Napa Lake: Flights of Fancy

[Photo by Peng Jiansheng/China Daily]

Feeding seems to dumb some birds.

Himalayan griffons and cinereous vultures don't flee approaching humans in their "food comas".

But the avian haven is threatened by excessive tourism, overgrazing and polluted water. Napa residents account for half of Shangri-La's population.

The sewage they produce, along with tourists', has nurtured blue-green algae blooms, while fish are covered with sores. And climate change has brought summer droughts and winter floods.

Only if the area's environment is protected will it remain a destination for birds and humans.

It shows all of us on Earth are all birds of a feather.

If you go

Beijing visitors can fly to Shangri-la via Chengdu or Kunming and then take an airport bus for 10-15 minutes.

This story first appeared in Chinese National Geography magazine and translated by Yang Feiyue.