Woman devotes herself to protecting black-necked cranes at nature reserve in SW China’s Yunnan

Chen Guanghui is a guardian for black-necked cranes in the Dashanbao Black-necked Crane National Nature Reserve of Zhaotong city, southwest China’s Yunnan Province, the nature reserve serving as an important habitat for the species and a stopover point for the birds every year for overwintering.

Chen Guanghui feeds black-necked cranes in the Dashanbao Black-necked Crane National Nature Reserve in Zhaotong city, southwest China’s Yunnan Province. (PhotoZhang Guangyu)

Chen spends her time helping to confirm the number of black-necked cranes present in the nature reserve at any one time as well as ensuring that there is enough food for the birds, while also preventing tourists from causing any disruption to the species during their stay.

She has already dedicated herself to the protection of the species at the nature reserve for 19 years. Over the past years, she learnt how to blow a special whistle in an attempt to communicate with the birds.

One day in the winter of 2008, Chen found that a black-necked crane became stuck on a lake in the nature reserve when the water began to freeze around its feet. While she came to the bird’s rescue and used a stone to chip away the ice around its feet, she accidently slipped into the cold water, struggling to get out on her own to reach safety.

Black-necked cranes fly in the Dashanbao Black-necked Crane National Nature Reserve. (Photo/Wu Taiping)

At the time, no one around was in sight. There was only some black-necked cranes chirping around her, whose presence ultimately kept her calm enough so that she finally could manage to crawl ashore. Chen actually feels that she was saved by the birds and she has always regarded black-necked cranes as her friends.

Thanks to the joint protection efforts of Chen and staff members at the nature reserve, now more than 1,900 black-necked cranes overwinter in the area each season every year, up from about 300 when the nature reserve was established.

“It’s my duty to protect the species, and I will keep at it,” Chen said.