Taking advantage of the lockdown period at home, a group of residents observed and distinguished 79 different species of birds from the balcony.
After more than 2 months of observing nature, a person named Bao Yan posted an article on his personal page: “After 57 days of blockade, 84 herbs and 43 vegetables were discovered in the sub-zone. foolish”. And it was surprising when a personal account with only a few hundred followers suddenly received more than 100,000 new hits, 15,000 likes and continuously received interview invitations from media agencies.
Bao Yan shared: “Being able to get so many new followers, I think my article has touched on the topic that people are interested and interested in.”
Like Bao Yan, there are many people such as teachers, students, craftsmen, retirees .. unable to go out due to the city blockade due to the complicated development of the Covid pandemic. However, they took advantage of this time to observe nature – things we normally don’t pay attention to through balconies, windows, small alleys. Right in their subdivision, they discovered 43 types of wild vegetables. On the school grounds, a nationally protected wild plant sage has been found. And 79 species of birds were observed and distinguished by people on the balcony.
Since Shanghai was locked down because of the Covid epidemic, at the end of March 2022, the community where Bao Yan lives will sometimes allow people to go downstairs. Finding weeds in lawns, walls, parking lots and other nooks and crannies has become one of his hobbies. On May 4, 2022, he suddenly realized that the plants he found should be classified and recorded to “retain this strange time”. Among the 84 herbs that Bao Yan found, there are many plants that he previously considered very precious, such as “ha thu wu”. This made him realize that wild plants that are often undervalued and easily cut down are also valuable.
On May 1, 2022, the Shanghai Wild Bird Association held the event “Bird Watching on the Balcony”. Yao Li, who is in charge of the Shanghai Wild Bird Association, did not expect that on weekdays, enthusiasts who drive hundreds of kilometers to the suburbs or even other provinces to photograph birds would immediately respond and agree to stay at home. to take a photo. about birds they had “ignored” in the past. According to statistics, 116 people participated in the event and observed a total of 79 bird species and 9,575 birds. Includes many carnivores such as the red-backed falcon and the crested eagle, as well as large water birds such as the gray heron and the night heron.
It turns out that wild animals are not only found in the suburbs, but even in a prosperous place like Shanghai. Because of its proximity to the Huangpu River, some less common large waterfowl also inhabit this modern city’s ecological diversity.
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