362 wild bird species occupy Mount Tai

As of March 12, 362 species of wild birds have been recorded in the Mount Tai area in Tai'an, Shandong province, accounting for 76.65 percent of the province's total.

Among the 362 species, 10 species are under national first-class wild animal protection, 64 species are under national second-class wild animal protection, and five species are endemic to China.

In order to enrich the biodiversity on Mount Tai, the Mount Tai scenic area has been taking various measures to improve its ecological environment, such as combining protection and research from both the government and volunteers.

The Taishan Bird Loving Association captured photographs of a flock of Aythya baeri, which is a critically endangered bird under first-class national protection, in Tai'an on Jan 13. It was the largest population ever found.

The Mount Tai scenic area prepares five metric tons of food, places 10,000 feeding tables and hangs 500 artificial bird nests in the forest every spring and winter to ensure birds' safety and stablize the population.

Since 2020, with the joint efforts of all walks of life, the records of birds in the Mount Tai region have increased by more than 10 species on average every year.