Current status of birds in Tengchong Section of Gaoligongshan National Nature Reserve, China

Abstract

We summarised the results of a four-year ornithological survey in the Tengchong Section of Gaoligongshan National Nature Reserve and its immediate vicinity, and compiled an inventory of the present avifauna. In total, 387 bird species were recorded in Tengchong from 2014 to 2018, including 116 which were hitherto undocumented. The birds of Tengchong represented 48.9% of avifauna in Yunnan province, with a particularly rich elements of the Himalayan avifauna. This immense bird species richness suggests that Tengchong is an important site for the preservation of Asian montane forest birds. Although the current protected area system covered most of the intact forests in mid- to high-elevations, more conservation intervention should be allocated to lower elevation habitats below 2000m, which are largely outside the reserve boundaries and facing intensive development pressures.