Birding in Hohhot City
Hohhot is the capital of the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region in north-central China, serving as the region’s administrative, economic and cultural center. The city is located in the south central part of Inner Mongolia, encircled by the Daqingshan Mountains to the north and the Hetao Plateau to the south. Hohhot was founded by Altan Khan around 1580, and is nationally known as the home of Chinese dairy giants Mengniu and Yili, and was declared “Dairy Capital of China”.
Moreover, Hohhot is also an important industrial city of Inner Mongolia and and one of textile industry centers in China. Hohhot has a rich cultural background which is known for its historical sites and temples and is one of the major tourist destinations of Inner Mongolia. With a total population of 2.86million, Hohhot covers 17,224 square kilometers and has an average sea elevation of 1,050 meters.
The city features a cold semi-arid climate, with long, cold and dry winters, and hot summers. In terms of birding, there are not so many good birding sites inside the city proper.
Some Important Birding Sites in Hohhot
Nanhu Wetland Park
It is a good place to search for water birds. A lake is formed here due to its low elevation by the water from the Yellow River. Around the lake is 558 hectares of grasslands and 425 hectares of wetlands. It becomes the breeding place for dozen of water bird species including Mallard, Rudy Shelduck, Greylag Goose, Chinese Pond Heron, Purple Heron, Yellow Bittern, Grey-headed Lapwing, Little Tern, etc. Other birds like Chinese Grey Shrike, Bearded Reedling, Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler, Red-throated Thrush, etc.
Hohhot Botanical Garden
Hohhot botanical Garden is full of plants, there are many ornamental plants and scientific plants. Here are some forest birds, such as Collared Dove, Brown Shrike, Red-throated Thrush, Naumann's Thrush, Red-flanked Bluetail, Daurian Redstart, Brambling, Hawfinch, Common Rosefinch, Pallas's Rosefinch, Oriental Greenfinch, etc.
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