Ma Tau Wai service reservoir playground used to be a true gem and a place where nature and the city could co-exist in the buzy, bustling Hong Kong skyscrapers. Every year Autumn and Spring, hundreds of birds would come to the park to take a rest from their exhausting migration and refuel for their next trip, including truely majestic and help needing birds such as the endangered fairy pitta, thanks to its what used to be a wonderful habitat with sources of water and its lush vegetation, both of which are crucial for birds to survive. However, the park has recently greatly suffered from extreme tree cutting of invasive species, and only a fraction of the wildlife that would come to the park usually has been recorded last year, and most birds which remembered what the park used to be came to the park only leaving after a unusually  short time, disappointed by the current situation of the park. This will greatly reduce their chances of survival, as it is likely that if they do not find another place to rest, they will die of exhaustion from their long flight crossing oceans and continents. We believe  that the park is a great example of balance between nature and the city, and please help us preserve it by urging the managers of the park to plant more local trees!

位於何文田的馬頭圍配水庫遊樂場是一個觀鳥天堂。在香港的石屎森林中，自然生態與城市發展竟然可以共存。每年春季和秋季，數百種鳥類會降落在公園，在疲憊的遷徙旅途中稍作休息，為餘下的旅程補充體力。每年都停留在公園的鳥類包括很多瀕臨絕種的品種，如非常美麗的仙八色鶇。配水庫公園是一個美妙的棲息地，擁有水源和茂密的植被，這兩者對於鳥類的生存都至關重要。 然而，公園最近遭受了嚴重的樹木砍伐，往日經常會在公園出沒的過境鳥類近年只剩一小部分仍然在該處出現，而其他大多數的過境鳥近年都很少再停留在公園內。我們對公園的現狀感到十分失望，因為這個情況將大大降低他們的生存機會 。如果鳥兒們找不到另一個地方休息，牠們很可能會在長途飛行的途中筋疲力盡而死。 我們相信公園這個「城市綠洲」是自然生態與城市發展之間平衡的一個很好的例子，因此，請幫助我們保護它。

Photo credits:

Fairy pitta: John Chow

Narcissus flycatcher and Hill blue flycatcher: Enoch Cheuk

Japanese paradise flycatcher and Besra: Siyul Lee

Brown-chested jungle flycatcher: Plato Fung

All used under original creators authorisation.