Taiwanese and Chinese conservationists are joining hands to save an endangered sea bird from extinction by urging fishermen to stop collecting and eating the birds' eggs, a Taiwanese birdwatcher said yesterday.
The Chinese crested tern -- white with a black-and-white crest -- migrates to the eastern Chinese coast between May and September, Taiwanese conservationists say. It's thought the birds fly there to escape the heat in South Asia, although they have not been seen outside of China or Taiwan.
The sea bird was spotted for the first time in 2000 on Matsu island -- just 1km from China's southeastern coast. Matsu authorities have since stepped up monitoring the bird and set aside several locations on the island group as sanctuaries.
Taiwanese have stopped eating sea birds' eggs in recent years, but Chinese fishermen often sneak onto Matsu to collect the eggs, which are prized as a delicacy, said Chang Shou-hua (張壽華), director general of the Matsu Wild Bird Society.
"Sea birds' eggs are smelly and infected with parasites, and when fishermen collect the eggs in the grass they disrupt the birds' breeding habitats," Chang said.
A Chinese survey conducted over recent successive breeding seasons found that the number of crested terns had fallen to 50 birds, about half the population found three years ago, according to Birdlife International, a conservation group based in Cambridge, England. The group warns that the crested tern could become extinct in 5 years if protection efforts are not stepped up.
Taiwanese birders recently sought to collaborate with Chinese conservationists after learning the bird has appeared along the coasts of China's Zhejiang and Fujian provinces, said Chang.
A group of conservationists from the Jiushan islands off eastern China visited the Matsu sanctuary two months ago and agreed to strive for the bird's preservation, first by seeking legislation to bar fishermen from collecting the bird's eggs, Chang said.
The Chinese and Taiwanese have also agreed to begin a joint survey next summer -- during the birds' migration period -- to determine the size of their population, he said.
Taiwanese conservationists are studying whether to use global positioning systems to track down the sea bird's mysterious migration routes, Chang said.
Taiwan was listed in 14th place among the world's wealthiest country in terms of GDP per capita, in the latest rankings released on Monday by Forbes magazine. Taiwan's GDP per capita was US$76,860, which put it at No. 14 on the list of the World's 100 Richest Countries this year, one spot above Hong Kong with US$75,130. The magazine's list of the richest countries in the world is compiled based on GDP per capita data, as estimated by the IMF. However, for a more precise measure of a nation's wealth, the magazine also considers purchasing power parity, which is a metric used to
Taipei’s Ximending (西門町) shopping area welcomed the most international visitors, followed by Taipei 101, Songshan Cultural and Creative Park and Yangmingshan National Park (陽明山國家公園), a list of the city’s most popular tourist attractions published by the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism showed. As of August, 69.22 million people had visited Taipei’s main tourism spots, a 76 percent increase from 39.33 million in the same period last year, department data showed. Ximending had 20.21 million visitors, followed by Taipei 101 at 8.09 million, Songshan Cultural and Creative Park at 6.28 million, Yangmingshan at 4.51 million and the Red House Theater (西門紅樓) in
Renovations on the B3 concourse of Taipei Main Station are to begin on Nov. 1, with travelers advised to use entrances near the Taiwan Railway or high-speed rail platforms or information counter to access the MRT’s Red Line. Construction is to be completed before the end of next year, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said last week. To reduce the impact on travelers, the NT$95 million (US$2.95 million) project is to be completed in four stages, it said. In the first stage, the hall leading to the Blue Line near the art exhibition area is to be closed from Nov. 1 to the end
WARNING: Domestic coffee producers mainly grow arabica beans, as they self-pollinate, but they are more likely to have consistency issues, an expert said Taiwan ranks third in coffee consumption per capita in Asia, the latest Ministry of Agriculture data showed. Taiwanese consume 1.77kg, or 177 cups of coffee, per person each year, less only than Japan and South Korea, at 600 cups and 400 cups respectively, the ministry’s Tea and Beverage Research Station said. Although the nation mainly relies on imported coffee, there has been an increase in home-grown coffee bean production, the ministry said. Cuttings and other techniques are commonly used to ensure domestic beans have stronger floral and fruity flavors, it said. It is a fast-expanding market with Taiwan’s coffee consumption
RSS