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Mount Qingcheng Draws More Than Just Tourists
The sacred Taoist mountain boasts an ecological wonder - more than 2,000 egrets that perch near the entrance to the mountain amid the cool and clean air.
Located 65 kilometres west of the Sichuan provincial capital of Chengdu, Mount Qingcheng is one of the most popular summer travel destinations in Southwest China and is claimed the birthplace of Taoism, China's only indigenous religion.
The egrets in the mountain are attracted by 99 ancient Machilus trees, some more than 1,000 years old, that were planted near the gate to the mountain. The trees are where egrets build their nests.
According to local residents, the egret population has been increasing along with improvements in the environment around Mount Qingcheng.
Last November, Mount Qingcheng was added with Dujiangyan, the only ancient irrigation project left in the world that does not use a dam, to the World Heritage List of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
The city of Dujiangyan, home to both the irrigation project and the mountain, has invested more than 200 million yuan£šUS$24 million £© in ecological improvement projects over recent years.
With the arrival of the birds, the investment seems to have paid off. During the daytime, the egrets look for food in the mountain or at a nearby lake. At night, they perch on the trees.
Liu Gang, director of the Mountain Qingcheng Administration, said the mountain's addition to the World Heritage List has boosted local awareness of environmental issues and sympathy for the egret population.
One summer night two years ago, a gust of wind blew a newborn egret to the ground in the Hexiang Mountain Villa, a two-star hotel in Mount Qingcheng. The next morning, Wang Juan, a hotel employee, happened to see it and took the chick, which she named Little Snow, to her dormitory.
Wang fed the chick insects and small fish every day and sent it back to the trees when it could fly. Afterwards, whenever Wang calls Little Snow's name, the egret reportedly flies to her hands. "Little Snow'' flew away with the other egrets in October that year.
Sources: China Daily
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