A Great Flock
There’s a lot to be said about winters here in Shenzhen and southern China. The reasonable temperatures, the blue skies, warm breezes, the lack of heavy rain and humidity. All in all, the winter is about as comfortable as it gets this close to the equator. But it’s not just the possibility of leaving your house without instantly looking like you’ve just been swimming that makes it so great. For me, as someone who enjoys anything to do with the natural world, and with a growing passion for photography, especially nature, Shenzhen’s southern shore boasts a spectacle that simply couldn’t be ignored – migration!
This annual movement of birds is the long-distance travel between a bird’s summer and winter residence. For species living in the northern hemisphere, the general availability of food motivates these immense pilgrimages to distant lands during colder periods of the year. On the other hand, the return north in warmer months offers more suitable nesting grounds with greater chances of successfully raising chicks.
Shenzhen has a moderate number of resident birds that are seen all year, but the opportunities the migration offers is an exciting time for any nature enthusiast. While a considerable chunk of activity falls around the Shenzhen – Hong Kong Bay area, birds make their temporary homes all throughout the city.
The migration of birds such as Black-faced spoonbills, Black-headed gulls, and Eurasian wigeons can be observed from roughly late November to mid March here in Shenzhen.
In the summer of 2019, I picked up a DSLR for the first time, and with my lack of knowledge found myself stumbling around the bay in the winter months, snapping some images of anything I could and birds I had no idea about.
This year, however, would be my first year of intentionally photographing the migrating birds and learning as much about them as I could! Finally, November arrived, and with the slow changing of the seasons, birds started to trickle into Shenzhen. Black-tailed godwits (Limosa limosa) were some of the first to arrive during October, followed closely by Common greenshanks (Tringa nebularia), Red-billed starlings (Spodiopsar sericeus), and many more over the coming weeks and months.
Fast-forward a couple of months, and this winter’s migration has provided endless opportunities to marvel at species we don’t have the fortune of seeing year-round. One species I was lucky enough to see last year, however, remained at the top of my list to observe again this year. The highlight every birder in the Shenzhen – Hong Kong Bay area was waiting for – Black-faced spoonbills (Platalea minor).
With their oddly shaped bills, long legs, and red eyes, spoonbills are somewhat unusual looking birds. Unfortunately, the Black-faced spoonbill’s significance in the area sadly isn’t from these intriguing features or its hypnotising fishing method but from being the only species of spoonbill carrying an endangered status. The wetland areas around the Shenzhen – Hong Kong Bay area are considered critically important for this species, as one of the few sites they choose to winter. I’ve been lucky enough to spot these birds multiple times throughout the migration period and fortunate enough to have a few close encounters I won’t forget anytime soon.
On a grey overcast morning sitting at the bay, not a lot of action but a few ducks idling by, I was suddenly enlivened by a million shutter clicks going off. Turning around, I saw a white mass with an unmistakable long black spoon-shaped bill coming into land only 10 metres from the shore… queue moving position… zooming out to 100mm… adjusting the ISO… and snap. There was my first ever portrait of a Black-faced spoonbill. A single bird had landed right by the shoreline and then stuck around for the next half an hour, fishing, preening its feathers, and even taking a nap before flying off to hunt further down the bay. Although portraits of animals are always nice to see, it was my second close encounter that, for me, provided the much more satisfying photo that you can see below.
Platalea minor - The Black-faced spoonbill
As well as having the chance to spot as many new species as possible and discover the birds that call Shenzhen home during winter, observing the interactions and behaviour of these animals has also been an exciting experience. In particular, the Great cormorants (Phalacrocorax carbo) have provided exhilarating displays. Catching leaping fish, fighting to steal another’s prize, and standing atop rocks drying feathers with a regal air about them have all been familiar sights on a weekly basis. Frankly, even if it were only the Great cormorants that migrated to the shores of Shenzhen, the winter months would still be something to get excited about as a nature lover.
As March rolls around, it’s already starting to warm up here, and the two weeks of ‘real’ winter are long gone. With it, the migration is coming to an end, and in the next few weeks, the bay will be back to its quiet self, home to the Chinese pond herons, egrets and kingfishers that call this shore home year-round. But as the weather warms up and the humidity creeps back in, it’s not all bad.
The snakes are coming!
#block-yui_3_17_2_1_1614505019863_17457 .sqs-gallery-block-grid .sqs-gallery-design-grid { margin-right: -10px; }#block-yui_3_17_2_1_1614505019863_17457 .sqs-gallery-block-grid .sqs-gallery-design-grid-slide .margin-wrapper { margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; }
Head over to Instagram to check out more images of this year’s winter visitors.
