H 香港政府 GIS 新聞處
SUNDAY, MARCH 9, 1975.
DAILY INFORMATION BULLETIN
KAI TAK BIRD STUDY
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THE AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES DEPARTMENT HAS RECRUITED AN ORNITHOLOGIST TO CARRY OUT A STUDY ON THE BEHAVIOUR PATTERNS AND FEEDING HABITS OF CERTAIN LOCAL BIRDS WHICH ARE AN ACTUAL OR A POTENTIAL HAZARD TO AIRCRAFT USING KAI TAK AIRPORT.
THE TWO-AND-A-HALF-YEAR STUDY, WHICH BEGAN EARLY LAST YEAR, IS PART OF A LONG-TERM PROGRAMME TO REDUCE THE RISK OF BIRDSTRIKES ON AIRCRAFT AND THE ATTENDANT DANGER TO AIRLINERS AND THEIR PASSENGERS.
MR. DAVID MELVILLE, THE ORNITHOLOGIST, WAS RECRUITED LAST YEAR FROM THE UNITED KINGDOM, WHERE HE HAD DEEN" INVESTIGATING THE POTENTIAL DIRDSTRIKE HAZARD AT THE SITE OF THE PROPOSED THIRD LONDON AIRPORT.
SINCE HIS ARRIVAL IN HONG KONG LAST FEBRUARY HE HAS BEEN MAKING REGULAR VISITS TO THE AIRPORT AS WELL AS THE OUTLYING ISLANDS AND THE NEW TERRITORIES TO ASSESS THE NUMBER OF BIRDS PRESENT.
MR.
MELVILLE SAID THAT WHILE MANY SPECIES OF BIRDS MAY DE A HAZARD TO AIRCRAFT, THE HONG KONG STUDY IS CONCENTRATED ON PLACK-EARED KITES, SHORE BIRDS AND SEAGULLS SINCE THESE PRESENT THE MAIN HAZARD TO AIRCRAFT.
SINCE MANY BIRDWATCHERS HAVE LITTLE INTEREST IN COMMON DIRDS, HE SAID, THERE IS LITTLE BACKGROUND MATERIAL AVAILABLE AND SO THE STUDY HAS HAD TO START FROM THE BEGINNING. DURING THE FIRST YEAR OF THE STUDY THE MAIN OBJECTIVE HAS DEEN TO COLLECT DATA.
WHILE THERE MAY ONLY DE ONE OR TWO HUNDRED KITES IN HONG KONG DURING THE SUMMER, THERE ARE ABOUT 1,000 PRESENT IN THE WINTER. KITES ARE MIGRATORY AND THOSE WHICH SPEND THE WINTER IN HONG KONG PRODABLY COME FROM CITINA.
MOST KITES ROOST AROUND THE PEAK AND ON STONE-CUTTERS' ISLAND. KITES ARE MAINLY SCAVENGING BIRDS AND FEED ON SUCH ITEMS AS DEAD RATS, FISH AND SMALL BIRDS.
SEAGULLS ARE USUALLY PRESENT IN HONG KONG DETWEEN OCTOBER AND THE END OF MARCH. MANY OF THE GULLS, THE MOST NUMEROUS OF WHICH IS THE BLACK-HEADED GULL, SPEND THE DAY IN THE HARBOUR AREA FEEDING ON SMALL FISH AND REFUSE. THEY ROOST ON THE SEA TO THE SOUTH OF LAMMA ISLAND AND RECENTLY 6,500 GULLS WERE COUNTED FLYING TO ROOST THERE.
A WIDE VARIETY OF SHORE BIRDS HAVE BEEN SEEN AT THE AIRPORT DUT USUALLY ONLY SMALL NUMBERS ARE PRESENT AT ANY ONE TIME. MOST OF THE BIRDS APPEAR DURING THE SPRING AND AUTUMN MIGRATION SEASONS.
/COMPREHENSIVE STATISTICS
Issued by Government Information Services, Beaconsfield House, Hong Kong. Tel: 5-233191
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