Numbers of endangered migratory shorebirds are growing at Bako-Buntal Bay in Sarawak. But scientists warn the trend could reflect problems elsewhere on the critical East Asian flyway.

THE TIDE comes in quickly. “You have to move, move, move,” says Rose Au. “Within a few minutes, it’s up to your knees!” Coupled with the dangers of getting stuck in the mud or encountering a crocodile, the business of counting birds has never sounded more thrilling.

Au and the other amateur birders of the Malaysian Nature Society Kuching Branch (MNS) in Sarawak, have been braving these dangers and more for the last 16 years. Their aim: to count the thousands of shorebirds which come to Sarawak every year en route south from their breeding grounds in Siberia.

(Counting shorebirds in Bako-Buntal Bay, Sarawak. Birds stop at the bay every year on their way from Siberia. |  Image: Batrisyia Teepol/MNS)

砂拉越洲峇哥文丹湾的濒危迁徙滨鸟数量正在增加。但科学家警告说，这一趋势或许反映了东亚迁徙路线上的其他停歇地出现了问题。

潮水涨得很快。“你必须走了，快点，快点，”欧月圆（Rose Au）说。“几分钟水就会涨到你膝盖！” 加上陷入泥沼或者遭遇鳄鱼的危险，这都让统计滨鸟数量这项任务听起来十分惊险。

过去16年，欧和马来西亚自然协会（Malaysian Nature Society，简称 “MNS”）古晋分会在砂拉越的其他业余观鸟者一直勇敢地面对着很多甚至比这些还要危险的状况。他们的目标是：统计每年从西伯利亚繁殖地南迁途经砂拉越的成千上万只滨鸟。

(马来西亚婆罗洲峇哥文丹湾，观鸟者们正在统计滨鸟数量。西伯利亚的候鸟每年南迁途中都会在这里歇脚。 图片来源：Batrisyia Teepol/MNS)