More than 100 Beijing swifts that inhabit the city's Summer Palace were tagged Saturday as part of a decade-long banding effort to protect and understand the bird.
As early as 4 am, experts with the China Bird Watching Society and 30 volunteers were setting up nets to catch the birds that call the eaves of the park's structures home.
Volunteers then carefully removed the birds, which are then given a "check-up" - weight, length, wingspan and overall health are recorded.
Each of the captured birds were binded with international tags and then released for further study.
So far, experts say the banded birds were all healthy. This comes as good news, considering there has been a sharp and drastic decline in Beijing's swift population in recent decades.
Rapid urbanization and disappearance of the bird's natural nesting grounds are to blame, said experts.
The bird, known for its long migration to as far as southern Africa and back, is a symbol of spring and summer in the capital.
Between March and August, swifts build nests and lay eggs in some of Beijing's most iconic parks, such as Lama Temple, the Summer Palace and the Temple of Heaven.
The swift's migration path was a mystery until recent research revealed through geotracking tags that the birds travel as far as southern Africa.
