YANGON, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- More than 20,000 birds from 46 species have taken refuge this winter at Indawgyi Lake, the country's largest freshwater lake, in northern Myanmar's Kachin State, an official said on Wednesday.
"It included over 16,200 migratory birds from 28 species and more than 3,900 resident waterbirds from 18 species," U Maung Win, the administrator of the Indawgyi Lake Wildlife Sanctuary, told Xinhua.
This year's wintering bird census at the lake was conducted in the first week of January, the peak period for migratory birds at the lake and its surrounding areas, the official said.
This year's figures mark a decline compared to last winter when over 21,000 birds from 47 species were recorded at the lake, the official added. The arrivals of migratory birds at the lake annually start in October, and they leave the region the following May or April, he said.
The wintering birds benefit local farmers by feeding on pests and snails that damage crops in the region, U Maung Win said.
As Indawgyi Lake is one of Myanmar's top nature-based tourism destinations, the presence of migratory birds attracts more tourists, particularly bird lovers and birdwatchers, boosting the local economy, he said.
The official said the lake was included in two of nine major flyways used by migratory birds worldwide for wintering -- the East Asian-Australian Flyway and the Central Asian Flyway, he added.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization designated Indawgyi Lake as a Man and the Biosphere Reserve among its world network of 669 reserves in June 2017. ■
