Invisible Connections:Why Migrating Shorebirds Need the Yellow Sea

• Main Author: van de Kam, Jan
• Other Authors: Lewis, Jan, Piersma, Theunis
• Format: Book
• Language: English
• Published: CSIRO Publishing 2010
• Subjects: Alaska; Siberia
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/11370/bc2489ab-a52f-4ed0-a130-683f945b144d; https://research.rug.nl/en/publications/bc2489ab-a52f-4ed0-a130-683f945b144d

Each year, invisible to the naked eye, millions of migrating shorebirds fly from Australasia towards the tidal flats of the Yellow Sea bordering China and Korea. Each flock is made up of individuals using whatever strategies they can muster to endure the flights, weather the storms and find safe havens to rest and refuel on their long journeys to the breeding grounds in Siberia or Alaska. Once there, successful reproduction of as many individuals as possible is key to survival. Shorebird migration is one of nature's most spectacular phenomena, creating surprising and hitherto poorly understood links between countries, habitats and people. Jan van de Kam's beautiful images, together with the compelling words of his colleagues, illustrate the magnitude of the feats performed by migrating shorebirds and the vital need for the connections that bind them to habitats to be sustained. This book invites you to discover the risks inherent in a shorebird's migratory lifestyle and the additional challenges created by expanding human populations. It reveals the crucial role that the shoreline of the Yellow Sea plays in shorebird migration and highlights the need for this unique and threatened habitat to be saved for future generations of birds and people.