A barnacle goose was spotted by bird watchers and scholars from universities nearby Poyang Lake, China's largest freshwater lake, in east China's Jiangxi Province.

The bird species was first found in the Poyang Nature Reserve, bringing the total number of bird species in the reserve to 382, according to the researchers with the reserve, and the number of bird species in Jiangxi to 571.

As a typical cold-water marine bird, the barnacle goose is resistant to cold and lives in bays, seaports and estuaries. It mainly feeds on green grass or the buds, leaves and stems of aquatic plants. The white-cheeked goose is more recognizable compared to other birds. It also has a gray back, white spots on its face and a black neck and chest.

Poyang Lake is an important wintering area for waterbirds in Asia. Each year, hundreds of thousands of birds from Russia, Mongolia, Japan and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, as well as China's northwest and northeast quarters, winter at the lake.

In recent years, the province has strengthened the protection of the habitats for migratory birds, and the environment around the lake has been improved continuously, attracting more and more birds to spend their winters there.

(Cover photos via VCG. Edited by Zhao Ying.)

(If you want to contribute and have specific expertise, please contact us at nature@cgtn.com)