At dusk in mid-July, flocks of egrets circle above a grove of more than 100 trees in Haipo Village, Lingmen Town, Dianbai District, Maoming. At about 5:30 p.m., they roost in the branches for the night, turning the area into an egret haven.
The site is neither a nature reserve nor a wetland park. It is the backyard of a local villager named Yang Liuxing.
"This area used to be a saltwater-soaked tidal flat where almost nothing could grow," Yang recalled. More than a decade ago, he began planting trees there. As the saplings grew and formed a dense canopy, egrets started to arrive.
At first, there were only a few. Then came hundreds, followed by thousands.
"We have spotted at least four egret species roosting here," Yang said. He estimates that the site now hosts around 10,000 egrets.
Authors & Photos | Deng Jianqing, Zhang Pengfei
