Apr 22 is the 54th World Earth Day, and coincides with the 41st Love Birds Week in Beijing, just as good news about biodiversity conservation is coming from Beijing E-Town.

According to the Beijing Biodiversity Conservation Research Center, since May 2022 Beijing E-Town has recorded an additional 12 bird species, including the white-tailed sea eagle listed in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, and the nationally second-class protected species, the Chinese Sparrowhawk.

A white-tailed sea eagle feeds in a park of Beijing E-Town [Photo/beijingetown.com.cn] 

Baer's pochards swim in the Liangshui River. [Photo/beijingetown.com.cn]

Beijing E-town launched the Biodiversity Baseline Survey Action on May 22, 2021 to better understand the biodiversity resources in the area and formulate more effective conservation measures. 

The Biodiversity Survey Team from the Beijing Biodiversity Conservation Research Center conducted surveys by setting sample points and sample lines, and deploying infrared cameras, among other methods. 

As of May 2022, a total of 306 bird species belonging to 21 orders, 64 families, and 163 genera have been recorded, accounting for 61 percent of the total bird species in Beijing.

Since May 2022, Beijing E-town has added 12 new bird species to its records, namely the white-tailed sea eagle, Chinese sparrowhawk, pale martin, hair-crested drongo, Pallas' rose finch, meadow pipit, Mongolian lark, horned lark, Asian short-toed lark, Mongolian gull, pine bunting, and chestnut-eared bunting

In recent years, Beijing E-town has attached great importance to biodiversity conservation and has established a dynamic biodiversity database, making efforts to control the phenomenon of invasive alien species and promoting public awareness and participation in biodiversity conservation through publicity and education.