The tidelands of Isahaya Bay, Nagasaki Prefecture, were home to the largest number of migrant birds in Japan in 1996 -- a year before a controversial reclamation project cut it off from the bay's life-giving waters with a gate, the Environment Agency said Sept. 8.
For the first time since it started research in 1988, the agency has compiled a list of domestic wetlands that accommodate birds during their seasonal migrations in an attempt to designate key sites in need of protection.
According to a report released by the agency Sept. 8, 73 wetlands throughout 13 areas have been listed as vital accommodations for migrant birds. In each of those wetlands, over 5,000 migrant birds were found after a single counting. Wetlands that are home to endangered species of migrant birds are also on the list, agency officials said.