2026 · Curated by Dr. Wei Lin · 24 Species
Wings of the Yangtze
A river journey through China's greatest migratory corridor
Tracing the ancient flyway of the Yangtze River, this exhibition illuminates the extraordinary diversity of waterbirds that depend on China's mightiest river. From the critically endangered Siberian Crane to the iridescent Mandarin Duck, each species tells a story of co-evolution with one of the world's great landscapes.
Every autumn, hundreds of millions of birds undertake one of nature's most dramatic performances: migration. The Yangtze River Basin serves as both highway and hotel—a critical refueling station along the East Asian–Australasian Flyway, one of the world's nine major migratory pathways.
“Where the river bends and the reeds stand tall, the cranes gather in numbers that defy imagination.”
Poyang Lake, connected to the Yangtze in Jiangxi Province, hosts the world's largest concentration of wintering Siberian Cranes—over 98% of the global population. The lake's seasonal flooding creates a mosaic of habitats: open water, mudflats, and flooded grasslands that support an extraordinary diversity of waterbird species.
Featured Species
