As winter approaches, tens of thousands of whiskered terns and black-bellied terns have begun arriving in Tainan County, but the county government has decided not to host tern-watching activities this year in an effort to protect the birds.
The birds’ “sunset dance,” in which tens of thousands of terns fly in flocks over the ocean at sunset, last year attracted thousands of tourists to rural Beimen Township (北門).
However, large numbers of tourists in the area caused the birds to leave sooner than usual.
Hung Yu-chih (洪有志), a local guide who is familiar with the birds’ migratory habits, said the terns, which normally would have stayed until April this year, left Tainan at the end of last December.
Last year, more than 10,000 people visited Tainan to watch whiskered terns, said Hung, who also runs a guesthouse in Beimen for bird lovers.
“The noisy crowds of visitors seriously disturbed the terns,” he said.
Black-bellied terns — small marsh terns with a slightly forked tail — migrate to the coastal areas around Tainan and Chiayi counties every winter.
FLIGHTS
During their stay in the wetlands in Beimen, they fly out to sea early in the morning and rest on oyster racks before returning to the wetlands at sunset, Hung said.
Some bird watchers say that in addition to watching the unique “tornado-like” flight of the birds at sunset, they like to get up early to see them at dawn.
“It was amazing ... they were flying so low that it seemed like they were just above our heads,” a bird watcher said when describing his experience.
Hung said he was worried that the whiskered terns, which left early last year, would not return this year.
However, they began arriving last month and the numbers are expected to peak next month, he said.
Although the first-ever tern-watching activity sponsored last year by the Tainan County Government drew crowds of tourists to the area, many of them criticized the lack of adequate facilities for bird watching.
This year, the Tainan County Government will focus on educating bird watchers rather than on attracting visitors.
Even so, Hung is worried that the birds migratory pattern might be disturbed again.
“I really hope the bird watchers will keep their voices down,” Hung said.
“I don’t want to see the birds leaving early again,” he said.
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