Birding in Nanchang City
With a history of more than 2200 years, Nanchang is the capital of Jiangxi Province in southeast China. Nanchang is located in the north-central portion of the province, about 130km south of the Yangtze River and the right bank of the Gan River just below its confluence with the Jin River.
Geographically, to the east of the city is famous Poyang Lake and to the west is Xishan Hills. This city is extremely abundant in water resources. Of the 7,402km2 of the total city territory, 2,204km2 are water surfaces. Nanchang has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate featuring four distinct seasons with long and humid summers and short winter. The various landforms provide different habitats for birds.
Some Important Birding Sites in Nanchang
Poyanghu Lake
Located about 60km from Nanchang City, Paoyanghu Lake is one of the largest freshwater lakes in China and important wintering place for lots of migratory birds. Paoyanghu Lake is formed by 9 lakes of different sizes. It was established in 1983 and became a national-level nature reserve in 1988. The reserve was included in the List of Ramsar Wetlands of International Important in 1992. Covering 22,400 hectares, the reserve is the main wintering habitat for White Stocks and Siberian Cranes of which account for 95% of the total population of the world. The reserve has recorded 310 bird species of which 159 are typical wetland species. The best birding season of Poyang Lake is from October to March of the next year. Other birds like White-naped Crane, Common Crane, Hooded Crane Baer's Pochard, Black Stork, Eurasian Spoonbill, Swan Goose, Greater White-fronted Goose, Lesser White-fronted Goose, Taiga Bean Goose, Tundra Bean Goose, Bewick's Swan, Ruddy Shelduck, Northern Shoveler, Falcated Duck, Great Crested Grebe, Brown Crake, Spotted Redshank, Common Snipe, Herring Gull, Rufous Turtle Dove, Eastern Marsh Harrier, White-throated Kingfisher, Pied Kingfisher, Yellow-bellied Tit, Chinese Penduline Tit, Yellow-bellied Prinia, Plain Prinia, Black-collared Starling, White-cheeked Starling, Grey-backed Thrush, Yellow-billed Grosbeak, Water Pipit, Black-faced Bunting, Little Bunting, etc.
Jiangxi Agricultural University
Located in Nanchang Economic and Technological Development Zone, Jiangxi Agricultural University covers 267 hectares and sits by the site of the Ganjiang River. The forest, experimental farmland and lakes inside the campus provide different habitats for birds. Here we can see many different birds including Common Pheasant, Chinese Bamboo Partridge, Black Bittern, Chinese Pond Heron, Crested Goshawk, Brown Crake, Greater Painted Snipe, Common Snipe, Wood Sandpiper, Oriental Turtle Dove, Lesser Coucal, White-throated Kingfisher, Pied Kingfisher, Swinhoe's Minivet, Asian Paradise-flycatcher, Yellow-bellied Tit, Collared Finchbill, Yellow-bellied Prinia, Masked Laughingthrush, White-browed Laughingthrush, Vinous-throated Parrotbill, Black-collared Starling, Grey-backed Thrush, Japanese Thrush, Daurian Redstart, Yellow-rumped Flycatcher, Chinese Grosbeak, Yellow-browed Bunting, Black-faced Bunting, etc.
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