Death flight for birds on night of the hunter

Migration-route ambush provides rich pickings, reports Yang Wanli in Hunan province.

On an early October morning in the Luoxiao Mountains of Central China's Hunan province, the world was barely awake as Li Feng made his way through the clinging mists that blanketed the slopes and headed for the summit, a camera hidden in his pocket.

The surrounding area is pitted with hundreds of small caves, their entrances camouflaged by pine branches. The caves offer shelter to local hunters and Li, a photographer at a local newspaper and a volunteer for an NGO, the Hunan Bird Protection Camp, is taking a risk as he attempts to record their illegal activity. The hunters have a reputation for taking matters into their own hands when dealing with intruders.