Thousands of swans winter in the coastal wetlands of Shandong each year, and every effort is exercised to make sure these migratory birds have a comfortable refuge. Han Bingbin visits the swan lakes.
Some of China’s rare lagoons lie along the relatively unpolluted coastline from Weihai to Rongcheng in Shandong province. Thousands of whooper swans migrate across borders for their annual winter stay here, attracted by the good supply of fresh water and aquatic plants, as well as sparsely populated coastal plains.
These lagoons with their winter population of swans have earned Rongcheng fame as the “home of swans”. An estimated 8,000 swans set up home each year at the wetlands here, for about five months from November to April, after which they fly back to Siberia and Mongolia for the breeding season. In the following years, some of them may make the return journey with their cygnets.
