This year's spring migration monitoring in Qidong recorded 52 species of birds from 21 families and 9 orders.

Four of the species are national second-level protected birds, including the great knot, ruddy turnstone, spoon-billed sandpiper, and eurasian curlew. Five species are threatened according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Qidong's vast coastal beaches, clean water, lush vegetation, and harmonious coexistence between man and nature attract these birds. And their arrival hints at a healthy natural environment in Qidong.

Among the protected animals in Qidong, people are most familiar with the egrets. Egrets most commonly appear in the Qidong countryside. Their habitats are mainly distributed throughout Nanyang town and Diehu Park in Xincheng district.

In addition, thousands of mallards have been spotted sheltering at the river beach of Qilong town in Qidong, which is under national first-class protection.

An elk is spotted in Qidong, a county-level city of Nantong in East China's Jiangsu province. [Photo/WeChat account: qdrmt0513]

Many places in Qidong also have traces of elks, which are also under national first-class protection.