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Kending hopes to attract bird lovers after slow August

Many hotels in Kending (墾丁) are promoting the annual migration of large numbers of birds to the area as a tourist attraction by making special offers in the low season.

The fall is a traditionally low season for beach resorts in Pingtung County. Business revenue in Kending took a hard hit last month, dropping about 70 percent below the average for that month because of Typhoon Morakot and concerns about the A(H1N1) virus, hotel sources said.

Amid these troubles, the annual arrival of migratory birds in Kending is not attracting as much attention this year, the sources said.

SPECIAL OFFERS

The industry is trying to increase interest by sending promotional delegations to China and marketing special offers for birdwatchers.

Migratory birds such as brown shrikes and Chinese sparrow hawks began to appear in Kending at the beginning of this month, an official of the Kending National Park Administration said.

The official said he observed some 1,000 Chinese sparrow hawks flying over Kending at about 8am on Tuesday after 4,000 of them flew over the area on Monday.

NORMAL MIGRATION

The number of Chinese sparrow hawks and brown shrikes migrating through Kending has been normal so far this year, he said. Morakot may have damaged the habitats of the sparrow hawks but has not had an effect on their migratory route, he said.

The Kending area is a major stopover point for migratory birds from northeast Asia. Various species of birds stopover in Taiwan every autumn, with the gray-faced buzzard eagle and brown shrike being the best known.

Brown shrikes and sparrow hawks usually arrive in Taiwan starting at the end of August. Their numbers peak in September and October.
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