STORK MAKES HEADLINES IN TAIWAN

[Anchor Lead]

In Taiwan, a stork that flew in from Korea is making headlines these days, drawing attention and affection of the local people. Taiwanese call the bird an “angel” and each day, hundreds are reportedly gathering to view the feathered friend.

[Pkg]

A wetland preservation area in Qingshui, northern Taiwan. Hundreds of people are lined up along the embankment with their eyes set in a certain direction. What they’re watching is a one year old female stork that flew in from Korea. She nimbly catches food with her beak and gracefully flutters her wings that showcase a beautiful black and white contrast in color. The Taiwaneses people already have a nickname for her, “Angel,” citing the resemblance to a flying fairy. Storks are a rare migratory bird in Taiwan with only one or two of them barely spotted in the winter.

[Soundbite] Member of Birdwatching Group : "She is like a pretty girl or a good friend to me. Birdwatchers come to the site every day with keen interest."

The celebrity bird first arrived in November after it was released to the wild in South Korea’s Yesan in Chungcheongnamdo Province last June. It had flown 12-hundred kilometers to Taiwan. Out of the 70 or so storks released to the wild in Korea, two of them flew to Taiwan this winter. One has unfortunately died but the other one survived, and is spending the winter in a wetland preservation area, drawing immense interest from bird lovers and local wildlife authorities.

[Soundbite] Kim Soo-gyeong(esearcher, Yesan Oriental Stork Park) : "We expected China or Russia but little did we anticipate it would fly over the far seas to reach Taiwan."

The park believes once spring comes, the stork will fly back to Korea or China, but as habitat conditions in Taiwan are favorable, there is a possibility the famous bird may decide to stay in Taiwan.