Two relict gulls, also known as larus relictus, rest up in the Baotou Yellow River Wetland. [Photo/Baotou news network]

Staff members at the Baotou Wetland Protection Center recently spotted larus relictus – wild birds, also known as relict gulls, that are under national first-level key protection.

They were monitored in the Gaoxin and Donghe sections of the Yellow River Wetland in Baotou, located in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

The Baotou Yellow River Wetland is an important migratory transfer station for these gulls. In April every year, larus relictus fly from their wintering place around the Bohai Sea to the breeding grounds – the Ordos Plateau at the junction of Inner Mongolia and Northwest China's Shaanxi province and the desert-type lakes in Mongolia and Kazakhstan.

In the 1970s, larus relictus was identified as an independent species. It mainly feeds on aquatic insects and aquatic invertebrates.

The larus relictus is said to have poor environmental adaptability, especially with its selection of challenging breeding grounds. It only nests on an island in the plateau desert lake and the breeding period is May to July.