Over 400 rare storks spotted in Shangri-La's nature reserve for wintering

More than 400 black storks have appeared in the Napahai Lake nature reserve this year, as the southbound birds stop over in southwest China's Yunnan Province, local authorities said Friday, December 11.

As a Class A protected animal in China, the black stork has a conspicuous red beak and bare red skin around its eyes, and its black wings shine with a metallic green gloss in the sun. Its population is estimated at around 1,000 nationwide.

The wetland of the Napahai Lake nature reserve has become China's major shelter for the rare birds to stop over during their wintering, according to the management and protection bureau of the reserve.

The reserve first observed the species in 1988 and recorded more than 400 black storks both in 2019 and 2020.

As an important ecological barrier of the Yangtze River basin, Napahai Lake nature reserve is located in Yunnan's resort city, Shangri-La. So far, the reserve has observed more than 50,000 migratory birds annually.