NANCHANG - More than 280,000 migratory birds have arrived at Poyang Lake Nature Reserve in East China's Jiangxi province for this year's wintering, according to the administration bureau of the nature reserve.

The number of migratory birds has increased by more than 90,000 over the same period last year, and a total of 53 species of migratory birds have been detected, the bureau said.

Poyang Lake is the largest freshwater lake in China and an important wintering place for waterfowl in Asia, which is also home to 382 species of birds.

The migration period for the migratory birds arriving at the lake is from mid-December to early January of the following year, with a peak of about 700,000 birds in recent years.

Each year, the migratory birds protection departments of the lake launches joint law enforcement operations, cracking down on illegal acts of damaging wetlands and hunting migratory birds. The residents near the lake also volunteer to treat sick and injured migratory birds, carry out ecological protection publicity and participate in patrolling the lake area.