Since October 2025, Guangdong province has welcomed the peak of migratory bird season, with hundreds of thousands of birds arriving to overwinter along its coastal mudflats and wetlands, creating breathtaking scenes of harmony between humans and nature.

Recent monitoring shows over 300,000 migratory birds wintering across the province, with multiple rare species spotted for the first time, highlighting the tangible success of Guangdong's ecological conservation efforts.

In Guangzhou, the wetlands and mangrove ecosystems of the Pearl River Estuary provide a safe and nourishing rest stop for birds along their long journey south. The Nansha Wetland, with 198.18 hectares of mangroves, now hosts over 100,000 migratory birds each winter. This vital habitat offers abundant food and shelter, making it a key stopover along the migration route.

This season, following the start of winter in November 2025, Nansha Wetland has not only welcomed regular visitors like the black-faced spoonbill but also recorded its first-ever sighting of the glossy ibis, a nationally protected Class I species. To date, five Class I protected bird species have been observed in the area.

Source: Guangzhou Daily
Reporting & Video: Ye Kasi
Correspondent: Lin Yin
English Author & Editor: Lyu Yun