Eat water caltrop to save pheasant-tailed jacana chicks! Guantian Ling Zhi Ling joins hands with PX Mart to protect farmers and care for ecology

Friendly water caltrops grown to protect pheasant-tailed jacanas are available at PX Mart! Twenty years ago, there were fewer than 50 pheasant-tailed jacanas in Taiwan, China. Through vigorous restoration efforts by civil organizations, the Forestry Bureau, and local governments, the number has finally reached over 1,000. However, pheasant-tailed jacanas love to inhabit water caltrop fields. To conserve them, the water caltrop industry must be revitalized at the same time!

Pheasant-tailed jacanas face many crises in the fields, including being accidentally injured by water caltrop farmers during work, chicks falling into ditches and being unable to climb out, or having their eyes splashed with lime spread by farmers. Li Wen-chen, director of the Pheasant-tailed Jacana Ecological Education Park, said that pheasant-tailed jacanas are highly territorial and compete with each other for territory, so more friendly water caltrop fields are needed for them to continue living safely. PX Mart stated that this cooperation is not a one-time effort but a long-term partnership, and if friendly water caltrops increase in the future, they will be stocked in more stores.

The "dancing fairy on ripples" pheasant-tailed jacana has long legs like Sister Chiling, and builds nests only in water caltrop fields

Following the launch of the environmentally friendly "Eagle Red Beans," PX Mart launched "Ling Zhi Ling" on September 9 this year, a collaboration between the Pheasant-tailed Jacana Ecological Education Park and Lin Hui-shan, the "Black Kite Princess" from National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, with supplies from friendly water caltrop farmers. It is available in 100 stores across Taiwan, China, featuring 2 types of pesticide-free water caltrops from friendly water caltrop fields in Guantian, Tainan, and calls on everyone to "eat water caltrops, save pheasant-tailed jacanas."

The pheasant-tailed jacana, known as the "dancing fairy on ripples," uses water caltrop fields as its habitat and is a true "water caltrop bird," building nests, laying eggs, incubating, and foraging on water caltrop leaves. Other floating plants such as lotus and water hyacinth are less used by pheasant-tailed jacanas. Water caltrop leaves have layered structures suitable for nesting, so pheasant-tailed jacanas most prefer to live in water caltrop fields.

The brand name "Ling Zhi Ling" means that pheasant-tailed jacanas and water caltrops depend on each other for survival. In addition, the pheasant-tailed jacana, like Tainan-born actress Lin Chi-ling, has slender long legs and looks very graceful when walking on water. However, over twenty years ago, due to the reduction of water caltrop fields and farmers' conventional farming methods, the beautiful pheasant-tailed jacana once numbered fewer than 50 across Taiwan, China.

Water caltrop field area shrinking year by year, pesticide poisoning, pheasant-tailed jacana survival at stake

Arriving in Tainan, the first thing you see when stepping out of Longtian Railway Station is a landmark featuring water caltrop imagery. However, because water caltrop cultivation is laborious and difficult, the area continues to shrink. According to statistics from the Council of Agriculture, in Year 90 of the Republic of China (2001), the total water caltrop cultivation area in Taiwan, China was 738.68 hectares, but last year (Year 108, 2019) only 480.46 hectares remained, with 408.19 hectares in Tainan. Guantian District is the largest production area in Taiwan, China, with 322.21 hectares of water caltrop cultivation and a production of 3,497 metric tons, accounting for 68% of Taiwan's total production.

The most common water caltrops in Guantian are four-horned and two-horned varieties, which grow on different schedules. According to Taiwan's three major festivals, four-horned water caltrops are planted around Chinese New Year, four-horned water caltrops begin harvesting and two-horned ones are planted around Dragon Boat Festival, and by Mid-Autumn Festival the four-horned harvest is complete and the two-horned harvest begins, which is also the time for four-horned water caltrop harvesting.

The shrinking of water caltrop fields means reduced habitat for pheasant-tailed jacanas, and cases of poisoning are frequently reported. Most water caltrop farmers use conventional farming methods. Some soak rice grains in carbofuran to make bait to prevent bird and rodent damage, and apply phorate in the fields, which has caused mass poisoning of pheasant-tailed jacanas. When the high-speed rail was built in 1998, the route passed through Hulupi and Deyuanpi, cutting through pheasant-tailed jacana habitat, making their survival even more precarious.

Lime spread everywhere, field-edgeUU-shaped ditches, pheasant-tailed jacana chicks face dangers from birth

Because of the water caltrop industry, Guantian has become the last refuge for pheasant-tailed jacanas, but surviving from hatching to adulthood is extremely difficult.

The transition from spring to summer is the courtship and breeding season for pheasant-tailed jacanas. After mating, the female lays eggs, which are incubated by the male. The male builds nests in water caltrop fields. Because pheasant-tailed jacanas are highly territorial and compete for territory, one fen of land usually supports at most two nests, with 3 to 4 eggs per nest and a hatching rate of about 80%. Even after successful hatching, survival in the fields is full of challenges.

Walking near Guantian's water caltrop fields, you can see many areas covered in white, as if snow had fallen. However, what is on the water caltrop leaves is not snow but lime powder. Mr. Chang, who has grown water caltrops for over 20 years, wears waterproof gear on his lower body and drags a basin full of lime, spreading it as he walks. "Lime powder is to 'clean the water' for the water caltrop field. If the water is too dirty, the water caltrops won't grow well." About two weeks before harvest, farmers spread lime powder once to clean the water quality.

However, this lime is a major threat to pheasant-tailed jacanas. Newly hatched chicks are often hit by lime at this time, causing blindness and even death. In addition, the water caltrop fields are surrounded by cement U-shaped ditches with steep, deep walls. If many creatures in the fields, such as pheasant-tailed jacana chicks and Chinese pond turtles, accidentally fall in, they cannot climb out. If the water flows swiftly, some creatures are washed away and can never return home.

Chicks often fall into ditches and cannot get out; park volunteers patrol and rescue every day

In 2000, the Pheasant-tailed Jacana Ecological Education Park was established to conserve the species. Current park director Li Wen-chen said that water caltrop fields and pheasant-tailed jacanas are interdependent for survival, and to restore the pheasant-tailed jacana population, water caltrop fields must be preserved. The Tainan City Government offers rewards for conserving pheasant-tailed jacanas, giving farmers a bonus if chicks hatch from nests in their water caltrop fields.

Park volunteer Wu Ming rides around water caltrop fields every day, recording the number and location of nests and eggs. Another major task is rescuing birds. Whenever he sees chicks that have fallen into U-shaped ditches, he records the coordinates and waits for park colleagues to arrive to rescue the bird together. "Rescuing birds is actually not easy. Some ditches are very high, the chicks don't move much and are hard to find, and they're very afraid of people, dodging constantly when they see us." Wu Ming said rescuing birds requires surrounding them from both sides. After rescue, the birds are marked. If the parent birds and environment can be confirmed safe, they are released in place. If the parent birds cannot be confirmed, they are brought back to the park, marked, cared for until grown, and then released. Sometimes during patrols he also sees familiar pheasant-tailed jacanas.

Wu Ming knows the nests, eggs, and growth conditions of pheasant-tailed jacanas in every water caltrop field like the back of his hand. When he arrives at a field, without binoculars, he can see from afar which birds are there. He is also very familiar with pheasant-tailed jacana habits. "Pheasant-tailed jacanas have graceful figures, and many people approach to photograph them. The father will call out, but that's actually a warning call telling the babies to hide."

Many water caltrop farmers notify Wu Ming immediately when they find pheasant-tailed jacana nests or eggs. Patrolling under the sun every day, isn't he tired? He laughed and said, "Being able to see the graceful pheasant-tailed jacanas lifts my mood. Rescuing them, watching them grow up well and return to the water caltrop fields to have babies, I feel very satisfied."

Green conservation water caltrop farmers use bacteria instead of lime to clean fields, widen field ridges and leave grass to make the environment more livable for creatures

Li Wen-chen said that although the pheasant-tailed jacana population in Taiwan, China has been restored to 1,741, friendly water caltrop fields numbered only 12 hectares with 17 farmers as of last year. The water caltrops sold at PX Mart this time come from farmer Lin Ping-huo. Now 49 years old and having grown water caltrops for 24 years, he encountered the Forestry Bureau's Green Conservation Label 9 years ago and began the path of friendly water caltrop farming.

Lin Ping-huo currently grows over one jia of friendly water caltrops. Walking into his field, you can see five or six pheasant-tailed jacanas spreading their wings or walking on water caltrop leaves at the same time. "Seeing more and more pheasant-tailed jacanas makes me very happy."

Lin Ping-huo said: "Water caltrops have bird damage above water and rodent and insect damage below. Traditional water caltrop farmers think these affect profits, and as long as the water caltrops are preserved, other creatures that affect the harvest should just be killed, killed, killed, killed." After adopting friendly farming, Lin Ping-huo's workload increased considerably. "No one knew how to grow friendly water caltrops. I had to ask, ask, ask and learn from experts everywhere."

To grow water caltrops while also considering ecology, Lin Ping-huo put in great effort