and completed by more than 100 investigators from bird societies and conservation groups across Taiwan, this year’s global census recorded a total of 6,988 birds, an increase of 355 birds from last year. The numbers in all major wintering areas have increased.
The Forestry Department also said that in comparison, Taiwan experienced a slight decrease for the first time, with 93 individuals (2.2%) less than last year. However, Taiwan is still the largest wintering place for black Piper, with a total of 4,135 individuals recorded (59.2%); followed by The order is 1630 in China (accounting for 23.3%), 702 in Japan (accounting for 10.1%), 375 in Hong Kong and Shenzhen (Deep Bay) (accounting for 5.4%), 86 in Vietnam (accounting for 1.2%), and 39 in South Korea (accounting for 0.6 %), 13 in Macau (accounting for 0.2%), 7 in the Philippines (accounting for 0.1%), and 1 in Thailand.
In Taiwan, the Forestry Department stated that compared with last year, there were 94 more birds at the mouth of Zhuoshui Creek in the north and 105 more in Pingtung in the south. This shows that individual black-faced spoonbills have moved from Kaohsiung, Tainan, and Chiayi, which were the core areas of distribution in the past. A phenomenon that spreads and moves toward Yunlin in the north and Pingtung in the south.
For all parts of Taiwan, more than 90% are concentrated in the southwestern coastal areas, with Tainan having the largest number, with 2,088. The other counties and cities, in order from most to least, are Chiayi, 887, and Zhuoshui Xikou, 454 (at the junction of Changhua and Yunlin). , Kaohsiung 423, Pingtung 121, Yunlin 93, Yilan 44, Kinmen 10, New Taipei 6, Penghu 5, Changhua 3 and Hsinchu 1, a total of 12 counties and cities have records.
The Forestry Department also said that from the winter of 2023 to the spring of 2024, the Tainan City Wild Bird Society and the Biodiversity Research Institute of the Ministry of Agriculture rescued a total of 86 black herons, of which 25 were released into the wild after rescue, most of which were poisoned by botulinum toxin. . Clostridium botulinum originally exists in the environment and usually does not breed in large quantities. Unless continuous high temperatures cause the still water to be hypoxic and produce dead fish, it will breed. Other fish will be weak and die due to toxins in the environment. When they are about to die, eating black pipe will cause it. Poisoned.
The Forestry Department also said that after a large number of deaths occurred 20 years ago, the Tainan City Government began to strengthen environmental cleanup, and this year also happened; in addition, habitat is the key to conservation, and “land-based fish farms” have been included in the ecological salary payment project since the 110th year of the Republic of China. After the harvest, from October to April of the following year, if the appropriate water level (below 20 centimeters) is maintained for at least one month continuously, the maximum annual disbursement of NT$10,000 per hectare will be issued. The area of friendly fish farms in Tainan City in 2011 and 2012 was approximately 200 hectares. (Editor: Chen Zhengwei) 1130425
