Tian Zhiwei: Birds’ Protector in Bohai Bay Area| Director of CBCGDF Community Conservation Area in Tangshan

Leting county in Hebei Province, north China is an important stop for migratory birds along their routes between East Asia and Australia. Each year, millions of wild birds stop in the area where there are many wetlands.

Tian Zhiwei, a 52-year-old veteran, is the director of the Daqinghe rescue station of the Wildlife Conservation Association in Tangshan City of Hebei Province. In 2004, Tian rescued 14 oriental white storks, and since then, has continued to protect and rescue wild birds. Daqinghe station is now helping over 230 birds. More than 400 bird species can be observed in the Daqinghe rescue station, among which the number of 13 bird species exceeds one percent of the global total.

When he was a kid, one day on his way home from school, Tian Zhiwei picked up two pigeons, and later the birds had baby pigeons. This was exactly when he started to take bird conservation as his lifework.

Tian has overcome many difficulties to make Daqinghe rescue station a famous place for bird-lovers to visit.