Longluantan Introduction
Longluantan is located at the southwestern corner of Hengchun Township, with a wide surface area of nearly 175 hectares. The water in the pond is deep, with an average depth of up to 3.5 meters, making it an important agricultural water resource and the largest inland lake in the Hengchun Peninsula. Surrounding the pond are numerous fish farms, grasslands, fields, ponds, and shrubs, creating a diverse natural environment for various species to thrive, thereby becoming an important habitat for bird congregations. Strategically situated on the migratory route of many birds, Longluantan sees flocks of migratory birds stopping here during the autumn and winter seasons. During this time, in addition to the native species such as the Black-crowned Night Heron, Little Egret, Cattle Egret, and Common Moorhen, rare guests such as the Purple Swamphen, Mandarin Duck, Eurasian Redstart, various waterfowl, and Mallard, along with seabirds like gulls appear as if attending an annual carnival, instantly transforming the tranquil Longluantan into a lively bird paradise. Due to this precious scene, a nature center has been established on the west bank of Longluantan, which is Taiwan's first exhibition hall themed around bird ecology. It offers dynamic bird watching activities, as well as static images, specimens, videos, and presentations to provide an in-depth understanding of migratory routes, the breeding process and significance of birds, the relationship between birds and humans, and the impact of environmental changes on birds, allowing visitors to partake in a comprehensive bird ecology education experience. Longluantan is also a habitat for special plants. Due to the high biodiversity of plant species in the area, including many rare varieties, a Longluantan Ecological Park has been specially established to avoid the crisis of plant population decline caused by climate or human activities. The park is divided into nine major forest areas based on the growth environment and purposes of plant communities, including rare plants, bird-attracting plants, butterfly-attracting plants, mountainous plants, coral reef plants, hedge plants, grassland shrubs, flowering and fruit-bearing plants, and coastal forests, showcasing the richness of biological resources at Longluantan.
