Over the past week, swallow storks, an extremely rare species listed in
the Vietnam Red Book, have flocked to Muong Phang district, northern
Dien Bien province. However, this species is disappearing due to
hunting.
According to locals, everyday from 6am to
11am or 2pm till past 4pm, hundreds of swallow storks appear on paddy
fields in Phang, Dong Met and Bua villages and around Dien Bien Phu
campaign relic site.
Notably some days, they swarm all over the fields. The number could amount to 700 – 800.
Locals attribute their appearance to the falling water level in Pa
Khaong lake, which makes it easier for them to catch food.
While local authorities have yet to take effective measures to protect
the storks, local residents are rushing to entrap them.
Local farmers say they ensnare storks to protect rice fields.
Swallow stork, generally known as snail stork, belongs to the crane
family. They live in flocks in South Asian and Southeast Asian
countries. In Vietnam , they can be found in the southwestern region
and Tay Ninh province.
This species of stork weighs
1 to 1.2kg and mainly eats shellfish, frogs, toads, crabs and large
insects. Fewer living areas and sources of food forces the stork to
migrate to other regions.-VNA