Trang chủOn April 7th, the Cam Lo-Dong Ha City Forest Protection Unit in Quang Tri province announced that a flock of hundreds of rare egrets had appeared in Cam Lo town, Cam Lo district.
[Image of the egrets foraging in the fields. Photo: Nhan Dan Newspaper]
Mr. Ha Van Bac, head of the forest protection unit, said that the flock of egrets had been present in the Cam Lo town area for nearly a month, but their numbers had increased significantly in the last three days. Observations show that the egrets regularly search for food in abandoned rice fields in Cam Lo town and the area bordering Phan Xa Phuong village, Cam Thanh commune. Their main food sources are worms, crickets, grasshoppers, and especially golden apple snails. At night, the egrets usually choose the surrounding melaleuca forests and the Nghia Hy reservoir area as their roosting places.
The Great Egret (scientific name Anastomus oscitans) is a rare animal listed in the Red Book of Vietnam, belonging to the Heron family, order Storks, and its natural habitat is usually mangrove forests. Great Egrets weigh approximately 1 to 1.2 kg, have black and white wings, a grayish-green horn-like beak, and their plumage changes with the seasons. This species is mainly distributed in South Asia and Southeast Asia, including Vietnam. They are commonly found in the Southwestern Mekong Delta, living in flooded areas and feeding only on aquatic animals such as golden apple snails, frogs, and large insects.
To protect the Great Egret population, the Cam Lo-Dong Ha City Forest Protection Department has advised the Cam Lo District People’s Committee to direct increased public awareness campaigns and encourage people to actively participate in protection; strictly prohibit hunting and enforce state regulations on the protection of endangered and rare wild animals.
Previously, authorities also recorded the appearance of a flock of egrets numbering over 100 individuals in the fields of Huong Tra town and Phong Dien and Quang Dien districts (Hue city).