Three minutes to talk about popular science
The status of the country and in Mongolia is so different?
The osprey, in fact, its real name should be called cormorant, also known as the water crow, is a medium to large seabird. They live mainly in coastal areas or inland waters, and are found all over the world.
Cormorants are generally black all over, with a patina sheen in sunlight and black claws. Interestingly, they have white filamentous feathers on the back of their heads and a white spot on their underflanks during the breeding period, which disappear during the non-breeding period.
Just such an ordinary-looking bird, but the situation in Mongolia and China is very different
According to statistics, in Mongolia, the locals kill almost 30 of these birds near Lake Baikal every day. Every day they destroy hundreds of these birds and their hatched eggs.
These residents patrol the shore with sticks and do not hesitate to give them a blow to the head if they spot the birds.
No matter how the cormorant struggled, the inhabitants not only did not show a trace of pity, as if it was not a bird, but their enemy.
What's more, they are not merciful to cormorant eggs. They will follow the cormorants to their nests, then dig a deep pit near the nest and throw the unhatched eggs into the hole and bury them alive.
On the other hand, the treatment of cormorants in our country is very different.
In China, the osprey has now become a protected animal, before being protected, a trained osprey can be sold for thousands or even tens of thousands of yuan, and it is still in short supply in the market, while in Mongolia there is only a "dead end".
Why is there such a big difference in the treatment of ospreys in China and Mongolia?
The hidden master of fishing - cormorants.
It turns out that this is caused by our geographical factors and cultural differences. Cormorants seem ordinary, but they have a particularly strong ability - fishing.
Although the cormorant is a bird, it also has a hidden skill - diving.
Cormorants' diving abilities are beyond the reach of many birds. Their wings are not as waterproof as other birds, so they allow them to dive deeper into the water to feed.
Amazingly, cormorants can dive for up to 70 seconds and dive to a depth of 19 to 20 meters. This, combined with the fact that their mouths have sharp hooks that take on the shape of a cone, makes it easy for them to catch fish that are swimming in the water.
During fishing, cormorants also enlarge their throats to accommodate more fish. It's simply a walking "fish bag".
The cormorant's fins and wings also help them, allowing them to swim quickly and fluently through the water, constantly adjusting their movements and the direction of their march to catch the fish with precision.
Once the prey is spotted, the cormorant will swoop at full speed, and before the fish can react, it becomes their meal. After a few times like this, none of them missed, and every fishing process was "fast, ruthless, and accurate", even humans who were stronger than them did not have this ability.
Of course, cormorants also have a weakness: their feathers are not waterproof, so when they catch a fish swimming out of the water, they need to dry their wings to allow the water to flow out before they can fly.
Why is the treatment different in Mongolia and in the country?
It is precisely because of the cormorant's strong fishing ability that it is very popular with fishermen in our country. Fishermen train them as soon as they break their shells to draw in the bond between themselves and them and promote intimacy.
At first, the little cormorant was reluctant to enter the water, and he did not want to follow the orders of his master. Fishermen would tie a rope to their feet and guide them to fish.
When the cormorant succeeds in catching some fish for its owner, the owner will reward it with some small fish. Through this reward system, the cormorant is willing to catch more fish for the owner.
Other fishermen came up with the idea of tying a rope around the cormorant's neck so that the cormorant would not be able to eat too many fish. Faced with hunger, the cormorant will have to catch more fish for its owner, but it has no appetite for food, but it does not know that it has fallen into the trap of its owner.
Some fishermen will starve the cormorants for a few days before they go into the water to fish, so that when they catch fish, they will fish desperately like starving ghosts, and finally let their owners sit back and enjoy the results.
In this way, the fishermen in the country cooperate with the cormorants to fish, which indeed brings them ideal economic benefits. With their tacit cooperation, coupled with the ability of cormorants to be stronger than other fishing methods, fishermen can almost earn nearly 2,000 yuan a day.
So, cormorants are a sweet treat in China, but in Mongolia they are different.
It turns out that there is a body of water called Lake Bell in Mongolia, and 90% of its water area lies in Mongolia. As a cormorant that lives in the water environment all year round, it naturally lives and fishes in this lake. The fishermen of Lake Bear make a living from fishing, and most of their income is from this.
In recent years, their fishing has been greatly affected, catching fewer fish and earning less and less income, and they believe that it is the cormorant fishing that has reduced the number of fish in the lake, which is why they hate these birds so much.
These Mongolian fishermen do not know how to use cormorants to fish for them, and consider these fish-loving birds to be a stumbling block to their fisheries.
But what they didn't realize was that while some of the decline in these fish was due to the mass hunting of cormorants, the main reasons for the decline were global warming and overfishing.
These Mongolian fishermen think that if they get rid of all these birds, they will increase the number of fish they catch, which is a foolish idea.
Are cormorants really overflowing?Look at the appeal of Lake Belga.
However, cormorant populations have increased compared to before, and have had a significant impact on the environment. Just recently, Lake Belga, known as the oldest and cleanest lake in the world, was plagued by cormorants.
In recent years, the local people of Lake Belga have called for a way to live in peace with cormorants, because the number of cormorants has been so large that not only the number and variety of fish in the lake have been greatly reduced, but also the excessive excrement of birds has also caused pollution to the local environment.
It is estimated that more than 40,000 cormorants live on the shores of Lake Belga, and their numbers are growing and their range is expanding.
It seems that the environment is getting better and attracts them, but in fact, it is caused by the imbalance of the ecological environment. This suggests that there is a problem with the local biological chain, which has led to a reduction in their natural predators and the degradation of their habitats, which is why they can grow so widely.
This will only make the environment worse, not only for the loss of fish, but also for the natural areas around the lake. Because cormorant droppings contain nitrogen and phosphorus, excessive emissions can cause eutrophication and blooms.
So the local people began to call for a solution to this headache, and some places made some artificial nests for cormorants to guide birds to lay eggs here;In some places, fishermen are encouraged to feed cormorants regularly so that they catch fewer fish in the water;Some have strengthened the monitoring and management of cormorants, customized programs in a timely manner, and so on.
Although the increase in the number of cormorants is a sign of the revival of the Baikal ecosystem, they do not do something irremediable there, but only participate in the cycle of nature, it has to be said that sometimes it is still a headache.
Abandon the way of fishing and take the cultural path instead.
Due to the damage to the waters, affecting the development of fisheries, as well as the protection of cormorant populations, the use of cormorants for fishing is prohibited in many places. For example, in China's Taihu Lake, Poyang Lake and other waters, a corresponding policy banning cormorant fishing has been promulgated.
Today's cormorant is no longer a fishing tool, but more of an intangible cultural heritage. Because this method has a long history, dating back to ancient times. As a result, there are now places that are approved for visitors to see the traditional performance of cormorant fishing.
For example, from March 1 to June 30 every year, the waters of the Li River in Guilin, Guangxi Province, are closed to fishing for four months. During this time, the fishermen change their identities and bring cormorants to perform fishing for tourists.
These fishermen would stand on bamboo rafts and shout as cormorants entered the water. And the cormorant will also be very obedient, plunging into the water, and soon be able to catch one or two big fish that are jumping around. Fishermen will praise it and reward them with small fish in time.
Such a performance has become a program at the Xingping Wharf on the Lijiang River. Fishermen are moving away from ospreys to more efficient and environmentally friendly ways of fishing. Cormorant fishing has slowly become such a performance program, allowing more people to understand our traditional Chinese culture.
With modern and innovative ways, inject new vitality into the original old tradition, and let it "exchange blood" exude new life and new vitality, which is not a beautiful landscape