Following the fish kill, even birds in Central Vietnam are becoming scarce.
While the mass fish deaths along the central coast show no signs of stopping, the number of migratory birds has also dwindled and disappeared completely along the coastal fishing villages in recent days.
Dead birds and feathers were scattered all over the island.
Even Bird Island, once considered the kingdom of over 2 million grey gulls (a rare and endemic species), located about 12 nautical miles from Hon La port in Quang Trach district (Quang Binh province), now has not a single bird in sight, standing isolated amidst the waves.
The birds are gone.
The news about fishermen discovering many dead birds alongside dead fish along the Quang Binh coast, suspected of dying from eating poisoned fish, startled me and reminded me of Bird Island. This "paradise" for rare seabirds is located very close to Vung Ang (about 20 nautical miles to the southeast), the source of the unusual fish deaths over the past month.
None of the fishermen in the coastal villages of Quang Binh were willing to take us to Chim Island, even if we offered double or triple the usual price. They said they didn't want to see dead fish floating on the sea; only fishermen like them could understand this pain. After using all our connections, two young fishermen from Quang Xuan commune, Quang Trach district, finally agreed to take us to Chim Island, but with a warning: "The birds died along with the fish. If you don't see any birds there, don't blame us!"
As a storm raged, the small fishing boat in the sheltered bay, like a bamboo leaf, bobbed up and down with each wave. At times, I felt a pang of fear, worried I wouldn't reach my destination. Countless dead fish drifted ashore with each white-capped wave. The boat owner, Duong Quang Trung, unmarried, sadly confided: "It's been almost a month since I've been back to the sea. For people like us who work on the coastal waters, just two days without going out to sea means we're short of rice; many families are starving."
Locals also call Bird Island "Wind Island." As for why it's called Wind Island, according to Trung, it sounds quite mystical. Trung said that normally Bird Island is elliptical, about 1km wide, oriented west-east, but when the wind blows in a certain direction, viewed from afar, Bird Island appears to rotate in that direction, hence the name Wind Island. Trung also asserted that although the island is entirely made of rocks, Bird Island is growing larger because the rocks are "living rocks," expanding over time.
Come to Bird Island.
After nearly three hours adrift at sea, Bird Island finally appeared, but everyone sensed something unusual. Not a single bird was in sight, not a single bird call to warn of the presence of strangers, unlike before when, just a few nautical miles away, the area was filled with the vibrant chirping of birds. Bird Island lay there, isolated and lifeless, surrounded by the roaring, white-capped waves.
Dead birds and feathers are scattered all over the island.
Recently, while visiting Bird Island, even from a few nautical miles away, I could hear the chirping of birds filling the air and sea, with seagulls filling the sky and obscuring a corner of the island. Every step on the island required extreme caution to avoid stepping on bird eggs and chicks scattered across its surface.
Many baby birds, hearing the noise, thought their parents had returned and opened their tiny red beaks, begging for food. The mother birds, incubating their eggs, were so tame that they wouldn't leave the nest when they saw a person; you could easily catch them with just a reach of your hand. Many businesses have considered bringing tours here, but the authorities haven't yet approved it, fearing it would affect the island's pristine environment.
Countless rock crabs died unusually in the rock crevices.
The boat docked, and although very disappointed, we decided to go ashore to find out what was wrong. The first horrifying sight that met our eyes was countless dead rock crabs inside the rocky crevices.
These "mass graves" contain hundreds of dead, bright red crabs piled on top of each other. According to Trung, this is an unprecedented phenomenon. Judging by the crab carcasses, they died about ten days ago. "Could it be that toxins in the seawater have spread all the way here?" Trung wondered.
Following the steep cliffs, we made our way to the top of the island. Many people had already visited the island, evidenced by the numerous empty beverage bottles scattered along the path. Trung explained that many locals travel to Chim Island by boat for independent exploration, but many others regularly come here to catch birds and collect their eggs to eat or sell. Some consider it a profession, visiting the island every few days.
“Boiled grey albatross eggs aren't very tasty because the yolks never cook through, but they're used to make alcoholic beverages, supposedly so good that the husband drinks it and the wife praises it. Therefore, grey albatross eggs are considered rare and command a very high price. We fishermen would never do that, because albatross birds are like friends to those who go to sea. Even though we're out at sea, just seeing an albatross makes us feel like we're home,” Trung confided.
At the top of the island, the vegetation, a mix of wild plants and lush green trees, remained, but not a single nest containing eggs or chicks could be found. Many nests were empty and dilapidated. Continuing through the forest to the bird hill on the west side of the island, we encountered numerous bird carcasses and feathers scattered everywhere. On the ground or in the bushes, some carcasses were decomposing, while others had turned to dust, leaving only clumps of feathers. A chilling sense of desolation permeated the air.
According to Mr. Trung, grey albatross birds have a unique hunting characteristic on the surface of the sea. They usually fly around to observe, and when they see fish floating on the surface, they dive down quickly and use their long beaks to grab the prey. They eat all kinds of small fish, just enough to swallow or carry back to their nests.
“During the recent fish kill, both large and small fish died, floating all over the sea. It's inevitable that seagulls would have eaten the poisoned dead fish. The fish had only been dead for a day or two, and we didn't understand what was happening, so we still went out to sea. Occasionally, we saw dead seagulls floating on the water, but we didn't think they died from eating poisoned fish,” Trung said.
We tried to wait until late afternoon, hoping to see a few remaining seagulls returning for the night. But there were none; occasionally, we only caught a few swallows circling and hunting mosquitoes at dusk.
One question lingered in our minds after leaving the island. Could it be that people were hunting the birds and taking their eggs, causing the extinction of a kingdom of gray seagulls, or was it the poisoned fish that had been caught over time? Who was responsible for leaving Bird Island so desolate today?
Those questions are difficult for us journalists to answer, but the truth is that Bird Island is "dead"!
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According to Tien Phong Newspaper
