To obtain detailed information on the wetland ecosystems we used Landsat/TM images. Figure 6 shows the result of land-cover classification using a TM image (path:116, row:26) in Arkhara Lowland, which lies along the Amur River around the Arkhara River confluence in the
Fig. 5. Bird locations in China.
Fig. 6. Land-cover map of Arkhara Loeland in the Russian Far East.
Russian Far East. The Arkhara lowland includes the Khingan Nature Reserve and Ganukan Landscape Refuge, which were registered as a Ramsar Convention site in 1994. The wetland area was classified into three categories, the wettest part with sedges and reeds (Wetland 1), the modestly wet part with sedges and grasses (Wetland 2), and the dry part with various kinds of grasses (Wetlnad 3). Location data of one red-crowned crane (ID: 21502) and one oriental white stork (ID: 20821) were overlaid on the land-cover classification map. (In Figure 6 only the location data of the crane 21502 are shown for clarity.) Figure 7 shows the number of location
Fig. 7 Bird locations in Arkhara Lowland in the Russian Far East.
data obtained at each of six land-cover types for two birds. We see that both birds mostly stayed in wetland 1 and 2. We hence can say that these two wetland types are most important ecosystems for the habitation of both a red-crowned crane and an oriental white stork.
4. Conclusions
Migration routes and habitats of red-crowned cranes and oriental white storks were studied by two kinds of satellite observation techniques, i.e. satellite tracking and remote sensing techniques. By the former we obtained bird location data; by the latter we investigated habitat ecosystem conditions. By combining these two techniques we analyzed the relationship between ground conditions and habitation patterns of wetland migratory birds. The followings are major results of this study:
- Important habitats of red-crowned cranes and oriental white storks were extracted during their migration from the breeding sites in the Amur Basin to the wintering sites in China.
- It was found that both kinds of birds frequently stayed in farmlands during their migration in China.
- The wetland ecosystems of Arkhara Lowland in the Russian Far East were classified into three categories, and both kinds of birds mostly stayed in wetland types 1 and 2.
Reference
Hussain, S. A. (1994) The present status of wetland conservation in Asia. In: The Future of Cranes and Wetlands, edited by Higuchi, H. and Minton, J., Wild Bird Society of Japan, Tokyo, pp. 15-25.
