[Bird-Window Collision of Watercock Re-occurred in Central after Half a Century]
In late September last year, a scarce species of conservation concern in Hong Kong, named Watercock, was suspected to collide with a glass window at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Central during the night, resulting in fractures and injuries. Fortunately, a passerby discovered it and sent it to Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden Rescue Centre for treatment. After completing rehabilitation in mid-October, it was released into the wild in Mai Po.
The sad thing is, this is not the first time of bird-window collision of this species. Checking the bird records, a suspected bird-window collision involving a Watercock was recorded 55 years ago in October. This is located within 400 meters of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. After half a century, Watercock once again became the victim of this window collision tragedy in Central.
Watercock is nocturnal migratory bird species. Its peak migration period in Hong Kong is from the last week of September to October. Watercock generally prefers open-country and wetland habitats like marshes and wet farmland grown with aquatic plants. Such urbanized areas like Central are not a suitable environment for them. We estimate that these two individuals were disorientated by artificial light in Central and Victoria Harbour during their migration, mistakenly entering the urban area that is with a high risk of bird-window collisions, and resulting in window strike.
The unfortunate incident again demonstrates that the impact of artificial light pollution on nocturnal migratory birds can be fatal. According to the 'Hong Kong Bird-Window Collision Report 2022-2023,' among the 309 bird collision victims, 46 of them were nocturnal migratory birds. The impact of light pollution on bird collision risks in Hong Kong should not be overlooked and needs further study.
What can we do to improve the situation? Firstly, for existing buildings, it is recommended that the government, private sector, and citizens adjust lighting design and timing to prevent light from shinning out towards the outside at night, reducing the potential impact of light pollution on nocturnal migratory birds and the collision risk. For new buildings, we should follow global direction by making legislation to strictly require new constructions to be adopted with bird-friendly designs.
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