Patrol officer thrilled to protect 'nature's spirits'

Nov 23 was the happiest day of last winter for Wang Xiaolong. On that day, he spotted a flock of nearly 400 white cranes in his patrol area near Poyang Lake.

"I was thrilled. It was the largest number of migratory birds I had seen in months," Wang said.

Poyang Lake, located in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, is China's largest freshwater lake. It serves as a crucial wintering ground for hundreds of thousands of migratory birds, including over 95 percent of the world's white cranes, which flock to the lake from October to March.