Rare Baer's pochards spotted anew in Ningde, SE China's Fujian

Photo shows a Baer's pochard in Funing Bay, Xiapu county, Ningde city, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Photo/Zheng Peiluan)

The Baer's pochard, a critically endangered diving duck, was recently spotted again in Funing Bay, Xiapu county, Ningde city, southeast China's Fujian Province, following the discovery of a pair of Baer's pochards for the first time in the bay on Feb. 4, 2023.

The species was listed as "critically endangered" on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species. In February 2021, the Baer's pochard came under the strictest level-one protection in China. There are about 1,500 Baer's pochards in the world.

Funing Bay serves as a critical stopover for migratory birds along the East Asian–Australasian flyway.