In August, I wrote about the importance of the Min Jiang Estuary in China for two Globally Endangered species, Spoon-billed sandpiper and Chinese Crested Tern.
I was there for meetings with local government officials and to do a training workshop for local teachers and volunteers of the Fujian Birdwatching Society. This work was part of BirdLife International’s “Saving Spoony’s Chinese Wetlands” project which is supported by Disney’s Friends For Change fund. Children around the World voted for the Spoony project to be the one funded by Disney and now children in China are helping to raise awareness about the plight of this magnificent but globally endangered bird.
In my post about Min Jiang, I mentioned recruiting an enthusiastic local young lady to the RSPB’s Wildlife Explorers. The young lady is ten years old Tina and she is proving to be a wonderful ambassador and communicator for nature conservation and, in particular, Spoon-billed sandpiper. Tina has been translating articles from our junior magazine (Birdlife) and posting them to the Fujian BWS website as well as sharing them with her teachers and other students. A few days ago, Tina saw her first Spoon-billed sandpipers on the Min Jiang Estuary. She saw two or three, and apparently there are probably nine currently wintering there (the numbers are likely to increase during the winter). In August, Tina began learning about Spoon-billed sandpiper and now she has finally seen one – fantastic news! Not only has she been educating her teachers and classmates about the birds of the Min Jiang Estuary, she has also been volunteering at another school to teach the children about Spoon-billed sandpipers. Education work in schools has been led here by the enthusiastic volunteers of the Fujian Birdwatching Society. Their work in schools is making an impact and it is rewarding for me to see them using ideas that were given in the training workshop.
Meanwhile at Yangkou, the other main Spoon-billed sandpiper site in China where over 100 were seen on one day in October, local teachers and volunteers are also using ideas gained in the training workshops to begin education work in local schools. This is all very encouraging. Developing young people’s awareness and understanding of the importance of these sites is an important way forward in China. I hope their enthusiasm for Spoon-billed sandpiper and other wildlife can inspire the decision-makers to protect these internationally important wetlands.
Here are some photos from Tina’s school and a digi-scoped Spoon-billed sandpiper on the Min Jiang Estuary. Some of the students are probably looking through a telescope for the first time. Hopefully, that practice will be followed up with them looking though optics at Spoon-billed sandpipers on the Min Jiang Estuary. Look at the enthusiasm on the children’s faces – this is what education in schools should do to children. All the photos are provided by the Fujian Birdwatching Society whose enthusiasm for communicating about the birds of the Min Jiang Estuary is so important in helping to raise awareness about the importance of the Spoon-billed sandpiper and Chinese Crested Tern.