Nansha Wetland Park,

    Guangzhou

    Known as “the kidney of Guangzhou,” the Nansha Wetland Park is an ideal place for bird-watching and embracing nature.

    Located at Wanqingsha Town in Nansha District, the wetland is a hub for more than 100,000 migratory birds. So far, the monitoring station of the wetland has found nearly 150 types of birds. Endangered species, such as the black-faced spoonbill, can also been seen in this “migratory bird heaven.”

    Visitors can climb up to a bird-watching platform in the park, where there are several quality telescopes specially installed for watching birds.

    A limited number of visitors are allowed in the park every day in order to protect the natural environment.

    Transport: Drive to the wetland from Shenzhen via Guangzhou-Shenzhen Expressway and Nansha Harbor Expressway. Take the exit at Shiliuchong Steel Base.

    Xinghu Wetland Park,

    Zhaoqing

    Xinghu Wetland Park is known as “the No. 1 park for the red-crowned crane in South China.” With more than 50 red-crowned cranes, the park has the largest number of the rare birds in South China.

    The core tourist area is located by the lake where visitors can have the best view of the birds in the park. More than 10,000 birds of about 180 types inhabit the 20 islands in the wetland, most of which are night herons and egrets.

    Transport: Drive to Zhaoqing via Shenzhen-Guangzhou Expressway, Guangzhou Huancheng Expressway, Guangming Expressway and Guangkun Expressway. Take the exit at Zhaoqing East.

    Birds’ Heaven, Xinhui

    Birds’ Heaven is one of the most well-known spots for bird-watching in China due to an article written by Ba Jin, a well-known writer in China.

    Surrounded by water, a banyan tree grows on the small piece of water-encircled land, and on this green piece of land, tens of thousands of birds are housed. It is said that the place has the region’s largest number of egrets and grey feather egrets.

    The tree was said to have been planted in the Song Dynasty (960-1279).

    Visitors can take a tour around the land in small boats, but it is prohibited to go on land to disturb the birds’ natural lives in the wild.

    There is also a bird park nearby. In the park, visitors can have close contact with nearly 1,300 birds.

    Transport: Drive to Xinhui via Guangzhou-Shenzhen Expressway, Humen Bridge and PRD Huanxian Expressway. Take the exit at Xinhui.

    Nam Sang Wai,

    Hong Kong

    Nam Sang Wai is a wetland located in the northwest of Hong Kong. It is a well-known place for bird-watching which houses quite a lot of birds such as gulls, ducks, cormorants, avocets and egrets.

    The wetland is one of the major sites for cormorants, where over 3,000 cormorants arrive in the winter. Other endangered species such as the black-faced spoonbill can also be seen in the area.

    Besides bird-watching, visitors can also explore beautiful rural scenes in the area.

    Transport: Get to Yuen Long via Shenzhen Bay Checkpoint and take the 76K bus to Nam Sang Wai.

    (Wang Yuanyuan)