ENG-1969 — Page 318

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Natural History

TIGERS padding through the rain forest of Hong Kong Island, the bellow of crocodiles in the creeks at Aberdeen, elephants trampling the rushes of Kowloon peninsular-such was the exotic scene that greeted the first Chinese settlers when they arrived in this region in the time of the early Sung Dynasty, about one thousand years ago.

Most of the big game, of course, vanished long ago as the settlers steadily cut away the great forest which then covered the area, replacing it first with paddy fields and villages and later with the skyscrapers and factories of a thriving modern community.

Hong Kong, however, has clung to its countryside heritage with surprising success. By far the greater part of the Colony's land mass is still rolling fields, quiet wooded hills, lush valleys and beaches. Here can be found the rich animal and plant life of Hong_Kong.

Government's interest and concern in conserving nature is demonstrated both by legislation and by the activity of its con- servation staff. There are eight wild life sanctuaries, one of which is the whole of Hong Kong Island. In 1969 the report of a provi- sional council for the use and conservation of the countryside was tabled before Executive Council. New Legislation is being prepared to control the trade through Hong Kong of certain animals and birds which are in danger of extinction, and the law covering the protection of local fauna is also being revised.

WILD LIFE

With increased urbanisation and greater use of the countryside by an urban population many wild animals, particularly mammals, are declining in numbers. Indigenous mammals which no longer occur are the Crab-Eating Mongoose, the Wild Red Dog or Dhole, the Tiger and the Leopard. The last definite record of a Tiger was in 1947 and the last recorded sighting of a Leopard in 1957. The Eastern Chinese Otter, once abundant, is now a rare visitor, and