During our February tour covering the winter specialties of eastern China, we ended up with some extra time on Hainan which allowed us to visit the north-western corner of the island to search for Spoon-billed Sandpiper. Some individuals of this Critically Endangered shorebird are almost tame at one particular site, which is well-known amongst the Chinese birding and photography community but perhaps not so much internationally! We had wonderful encounters with this awesome bird as three different individuals fed mere metres in front of our awe-struck group!

Spoon-billed Sandpiper (Calidris pygmaea) by Joshua Bergmark