Threats faced by Black-faced Spoonbill Black-faced Spoonbills face serious threats on both their wintering and breeding grounds, including reclamation, coastal development, pollution, hunting and human disturbance. Among these, habitat destruction is probably the biggest threat to this globally endangered species. Reclamation and construction poses the largest threat to Black-faced Spoonbills. For example, the Taipa-Coloane mudflats in Macau, which support 5% of the spoonbill world population, will be adversely affected by a reclamation project. The extensive intertidal mudflat of Ariake bay at Isahaya in Japan was dammed in 1997 and has remained dry ever since. Construction of Inchon International Airport in the mid-1990s led to the reclamation of wetland on Sammok and Yongjong islands. A study in China showed that about 21,900 km2 of tidal wetland (about 50% of the total area of coastal wetlands) has been reclaimed in China since 1949. Economic and facilities development has converted many coastal wetlands into aquaculture ponds, planting sites and industrial estates, all of which can be found in Hong Kong, Guangxi, Hainan and Vietnam. In Guangdong, development in the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone has greatly reduced the area of Futian Nature Reserve in Deep Bay, as fishponds there have been reclaimed and the nature reserve has been reduced to a narrow strip of mangroves along the northern coast of the bay. The western corridor between Hong Kong and Shenzhen will cross over Deep Bay area where the spoonbills feed. Pollution is mainly menacing the wintering Black-faced Spoonbill. For instance, pollution from industry and domestic sewage affects wintering birds in Hong Kong and Shenzhen in China. In December 2002 at Tseng-wen Estuary in Tainan, a kind of bacteria, Clostridium botulinum, was claim the lives of over 70 Black-faced Spoonbills, about 7% of the global population. In addition, pesticides and fertilizers used extensively in the paddies around the Red River Delta in Vietnam were found draining into the wetland area, which may pose threats to the survival of Black-faced Spoonbills. Hunting is distressingly common in China and Vietnam. At Liaoning, fishermen in China collect waterbird eggs at nesting sites. Also, birds are still shot even inside the core protected area of Dongzhaigang Nature Reserve. In Chi-ku in Tainan, one spoonbill was found shot dead while another was seriously injured in late 1992. This was believed to be a vindictive act by the locals, as apparently presence of the spoonbills would prevent development in that area. In the Red River Delta in Vietnam, the spoonbills are put in peril by the large mist nets, air-guns and shotguns. Disturbance caused by tourism is one of the main threats to Black-faced Spoonbills. For example, Dongzhaigang Nature Reserve of Hainan and Tsim Bei Tsui of Hong Kong are famous for their mangrove habitats, and large numbers of visitors increase pressure on these areas. Mudskipper collectors in Hong Kong and mollusc and crab collectors in Vietnam encroach on the intertidal feeding habitat, causing disturbance to spoonbills and other waterbirds.