Authorities in Tianjin have launched a series of emergency measures to preserve relict gulls in China, including strengthened patrols along the coastline, monitoring of illegal fishing and installing fences near the beach to protect the gulls' habitat. 

Under first-class state protection in China, the relict gulls are also listed as "Vulnerable" on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.

According to Wang Jianmin, director of the North Yangtze River Wetland Protection Center, more than 90 percent of the country's relict gulls have stopped over in the Bohai Bay area between October and the following April in recent years.

As beachcombing becomes more and more popular, experts fear excavation on the beach could threaten the food resources of relict gulls.

Qin Zhaoming, 32, has been a volunteer for 11 years. "I want the locals here to better understand the surroundings that we live in,” Qin said, adding “that's also why we care about the environment, the birds, the waters and the beach."

The 2019 UN report on biodiversity said more than half a million species on land have "insufficient habitat for long-term survival."

“A scientific approach is our best solution to restore the natural environment. We can also better accommodate the relict gulls by giving the gulls more space,” said Wang Jianmin.

(Footage courtesy of Agricultural Bureau of Tianjin Binhai New Area.)

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