Images of flocks of white storks and wild birds flying over the sea of Ha Long, over the forests of Nui Hua, or in the mangrove forests of Quang Yen... bring a different perspective of a green, peaceful Quang Ninh, besides the bustling, bustling and modern one that has long been famous.
Symbol of peaceful lands
The image of a flock of storks is a symbol of ponds and fields, the most peaceful and pristine beauty in the culture and mind of Vietnamese people for many generations, and is the inspiration for many traditional poems and literature. In the midst of rapid development in all areas of modern society, with the rise of technology and urbanization, beautiful, simple and natural scenes bring peace and tranquility to those who see them with their own eyes.
Tourists visiting Ha Long Bay during the April 30-May 1 holiday are surprised and delighted to see flocks of white storks spreading their wings over the sea in search of shelter. Large flocks of storks soar over the bay, close to the limestone cliffs, or hover close to the water surface in search of food. The blue of the sky, the sea, the gray of the rocky mountains and the white of the storks create an impressive picture, bringing a strangely poetic feeling.
According to Mr. Tran Xuan Dong, Head of the Provincial Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, the characteristic of storks is to appear in quiet places, clean environments, and available food. Storks often migrate to Ha Long Bay to find food around March and September. The fact that so many storks appear now shows that the bay has good aquatic resources, favorable for storks to find food.
Located in the middle of the fields of Lang Ruong village, commune Dai Binh (Dam Ha district), Nui Hua forest is home to thousands of storks. The entire living area of the storks is about 1 hectare of bamboo and eucalyptus forests. Lang Ruong villagers said that the storks have been living here since the late 70s of the last century. At first, there were only a few, but due to the climate conditions and abundant food sources, the flock of storks grew quite quickly.
The main living area of the storks is divided into 3 levels. The top level with the tall treetops is where the storks perch. The middle level is the forks and branches where the storks make their nests. The bottom level is the branches close to the ground, where the small storks practice foraging and flying. The best time to watch the storks here is in the summer. At that time, the storks are in the breeding and development season, the space becomes more bustling, especially in the early morning and late afternoon. For a long time, the people of Lang Ruong have been conscious of not chasing or hunting the storks, but trying to protect and preserve the storks' living environment. And those soaring white storks have become an indispensable part of the peaceful life of this land.
Located on the banks of the historic Bach Dang River, Quang Yen Town is not only a land rich in cultural traditions, but also home to 2,671 hectares of mangrove forests. The diverse, unique and characteristic flora and fauna make Quang Yen's mangrove forests like a solid green "wall" protecting the sea dykes, providing aquatic resources for the people.
The landscape here resembles the garden areas of the Southwest, with a system of canals between the forests. In the forests and waters, flocks of storks spread their wings to find food at the roots of trees and on the water surface. In addition to densely populated residential areas and rapidly developing traffic infrastructure, efforts to protect the open green space of mangrove forests are very important in ensuring ecological balance and preserving nature and the living environment in Quang Yen.
Co To is an island district at the headland of the Fatherland, located in the East of the province, including nearly 50 large and small islands. Although the agricultural land area only accounts for about 20% of the natural land, the locality always focuses on exploiting and effectively using this resource. When exploring the scenery on the island, visitors are not only amazed by the picturesque beaches, precious primeval forests, but also the green rice fields just like the space somewhere in a traditional Northern village.
On the beach, on the green rice fields, it is easy to see white storks flying or landing to find food. Perhaps that is one of the reasons why Co To is considered a place to “escape” from the noise and bustle of modern society. Tourists often feel more peaceful and calm before such gentle and heartbreaking beauty.
Maintain a safe environment for birds to nest.
In its development orientation, Quang Ninh always attaches importance to environmental protection and biodiversity protection, considering this a strategic task and an urgent requirement to ensure current and sustainable development goals in the future. The images of flocks of storks and birds returning to live during each migration season, or staying to live in natural lands and waters are proof of the efforts to realize this goal.
That important task is specifically stipulated in many directive and management documents, notably Resolution No. 12-NQ/TU dated March 12, 2018 of the Provincial Party Committee on environmental protection in Quang Ninh province for the period 2018-2022; planning to bring aquaculture activities to buffer zones and sub-zones of conservation areas, heritage sites... And most recently, Resolution 10-NQ/TU dated September 26, 2022 of the Provincial Party Committee on strengthening the Party's leadership in resource management, environmental protection, disaster prevention and mitigation, climate change response, and ensuring water security for the period 2022-2030.
The province also allocates adequate budget to maintain regular operations at nature reserves and biodiversity conservation management units at provincial and local levels; and deploys technical and legal solutions to protect ecosystems.
Regarding the World Natural Heritage Ha Long Bay, the province has always paid attention to and directed the management and preservation of the bay's values, including biodiversity values, and has allocated many priority resources to serve the conservation work. According to Mr. Pham Dinh Huynh, Deputy Head of the Ha Long Bay Management Board, the management, protection and conservation of biodiversity in recent times has been actively implemented through many scientific tasks, programs, and plans for surveying and investigating the biodiversity of Ha Long Bay.
Mr. Huynh also said that Ha Long Bay is considered a good land with nearly 3,000 species of animals and plants living together. Along with solutions to strictly protect areas with high biodiversity, focusing on rare, precious and endemic species in the bay, Ha Long Bay Management Board also periodically monitors the conservation status of heritage values, biodiversity and strengthens environmental protection and biodiversity protection.
Regarding the protection of wildlife and migratory birds, Mr. Nguyen Minh Son, Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said: Every year, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development directs forest rangers to preside over and coordinate with relevant agencies and local authorities to strengthen patrols and control of key areas for trading and consuming wild and migratory birds; promptly detect, prevent, and strictly handle acts of illegal hunting, trapping, slaughtering, transporting, trading, processing, and storing of wild and migratory birds; and organize the destruction of illegal trading locations of wild and migratory birds in the area.
Localities throughout the province have also persistently and intensified propaganda to local people about the protection of wild birds, migratory birds in particular and wildlife in general; advising people not to hunt, trap, or capture wild birds, migratory birds, and other wildlife. The management and protection of wild and migratory birds is always especially enhanced and focused on during the migratory bird season (from early September of the previous year to April of the following year).
Along with the propaganda, there are a series of campaigns to detect and promptly handle violations. In 2022 alone, the whole province has conducted 148 campaigns to inspect, handle and prevent the hunting of wild birds in the area. The participating forces represent sectors such as forest rangers, police, border guards, market management, veterinary, leaders of communes, wards and towns... The inspection teams have collected and destroyed over 46,000m of bird-catching nets, nearly 2,000 bamboo and wooden stakes and related equipment. All cases related to hunting wild birds are strictly punished, so as not to become a "painful problem", gradually raising awareness of environmental protection in the community.
From the East to the central region and to the West of the province, the green and white paintings affirm Quang Ninh's efforts in protecting and preserving the natural environment in parallel with the development of high-tech industries and modern services. The companionship between economic development and environmental protection is the direction that Quang Ninh always perseveres in, gradually overcoming difficulties to achieve sustainability in its immediate and long-term development strategies and goals.
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