Dr. Nial Moores, Kim Eojin and Kim Haemin.
Nearly 90 hours of seen migration counts over 16 dates in Daehang, Gadeokdo, Busan, this September resulted in 12,837 -17,117 particular person birds counted, with the 5 most quite a few species Chinese language Sparrowhawk Tachyspiza soloensis 붉은배새매 (7,604-11,046); Pacific (Fork-tailed) Swift Apus pacificus 칼새 (1,648-1,907); White-throated Needletail Hirundapus caudacutus 바늘꼬리칼새 (757-957); “Giant White-headed Gulls” (1,330); and Black-tailed Gull Larus crassirostris 괭이갈매기 (650-700).
A complete of 94 chook species have been recognized from our mounted remark level (at: 35.0105°, 128.8293°) throughout these 16 dates of analysis. These included a Crested Ibis on most dates (presumably from the introduction program at Upo Ramsar website); single Far Japanese Curlew, Lengthy-tailed Jaeger, Widespread Tern and Eurasian Spoonbill; between 4 and ten Osprey and 13-22 Crested Honey Buzzard; and two Japanese Marsh Harriers and two Amur Falcon (latter relatively uncommon within the southeast).
In accordance with steering supplied by the Worldwide Civilian Aviation Organisation, we additionally gathered info on flock measurement, flight route and estimated flight of peak. Our depend technique permits us to share that in our analysis there have been between 25,322 and 30,952 “crossings” of birds over solely about 1.2km of the proposed runway space and its instant method, at a mean of between 4.7 and 5.7 birds per minute of remark. In fact, this whole may have been a lot greater if we had been in a position to depend each day by the month; and depend birds throughout the entire size of the proposed runway and its method.
As throughout earlier analysis efforts at Gadeokdo, counting was carried out every day from a hard and fast level overlooking the proposed runway space (=Daehang Village) by Nial Moores (Nationwide Director of Birds Korea), utilizing the identical strategies as outlined throughout earlier analysis. As well as, videoing and photographing was carried out every day by Kim Eojin (Korea’s most well-known impartial chook YouTuber – and in addition a Birds Korea member) with “recognizing” and photographing additionally carried out on a number of dates by Kim Haemin (additionally a Birds Korea member, who drove down specifically from Seoul thrice to witness the spectacle!). On most days, each KE and KH watched from the highest of Yeondaebong, a 460m excessive hill overlooking the identical village, speaking by walkie talkie with NM. Our analysis was additionally joined on two or extra dates by a number of further birders from the southeast.
At the least now the significance of Gadeokdo to migratory birds is beginning to turn out to be correctly and extensively recognised – as is public recognition of the necessity to do acceptable analysis for assessing the chook strike threat.
Southward Migration of the Chinese language Sparrowhawk
Till now, even most birders in Korea in all probability considered the Chinese language Sparrowhawk largely as an area summer season customer to forested valleys with rice-fields, the place birds usually sit up prominently on poles and tree snags. Few birders – no less than earlier than this survey – appeared to have even heard concerning the migration route which these birds use throughout southward migration – out from the southeast (between Geoje and Busan) throughout the ocean to Teimado / Tsushima; and from there on down by western Japan and the Nansei Shoto onto Taiwan and the Philippines south into Indonesia. Maybe for this reason the Environmental Impression Evaluation for the proposed Gadeokdo airport didn’t even embody any counts from September, when this species’ southward migration peaks?
This lack of consideration to this migration route, particularly from central authorities our bodies as they developed the Gadeokdo airport proposal, is genuinely shocking. It has in truth been recognized about for many years. The route by western Japan, for instance, was first recognized no less than fifty years in the past (Brazil 1991); and has since been confirmed yearly this century by birders on Teimado/ Tsushima, with e.g., a five-year geometric imply of counts there from 2000-2004 of 82,874 people (and a remarkably related 82,868 per 12 months for the years 2021-2025 too). As well as, the principle migration routes by Asia, together with the route by the southeast of the ROK to Japan, have been additionally depicted 15 years in the past in Germi et al. (2009).
Throughout the ROK itself, nearly 25 years in the past now, Park Jin-Younger wrote in his doctoral thesis (on p. 224, in his account of Chinese language Sparrowhawk) that “it’s sure that enormous teams will move by the southeastern a part of the Korean peninsula”, despite the fact that he acknowledged that, “no particular investigation has been carried out to date” (Park 2002). Shortly after, as a part of his work inside the Ministry of Setting, Dr Park Jin-Younger subsequently sub-contracted a number of researchers in September 2002 and 2023 to assist to establish this route. These researchers included Dr Kim Su-Kyung (certainly one of Birds Korea’s 4 co-founders) and NM. In September 2002, Dr Kim Su-Kyung noticed greater than 500 Chinese language Sparrowhawk in a single flock in Busan (at the moment, by far the most important flock of this species recognized within the ROK); and the next 12 months, as a part of this identical government-funded depend initiative, NM counted 936 Chinese language Sparrowhawk on September 14th and 1,200-1,700 Chinese language Sparrowhawk on September fifteenth over Mount Bongnae in Busan. The truth that hundreds of Chinese language Sparrowhawk migrate by Busan throughout southward migration has subsequently been recognized to central authorities for greater than twenty years.
Even at Gadeokdo itself, again in 2021, NM counted 2,358 Chinese language Sparrowhawk on September 18th over the proposed runway space. This depend was shared on the time on social media; and was included in a report which has subsequently been made extensively obtainable in each English language and Korean language variations. The English-language model can nonetheless be downloaded towards the underside of this publish. Counts made again in 2021 have been additionally referenced in an opinion submitted as a part of the proposed Gadeokdo airport EIA course of.
What do these counts imply?
Counts of this type have two essential makes use of: first, for bettering understanding of chook migration and of species; and second, for serving to to evaluate the chook strike threat at proposed airport websites.
We subsequently hope to make use of these counts to stimulate extra seen migration analysis, together with within the south-east of Korea, and to encourage higher communication between birders right here with others alongside the Flyway – in Japan and Taiwan and to the south.
We additionally very a lot hope that these counts will probably be thought of correctly by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and by different decision-makers once they proceed to evaluate the potential threat of chook strike at this location. We might be delighted to supply these depend knowledge price of cost and, if requested, to assist these knowledge with a a lot fuller clarification of depend strategies. We additionally stay prepared to coach different researchers in conducting counts of this type, in order that they’ll do extra than simply take photographs of birds as they move by. Actually equally intensive and detailed analysis is required at Gadeokdo through the the rest of the southward migration interval (with e.g., the height of Gray-faced Buzzard anticipated in early October; and e.g., the passage of Japanese Buzzard, Eurasian Sparrowhawks and Brown-eared Bulbul flocks in late October and of Rook in November), as through the northward migration interval too.
These form of affords to assist decision-makers with greatest info have a protracted historical past: certainly they’re a part of our organisation’s rationale . As such, we made related affords about Gadeokdo knowledge a number of years earlier than the disastrous air crash in Muan on the finish of 2024 and the subsequent courtroom ruling in opposition to the Saemangeum New Airport in July 2025 – largely as a result of the chook strike threat was thought of to not have been correctly assessed. We proceed to make related affords too in relation to the proposed airport on Baengyeong Island; and could be prepared to fulfill with decision-makers to clarify the chook strike threat related to constructing an airport inside the internationally vital Hwaseong Wetlands too.
This analysis at Gadeokdo, as on the websites of a number of different proposed airports, present many hundreds of causes for suspending development and for conducting a full reassessment. If airports actually have to be constructed, then the environmental impression assessments for them want at an absolute minimal to incorporate detailed analysis by skilled researchers carried out all year long, supported by radar research.
eBird Checklists can be found for September eighth, September tenth, September twelfth, September 14th, September fifteenth, September sixteenth, September seventeenth, September 18th, September nineteenth, September twenty first, September twenty second, September twenty fourth, September twenty fifth, September twenty sixth, September twenty seventh and September twenty ninth.
References
Brazil, M. 1991. The Birds of Japan. Revealed by Helm.
Germi, F., Younger, G. S., Salim, A., Pangimangen, W. & Schellekens, M. 2009. Over-ocean raptor migration in a monsoon regime: spring and autumn 2007 on Sangihe, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Forktail 25: 105-117.
Park J-Y. 2002. Present standing and distribution of birds in Korea. Unpublished doctoral thesis, Kyung-Hee College.
