Purple herons have been sighted in Yilan County for the fifth consecutive year as the species has chosen to foster young in Siapu Township (下埔), and birdwatchers are flocking to the township in hopes of seeing them.
Wild Bird Association of Yilan president Wu Chun-te (吳俊德) said that purple herons are common in northeastern China, North Korea and South Korea and migrate south for the winter.
The first recorded sighting of young purple herons in Siapu Township was on Sept. 22, 2012, which confirmed that the birds were nesting and reproducing in the area, Wu said.
This year, five pairs of purple herons have been seen building nests in the township, Wu said.
Association member Lai Chien-cheng (賴建丞) said that while the herons would eventually migrate northeast again, Yilan is the only known place that they stay and foster their young.
Lai said they have recorded 12 nests and 24 herons living in them this year.
Heron chicks hatched in Taiwan might stay in Yilan or migrate northeast, the Chinese Wild Bird Federation said, adding that further observation is required to determine what the herons will do.
The herons were only visitors before, but after discovering an ample food supply in Yilan, “they have stayed, built nests and reproduced,” association volunteer Lin Fang-tse (林芳澤) said, adding that Yilan is the only place where birdwatchers are guaranteed to see purple herons.
Visitors and birdwatchers are asked to maintain a safe distance of at least 50m from the nesting birds so that they are not disturbed or frightened, Lin said.
Visitors should not make loud noises or abrupt actions near the nesting site, Lin said, adding that it is preferred that people wear plain, dark-colored clothing when birdwatching because bright colors could spook the herons.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
Taiwan’s three major international carriers are increasing booking fees, with EVA Airways having already increased the charge to US$28 per flight segment from US$25, while China Airlines (CAL) and Starlux Airlines are set to follow suit. Booking fees are charged by airlines through a global distribution system (GDS) and passed on to passengers. Carriers that apply the fees include CAL, EVA, Starlux and Tigerair Taiwan. A GDS is a computerized network operated by a company that connects airlines with travel agents and ticketing platforms, allowing reservations to be made and processed in real time. Major players include Amadeus, Sabre and Travelport. EVA Air began
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
WATCH FOR HITCHHIKERS: The CDC warned those returning home from Japan to be alert for any contagious diseases that might have come back with them People who have returned from Japan following the World Baseball Classic (WBC) games during the weekend are recommended to watch for symptoms of infectious gastroenteritis, flu and measles for two weeks, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said. Flu viruses remain the most common respiratory pathogen in Taiwan in the past four weeks and the influenza B virus accounted for 55.7 percent of the tested cases, exceeding the percentage of influenza A (H3N2) infections and becoming the local dominant strain, CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Deputy Director Lee Chia-lin (李佳琳) said at a news conference on Tuesday. There were 82,187 hospital visits for
RSS