The World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD), a global annual campaign is held on every second Saturday of May and October, to raise awareness of migratory birds and calls for international cooperation to conserve them. Together with the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS), the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement, and Environment for the Americas, East Asian Australasian Flyway Partnership (EAAFP) has been supporting the worldwide campaign.

This year, the theme of the World Migratory Bird Day is “Sing, Fly, Soar – Like a Bird!”, which brings us back to the origin of why we are working together to conserve migratory birds. It’s the beauty of birds in their songs, their flight, their behaviors, that we appreciate. Their amazing migration boosts people’s imagination, to create stories, stimulates Arts and Literature, and inspires science. Their presence also has a healing effect to us.

A flock of migratory waterbirds in Khok Kham, Thailand ⓒ Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok

In the past year, the whole world has experienced lockdown and restricted travel due to the COVID pandemic. It was a challenging time for many of us and society. Yet, this allowed Nature to recover and allowed us, human beings, to reflect on our relationship with nature.  A lot of the threats they face are anthropogenic, such as habitat loss and degradation, urbanization, pollution, and illegal hunting. It is timely for the reflection and working out solutions in all aspects, because the global environmental events and agenda, such as the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework through the Convention of the Biological Diversity (CBD), the new decisions following the Paris Agreement on the Climate Change, Ramsar Convention COP 14, will be happening very soon this year.

The East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership is committed to working together with our 39 Partners and other collaborators to conserve the migratory waterbirds and their habitats in the Flyway. We are spearheading and taking part in initiatives to ensure that migratory waterbirds with their unique songs and flights can be enjoyed by future generations.

As birds continue to sing, fly and soar along their flyways, they continue to remind us of our connection to the planet, the environment, wildlife, and each other. Let us come together and raise our voices for migratory birds conservation!

Black-faced Spoonbill ⓒ Eugene Cheah

Far Eastern Curlew ⓒ Eugene Cheah

Spoon-billed Sandpiper ⓒ Tom Noah

Know more about World Migratory Bird Day, click here.

Resources from EAAFP and events in the EAA Flyway, click here.