How happy are the birds living in Dongying？Oriental White Stork: With a single peck, it can catch a large fish

大众网记者 马世龙 赵静 东营报道

On November 12th, a reporter saw an oriental white stork leisurely strolling in the wetlands of Dongying. Suddenly, it lowered its head and securely held a large fish in its beak, as calm as if it had just picked up a chopstick of food from its own dining table. Such a scene is now not uncommon in Dongying.

The Oriental White Stork is a notoriously "picky" species. Among its entire diet, fish accounts for as much as 79% to 90%. It prefers to eat live fish, and each adult stork consumes about half a jin (approximately 250 grams) per day. Because of this, it is regarded as an "indicator species" of wetland ecosystems. Wetlands that can retain Oriental White Storks and allow them to easily carry off a large fish are definitely areas with high environmental quality.

A large fish swallowed, it seems to be the skill of birds, but in fact, it is the foundation of water and the home of wetlands. The fish in the mouth of the Oriental White Stork reflects the efforts made by a city in "water". Dongying has suffered from salinization, invasion of Spartina alterniflora, and disconnected water systems. Without sufficient water, there will be no sufficient fish, and without healthy wetlands, it is impossible to retain picky birds. In recent years, Dongying has implemented 18 wetland protection and restoration projects in the Yellow River Delta, with a total investment of 1.56 billion yuan. It has dredged 76 kilometers of tidal channels, connected 241 kilometers of water systems, added 74,000 acres of freshwater marsh wetlands, treated 131,000 acres of Spartina alterniflora, and replenished over 860 million cubic meters of ecological water. With the influx of water, the mudflats have come back to life, and the original salt marshes have gradually turned into "bio-enrichment areas" with swaying reeds and schools of fish and shrimp.

"A good bird chooses a good tree to roost in", and the Oriental White Stork chooses fish to eat. The moment a large fish is firmly held in its beak, it represents the choice made by a discerning bird in the simplest way. The birds know best whether the environment in Dongying is good or not.