Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/24/2020
By: Chiu Yun and interns
Grace Hu, Meryl Kao, and Eden Wang

Taipei, Aug. 24 (CNA) Chinese crested terns, an endangered species known locally as the "bird of myth," have been spotted among the thousands of terns that land on the outlying island of Matsu for a break on their migration route, according to the Lienchiang County government.

The first few of the birds started arriving in the Matsu National Science Area on Saturday to avoid a typhoon and are hoped to bring profit to the Matsu tourism industry, said Wang Chien-hua (王建華), director of the Economic Development Department of Lienchiang County.

The Chinese crested tern, whose numbers were estimated at under 100 in the world as of July, had not been seen for 60 years anywhere in the world until it was sighted at the Matsu Islands Tern Refuge in 2000, according to the Forestry Bureau.

The bird was listed among the 100 most endangered species in the world in 2012 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) and is named as critically endangered on the IUCN red list.    [FULL  STORY]