--- SEARCH ---
WEATHER
CHINA
INTERNATIONAL
BUSINESS
CULTURE
GOVERNMENT
SCI-TECH
ENVIRONMENT
LIFE
PEOPLE
TRAVEL
WEEKLY REVIEW
Learning Chinese
Learn to Cook Chinese Dishes
Exchange Rates


Hot Links
China Development Gateway
Chinese Embassies


Owls Find Home in Residential Area
Despite an old Chinese superstition that owls are an evil omen, people in the downtown area of this capital of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province have lived peacefully with these new neighbors for three months.

During the daytime, over 100 owls, both grown-up and fledglings, are found reposing in groups on chimneys or on the tops of poplar trees in a local residential area on the east side of Hexing Road.

At night, they fly to nearby construction sites and garbage heaps, searching for rats to feed on.

It was a pleasant surprise for the local people to find so many owls in the urban area although a traditional Chinese saying has it that misfortune follows owls.

As every grown-up owl may kill 1,000-2,000 rats a year, people say that they are glad to benefit from these useful birds.

Some residents believe that the owls moved from the city's outskirts, where heavy snowfalls this year made it hard for them to find prey.

(Xinhua News Agency February 23, 2002)

Print This Page | Email This Page
About Us SiteMap Feedback
Copyright © China Internet Information Center. All Rights Reserved
E-mail: webmaster@china.org.cn Tel: 86-10-68326688