From gilded cages and nests on high

Pictures that Hao sent to the group of the beautiful postures of the birds in the rain attracted many positive comments.

Other members became very active in the group chat and in posting messages and pictures, to the extent that there seemed to be some kind of competition among members to come up with the best observations.

Yan says that through observing birds at home he gained a new perspective on his own living space. He found birds moved about unrestrained in public spaces normally occupied by humans.

The egrets that had been mostly found around a paddy field were strolling by the pond of the residential community, while the timid Chinese bamboo-partridge came out of the bushes to public footpaths.

"It was like we gave way to those birds," Yan says.

He saw magpies flying up to a 28th floor, spotted doves courting one another on the treetops of the community park, a red-billed blue magpie pecking at the tender buds of purple leave plums.

"Maybe they had been in hiding here all the time, or we just didn't pay attention to things right under our noses."

Yan saw more than 20 kinds of birds around his home during the lockdown period in Wuhan.

"It was just interesting to see what they were doing and what their habits were."