More than 100,000 birds of 20 plus different kinds have a paradise on a very small island located on the northwest corner of Qinghai Lake, near Buhua Lake and about 300 kilometers (km) from Xining, the capital of Qinghai Province, in China's remote west. The singing of many kinds of birds can be heard from very far away. Walking nearer it, one can find a huge bird family of different kinds living harmoniously on a pinnacle island.

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  'Paradise for Birds'

Bird Island is also known as Xiaoxi Hill or Egg Island because birds' eggs can be found almost anywhere. From east to west, the island is 1,500 meters long. The island's slope is not very steep. Sands and stones cover the ground. Main plants found on the island include goosefeet, wheatgrass, Oxyrropis jalcata, Polygonum sibiricum, wormwood and Annual Bluegrass. On the southwest part of the island are some flowing springs that sustain the birds.

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  Animal resources

Among all these habitants on the island, the big groups include bar-headed geese, cormorants, and brown-headed gulls, as well as other kinds of ducks and gulls. The birds in the preserve area are mainly migratory. The majority migrate both in winter and summer. Some birds migrating in spring and autumn also take some stopovers here. The birds under key state protection are the black-headed gull, Pallas's Fishing Eagle I and Great Goose.

  Transportation: Bus is the most usual way to travel to the Bird Island from Xining, the capital city of Qinghai Province. The bus tickets can be bought at the junction of Changjiang Road and Xiguan Avenue. Also, daily return trips from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM are sold for 130 yuan or US$15.70 (excluding food and admission ticket to the Bird Island) by travel agencies. Renting a car costs about 1,200 yuan (US$144.96) a day. A stopover at the Riyue Mountain to see the religious relics is recommended.

The island can also be reached either independently or by tour as a stopover between Xining and Golmud. It is also possible, in summer, to take a 2-hour boat ride to the island from a dock located behind the Qinghai Lake Tent Hotel.

  Food: Four hours after leaving Xining, the drivers will usually stop at Heimahe Village for lunch, where you can eat fish fresh from Qinghai Lake.

  Lodging: The Bird Island is a 50-minute drive from Heimahe Village, and is 15km from the beach and Bird Island. You will normally be dropped off at the Bird Island Hotel. From here you will need to buy the entrance ticket for the remaining 15km to the bird watching pavilions .

  Tickets: Beach: 22 yuan (US$2.65); Bird Island: 38 yuan (US$4.59)