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Page history last edited by PBworks 16 years, 6 months ago

From the Taiwan Review

 

For the Birds

Publication Date:03/01/2002

By line:

Publish Date: 03/01/2002

Story Type: TOURISM

Byline: JIM HWANG

Decades of effort by a group of dedicated bird lovers

and environmentalists have brought the establishment

of the Kuandu Nature Park, the last surviving wetland

in the Taipei Basin. This fifty-seven-hectare park may

be provided for the island's feathered visitors, but the

public is also reaping the rewards of nature.

 

 

A mere fifteen-minute walk from Taipei's Kuandu Station on the Mass Rapid Transit is the Kuandu Nature Park, described by Director Lingi Wu as "an open land where wildlife and plants are well protected, and trails and information facilities are properly organized." The main activity here is bird watching. Primary students spend hours trying to capture a glimpse of the green-winged teals mentioned in their textbooks, while devoted ornithologists spend entire days tracking the every move of the dunlins or tree sparrows that regularly visit the park during the winter months.

The easy access to Kuandu, ten kilometers from the mouth of the Tamsui River, made it one of the earliest cultivated areas in the Taipei Basin. Han Chinese farmers and fishermen settled in the region about 300 years ago. In 1966, the Taipei City Government built a dike along the river bank to protect residents and rice fields from flooding. The area outside the embankment became a water route, and in 1996 it was designated under the Cultural Heritage Preservation Law as a mangrove nature reserve. A large part of the rice fields inside the dike became unsuitable for farming due to the salted soil, and also gradually developed into wetlands.

Located at the junction of the Tamsui and Keelung Rivers, this marsh area has developed a complex ecosystem. It is home to 175 species of plants, fourteen types of crabs, 450 different insects, and various reptiles, mammals, amphibians, and fish, providing a rich source of food for the migratory and resident birds in the area. Since ornithology was first introduced to Taiwan in the early 1970s, Kuandu has been an ideal locale for such activity. So far, more than 300 species of birds have been recorded in the Kuandu area.

In 1973, a number of ornithologists gathered to establish Taiwan's first environmental group focusing on the protection of wild birds and their habitat. The Taipei Wild Bird Watcher, now known as the Wild Bird Society of Taipei (WBST), proposed to the city government that the Kuandu marsh land be designated as a waterfowl reserve. The government accepted the idea in 1985 and made the designation, but the land was privately owned at the time, giving the decision no legal basis. The city offered to buy the land, but the landowners--who wanted to see their properties developed for more profitable commercial, residential, or industrial use--refused.

The battle between conservationists and landowners continued for years. To promote its cause, the WBST held waterfowl festivals, organized petition-signing campaigns, appealed to government officials, and lobbied city councilmen. During the 1994 Taipei mayoral election, the society invited the three candidates to their waterfowl festival and gained their pledges of support in saving the capital's last piece of wetland. After Chen Shui-bian won the election, he kept his promise. In 1996, the city council approved the NT$15.3 billion (US$437 million) budget to purchase the land from private owners.

Land acquisition was completed the following year, and the city's Department of Economic Development started the planning and construction of the park facilities, which were completed in mid-2001. The main facilities are limited to a 5.5-hectare area and include a three-story nature center. French windows on the south wall of the center's first and second floors provide visitors with a panoramic view of the marsh. A multimedia presentation on the first floor informs visitors about the park's complex ecological system. Another observatory and bird-watching area is located on the second floor, complete with telescopes.

Visitors can also step out of the nature center to watch birds from inside one of the bird-watching cabins, or observe the different ecosystems in the freshwater biological pond, riverside biological area, coastal forest area, Northern Taiwan low-elevation forest area, and stream ecological area. "The area looks like nothing but a piece of wasteland," says Victor Yu, the WBST's chief executive officer. "The establishment of the park will educate the public about the value of this seemingly useless piece of land and enable it to make contact with the environment through bird watching."

Because the nature park was established to protect the habitat and ecosystem, it enforces a number of rules to minimize human influence. Bird catching, fishing, littering, making loud noises, playing games, and running are strictly prohibited. Pets and wheeled vehicles such as bicycles and skateboards are barred from the park. Visitors are permitted to bring in water, but no food. Lingi Wu points out that these rules differentiate the park from ordinary parks where people go to picnic, walk their dogs, or perhaps fly kites. But bird-watching enthusiasts are willing to respect these rules, although the ticket booth on occasion serves as an impromptu animal shelter for those unaware of the restriction on pets.

Decades after the proposal was first raised, the Kuandu Nature Park opened for a trial run last August under the management of the Taipei City Government, but due to manpower considerations the city soon decided to transfer the management to private hands. The WBST, having been involved from the beginning of the project, was naturally at the top of the list of possible candidates. The 2,000-member group, the island's largest ornithological organization, promptly agreed to sign a seven-year contract to manage the facility. "Although we had no experience in park management and were aware of the operational risks and the difficulties of habitat management, we couldn't just stand by after having already put so much effort into the project," Victor Yu says. "Our decision to accept the challenge wasn't made out of confidence, but out of courage."

The park reopened under the WBST management last December as Taiwan's first nature park under a Build-Operate-Transfer model. "Private management is more efficient and flexible," Lingi Wu says. "But being financially independent is very stressful. Without any government funding, we have to rely entirely on ourselves." According to Wu, the park's monthly expenditures range from NT$1.3 million to $1.4 million (US$37,140 to $40,000). Currently, revenue earned from ticket sales (NT$50 for adults and NT$30 for children and members of groups of at least thirty people) and from a small souvenir shop in the nature center are far from enough to make ends meet, and the park relies heavily on financial support from the WBST. The bird society, a nonprofit organization that operates on donations from members as well as corporations, has committed itself to managing the park for as long as its funds will allow.

Another challenge the park faces is habitat management. Tsai Jiin-wen, who is in charge of this function, points out that his job does not simply involve letting nature take its course. "For reasons that are either natural or manmade, wetlands can gradually dry up and no longer provide a sanctuary for birds," he explains. "Habitat management requires the restoration of the land to its original bio-diversified status and the maintenance of that unique ecosystem."

Successful restoration relies on a long-term and detailed database about the area's flora and fauna, water and soil analyses, and other information. Surveys by the WBST and other research organizations have been conducted on Kuandu in the past, but the value of the test results is limited due to the sporadic and incomplete data collected. "There's never been any habitat management in Kuandu because the land was privately owned," Victor Yu says. "All we could do was to observe and record. We didn't have the right to cut back weeds or take any action in maintaining the marsh." Foreign habitat management experts were also invited to provide guidance, but the usefulness was again limited. "We can take foreign experience as reference, but we can't copy it because every piece of wetland is unique," Yu explains.

To Taipei City, this fifty-seven hectares of wetland is not only unique but also the only survivor after numerous battles between urban development and environmental protection. It is not only a refuge for migratory birds but also a window through which people can get to know and learn to respect nature. That fifteen-minute stroll brings people from Taipei's most advanced transportation system to its most diversified ecological environment.

 

 

 

Kuandu's Feathered Guests

Compiled from Four Seasons of Birds in Kuandu Nature Park,

with permission of the Taipei City Government's Department

of Economic Development.

Spring--March, April, May

April through May are peak bird watching months at Kuandu for migratory birds making their way north. The wood sandpiper, Northern phalarope, and barn swallow arrive in mid-March as well as large numbers of the sylviinae and emberizidae. More than ninety species can be seen during this time of year. The charadriidae, scolopacidae, and common snipe arrive in April, while the Kentish plover, little ringed plover, and dunlin prepare to fly away after spending the winter here. In May, more than sixty species of birds can be spotted here. Among the most notable are the rufous-necked stint and sharp-tailed sandpiper.

Summer--June, July, August

There are fewer birds in the summer--merely thirty species in June and July. All the winter migratory birds have already departed, leaving only some resident birds and a few summer migrants such as the Chinese little bittern and cinnamon bittern. Early migratory birds from the north begin to appear in August, such as the wood sandpiper, American golden plover, common snipe, gray-tailed tattler, redshank, rufous-necked stint, gray wagtail, yellow wagtail, and bull-headed shrike. In all, near forty species of water birds have been recorded here during the summer.

Autumn--September, October, November

September and October are the peak months to see northern birds passing through on their way south. Members of the charadriidae and scolopacidae families stay until the end of October, but their numbers are far fewer than in the spring. The green-winged teal, marsh harrier, common kestrel, great egret, intermediate egret, and black-faced bunting stay until November. Winter migratory birds such as the little ringed plover, Kentish plover, common sandpiper, common snipe, greenshank, and dunlin spend the entire winter in Taiwan. Autumn is the best season to observe the starlings and turdinae.

Winter--December, January, February

Although many birds can be found here during the winter months, the number of species is limited. Some fifty species can be spotted in December. Thousands of dunlins dominate the winter bird-watching season. The red-throated pipit, black-faced bunting, dusky thrush, Chinese bulbul, and tree sparrow are also in abundance. The black-headed gull, dusky thrush, and the ever-numerous dunlins stay from January until February. As spring approaches, the charadriidae and scolopacidae families return, as well as an increasing number of barn swallows as the weather warms.

 

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