Kids from mainland China holding their Spoon-billed Sandpiper postcards ©The Hong Kong Birdwatching Society

Vivian Fu, The Hong Kong Bird Watching Society

Spoon-billed Sandpiper Calidris pygmaea, endearingly called ‘Spoony,’ is a small shorebird with a special spoon-like bill. The global population is now less than 200 pairs. Each year, this small shorebird flies from their wintering ground at South East Asia and southern China, passing through Japan, Korea and China, up to Siberia, Russia for breeding. The main threats Spoony is facing are intertidal habitat loss throughout its migratory and wintering ranges, as well as bird trapping.

The idea of this project, Following Spoonies to Migrate, Spoon-billed Sandpiper Flyway Exchange, is to send postcards of Spoon-billed Sandpiper prepared by kids from the birds’ wintering grounds in South East Asia to the places along their migratory route. Eventually the postcards will reach the kids at the Spoony’s breeding ground in Russia. The kids will learn about the story of the Spoon-billed Sandpiper and its conservation before they prepare the postcards.

To follow Spoony to migrate to their breeding ground, please visit the facebook webpage at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Following-Spoonies-to-migrate-Spoon-billed-Sandpiper-Flyway-Exchange/1597030960551716

Postcards from Myanmar ©The Hong Kong Birdwatching Society

Postcards from Japan ©The Hong Kong Birdwatching Society

Kinds from Hong Kong with their Spoony postcards ©The Hong Kong Birdwatching Society

Postcards from Thailand ©The Hong Kong Birdwatching Society

A message from Japan ©The Hong Kong Birdwatching Society

Related post: Following Spoonies to migrate, Spoon-billed Sandpiper Flyway Exchange

Please visit our Spoon-billed Sandpiper Task Force page here!