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Topic: Important Painted-snipe site under threat 彩鷸棲地受脅 (Read 1895 times) |
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johnallcock
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Posts: 66
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Important Painted-snipe site under threat 彩鷸棲地受脅
« on: Mar 14th, 2006, 1:20pm » |
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A planning application has been put in for development of what is probably the most important site for Greater-Painted snipe at Kam Tin. This site is an area of abandoned fishponds and agricultural land immediately adjacent to Shui Mei village, near the Buffalo Fields.
Greater Painted-snipe have been recorded breeding in the abandoned fields every year for at least the last five years. Birds are also regularly present throughout the year (depending on water levels), with counts of about 20 birds not unusual during autumn and early winter. Work I have been doing on the species locally indicates that the site is important for both night-time feeding and daytime roosting.
The application involves the filling of one of the fishponds for the construction of 40(!) houses. I have recorded painted-snipe feeding and roosting in this pond. It is also frequently used as a refuge for birds flushed from elsewhere, and I have recorded a male with chicks using the bund when the fields were flooded.
As there is currently no vehicular access to the pond, this will also require filling the fields immediately south of the fishpond (this has already started); these fields are one of the proven breeding sites. This would have a major impact on the hydrology of the site, as it would block a small stream that drains through the fields (causing the fields to flood, and probably increasing the risk of flooding in nearby houses during periods of high rainfall)
As well as painted-snipe, the site is important for other bird species; among other species I have recorded purple heron, schrenck's, cinnamon and yellow bitterns, besra, grey-headed lapwing, common/pintail/swinhoe's snipe (numerous), woodcock, plaintive cuckoo, lesser coucal, asian barred owlet, savanna nightjar, brown shrike (overwintering for last 2 years), thrushes, zitting cisticola, red-thoated and asian brown flycatchers, buntings, grosbeaks and starlings.
Other wildlife includes snakes (checkered keelback, ratsnakes, cobras, buff-striped keelback, many-banded krait) and amphibians (7 species).
I believe the application is not just environmentally damaging but is also unnecessary; a few metres from the proposed site is a group of 11 houses that were built several years ago and are still unoccupied. It seems unlikely that another 40 houses are now required!
The planning department is currently asking for comments on the proposal by 28th March. I intend to write to them outlining these points and I believe the HKBWS will also be making comments. If anyone else is interested in doing so, or would like more details, please contact me.
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| « Last Edit: Mar 18th, 2006, 6:34pm by Webcreeper » |
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Captain
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I love bird watching!
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Re: Important Painted-snipe site under threat
« Reply #2 on: Mar 14th, 2006, 3:10pm » |
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Hi John,
This is Captain. Is the mentioned planning application A/YL-KTN/248? There are several planning application around Kam Tin.
Cheers,
Captain
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johnallcock
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Posts: 66
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Re: Important Painted-snipe site under threat
« Reply #3 on: Mar 14th, 2006, 5:49pm » |
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Yes, captain, that's the right number.
I will have a look at the nam sang wai application although I'm less familiar with the ponds there
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