Photo credit: @birdingbikesandbites (via Instagram)
⇨ Mai Po Nature Reserve
Sitting in the northwestern corner of Hong Kong, the Mai Po Nature Reserve is a patchwork of mudflats, mangroves, and marshes that provides an ideal habitat for waterbirds, amphibians, as well as aquatic and terrestrial plants. This is biodiversity at its finest!
While there are many sights to behold, the vast array of birds is what people come from wide and far to see, so it is no surprise that the best time to visit Mai Po is during the winter months when migratory birds flock from the north to this ecologically diverse wetland to roost and refuel, forming an extraordinary avian spectacle. Among the 400-plus species of feathered creatures that make this place their seasonal home, some noteworthy residents include the iconic Black-faced Spoonbill, Saunders’s Gull, and Nordmann’s Greenshank.
The reserve does not accommodate walk-ins, but guided eco-visits organised by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) are available to the public for booking. Top choices include the Mangrove Boardwalk, which takes visitors on a floating boardwalk tour through a beautiful mangrove forest, and Magic of Mai Po, a serene walk through the 基圍 (gei1 wai4; shrimp pond), bird hides, reed bed, and rain-fed ponds.