Rare gull sighted on Chongming Dongtan Reserve
The laughing gull
A laughing gull was spotted in Chongming Dongtan National Nature Reserve recently, the first time that the species has been seen on the Chinese mainland.
The species has only been seen in Taiwan a few times in the past, according to the Shanghai Greenery and Public Sanitation Bureau.
The gull, named after its chirp, which sounds like a human laugh, was seen fighting with a tern.
The nature reserve has been forwarded as a nominated area of China's Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the coast of the Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf (Phase II) for UNESCO World Heritage listing.
It will be the city's first World Heritage site if inscribed.
Chongming Dongtan National Nature Reserve has recorded about 300 species of birds, including 22 global threatened species, 18 national first-class protected species and 59 national second-class protected species.
