New gull species discovered in Kunming

A tourist feeds a seagull in Kunming, Yunnan province, in October. (Liu Ranyang/China News Service)

According to a survey conducted by the Kunming Bird Association on December 24 in over 60 seagull habitats around Dianchi Lake, Kunming has welcomed 40,700 seagulls this winter, a slight increase from last year's 39,000. The number of seagulls visiting Kunming has remained steady over the years.

Notably, this year, a new gull species, the little gull, was identified for the first time in Kunming. This signifies an expanding variety of gull species spending their winters in Kunming, indicating that Dianchi Lake is increasingly becoming a suitable winter habitat for these birds."

Wang Zhibin, the deputy secretary-general of the Kunming Bird Association, introduced that the seagull count is crucial for bird research. The changes in the number, distribution, and density of wintering seagulls can reflect the condition of Kunming's climate and environment.

"Due to technological limitations, there might be a margin of error. Especially when counting a large number of birds that are scattered around and move fast," Wang underlined. Sometimes, they count the seagulls one by one, but in most cases, they estimate the general amount of seagulls based on groups.

Source： Spring City Evening News; trans-editing by Guo Yao