The first record came on 6 March 2026, as Xingkai Lake’s surface began to thaw. At Longwangmiao Wetland, monitoring staff saw more than ten white-tailed sea eagles and two Steller’s sea eagles—both nationally protected species. Three days later, nearly 10,000 geese gathered around Lesser Xingkai Lake, circling low or feeding on the ice. Near the first floodgate at Great Xingkai Lake, a few Baikal teal and mallards had reached small patches of open water. Across several days and habitats, the sightings followed the spring movement from the first raptors to large goose flocks and ducks feeding at newly open water.
From the journal
Spring migrants at Longwangmiao Wetland
On 6 March 2026, monitors first found spring migrants at Longwangmiao Wetland, including white-tailed and Steller’s sea eagles; large goose flocks followed days later.
In the same city · Jixi ↗A migration recorded in stages
Watching the route, protecting the stopover
The reserve had deployed 140 high-definition cameras and five monitoring towers to cover an 188,000-hectare core area around the lake. Staff paired remote monitoring with patrols to remove illegal traps, wildlife rescue and public education. A caretaker even used a camera view to identify a red-crowned crane family—two adults and a smaller juvenile. Together, the cameras, patrols and rescue work help protect the wetland as a stopover while monitors track changing arrivals. For 2026, the migration peak was expected in late March and early April.