Wild bird population

WUHAN, capital of Central China’s Hubei Province, observed and recorded a total of 380 wild bird species in 2022, a new record since 2016 when the city first launched bird monitoring activities, local authorities said.

According to the Wuhan municipal garden and forestry bureau, 20 bird species were newly discovered last year.

24M tourist trips

THE country saw about 24 million domestic tourist trips made during the Qingming Festival, which falls Wednesday, up 22.7% from last year, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

The trips were estimated to bring in 6.52 billion yuan (US$945 million) in tourist revenue, an increase of 29% year on year, said the ministry.

Unlike previous years, this year’s Qingming Festival, or Tomb-Sweeping Day, did not feature three straight days off through a weekend, meaning that many Chinese people took one-day sightseeing tours.

Better service to elderly

BEIJING had a total of 650 beds for hospice patients by the end of 2022, compared to 64 beds by 2020, according to local health authorities.

A total of 95 medical institutions in the city had registered hospice care departments and 28 had set up special beds for hospice patients, said Wang Xiao’e, an official with the Beijing Municipal Health Commission.

Beijing authorities issued a plan for the development of hospice care services in the city in 2022. According to the plan, every district of the Chinese capital will host at least one hospice care center by 2025, with no less than 1,800 hospice beds across the city.