A group of Beijing swifts received exclusive “ID cards” at the Summer Palace early this morning
The Beijing swift, the common swift Beijing subspecies, is one of the very few wild migratory birds named after "Beijing". At 7:00 a.m. on June 1, as a Beijing swift carrying only its “ID card” rushed into the blue sky from the Kuoru Pavilion of the Summer Palace, the five-hour Beijing Swift Ring Recording Work for 2024 came to a successful conclusion.
The staff tagged a total of 126 Beijing swifts, of which 88 were recaptured and 38 were newly banded. 16 swifts wore satellite positioning trackers, which will provide valuable data support and experience for protecting Beijing swifts and their habitats. refer to.
The swift banding work was organized and carried out by the Beijing Wildlife Rescue Center and the Summer Palace Management Office under the guidance of the National Bird Banding Center, with active support from volunteers from the Beijing Wildlife Conservation Association and the Bird Watching Society.
Staff measure the length of the beak of a Beijing swift.
Bird banding is a research method that studies bird life history, population dynamics, and migration based on marked individuals. As an important habitat for swifts in Beijing, the Summer Palace has carried out 19 swift recordings since 1997. Staff members wear special metal rings with unique numbers from the National Bird Banding Center on the tarsus of Beijing swifts, or wear positioning trackers on them, and then release them in situ to help conservation researchers track Beijing swift population dynamics and study their migration. law.
Zhao Xinru releases the swifts after bandaging into the blue sky.
"The high rate of banding and recapture this time shows that swifts have a high degree of loyalty to the breeding grounds of the Summer Palace." Zhao Xinru, an ornithology expert at Beijing Normal University and a professional consultant to the China Bird Watching Society, told reporters.
According to Zhang Yaqiong, deputy section chief of the Scientific Research and Education Section of the Beijing Wildlife Rescue Center, Beijing swifts have unique ecological habits and like to build nests and breed on tall buildings. Survey data from the Beijing Wildlife Rescue Center shows that in recent years, the number of Beijing swifts has increased, they have continued to spread in the city, and more and more new nest sites have been discovered. They can be found flying from ancient buildings such as the Summer Palace and Zhengyang Gate to tall bridges such as Tianning Temple Bridge and Baiziwan Bridge.
The staff put satellite positioning trackers on some swifts.
Volunteers explain Beijing Swift knowledge to tourists on site.
Outside the Koruru Pavilion, the Summer Palace science popularization lecturer brought six sets of swift science popularization exhibition boards and Beijing swift models to tourists. He explained the knowledge about Beijing swifts to tourists on the spot and distributed bird science leaflets. It is understood that the Summer Palace Swift Science Popularization Interactive "I Shake Hands with a Swallow" has already met with tourists at science popularization activities such as Biodiversity Promotion Day. Entering the summer vacation, the Summer Palace's "Youth Science Popularization Road - Kuoruting Beijing Swift Station" will also continue to Launch public welfare explanations during major holidays.
Beijing is one of the most biodiverse metropolises in the world. As of May 2024, more than 500 bird species have been recorded in the city, accounting for more than one-third of the number of bird species in China. With the improvement of the urban ecological environment and the promotion of wildlife protection, citizens' awareness of the protection of wild animals such as swifts has also been increasing. Bird banding work often recruits trained public volunteers to participate, and has become a vivid practice for the public to deeply participate in wildlife conservation.
The food pellets of the Beijing Swift contain a large number of insects.
At the same time, Beijing's swift rescue work is also constantly improving, and more and more swifts have been rescued in time and can return to nature after recovery. Up to now, a total of 15 temporary wildlife shelter and rescue stations have been set up in 12 administrative districts in Beijing. The complete wildlife rescue system will further provide powerful rescue guarantee for Beijing swifts and other wild animals.
Beijing swifts flying over the Summer Palace in the early morning.
The relevant person in charge of the Summer Palace Management Office said that in the future, they will continue to strengthen the ecological protection of Beijing swifts, strengthen patrols in areas where Beijing swifts are concentrated, such as Kuoru Pavilion and Jingming Building, and implement closed management of the Kuoru Pavilion area to reduce noise interference. It provides a good environment for swift breeding, and also calls on all sectors of society to pay attention to the protection of swifts and actively adopt measures to protect swift resources in Beijing.
