For the past 54 years, Wang Cheng has shared his life with some noisy neighbors. Every morning from 5 to 7 and every evening from 5 until sunset, his neighbors fill the air with their chatter, chirps, squawks and trills, seemingly oblivious to the presence of human residents nearby.

"From December to January, during the peak of their mating season, their calls can be heard from my house all day long," Wang said.

These neighbors, however, are not human; they are a species of medium-sized parrot known as Derbyan parakeet (Psittacula derbiana).

Perched on a towering banyan tree right in front of Wang's house, these birds have for generations made their home in Mangba, a village tucked away in Simaogang district of Pu'er city in Southwest China's Yunnan province.

The presence of these parakeets has brought not only noise but also prosperity to the village, which is home to over 250 people of the Blang ethnic group.

Despite the some 300 Derbyan parakeets, also known as Lord Derby's parakeet, creating a vibrant community in Mangba, the species is considered "near threatened" on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature Red List. This is due to its limited habitat in small pockets of evergreen forests in northeastern India and parts of Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, and the Xizang autonomous region in China.

Known as the "parakeet village", Mangba has become the easiest place in the country to observe the magpie-sized birds with green plumage, black lores and lower cheeks and pale yellow eyes, attracting bird-watchers, photographers and nature enthusiasts from far and wide.

Old habitats

"The parakeets have settled here for a long time, living alongside us," Wang said. "The villagers' awareness of protecting the banyan trees and the birds has been passed down through generations. In fact, we consider both of them sacred."

Due to conservation efforts and the area's mild climate, 36 towering banyan trees are scattered throughout the village, which is home to 64 families. These trees provide ideal shelters for the parakeets.

The village borders the Nuozhadu Provincial Nature Reserve, which spans 18,997 hectares in Pu'er. According to Lu Wen, the director of the reserve, more than one-third of it is covered by Simao pines. "The seeds of Simao pines are the primary food source for Derbyan parakeets," he told China Daily.

The parakeets make their nests in the hollows of the old banyan trees. During the day, they leave their home in Mangba to forage in the nature reserve, returning around sunset.

Aside from their noise, Wang said, the birds have few conflicts with the local villagers. "They don't feed on our crops, including corn," he said. "In addition to cones, they also feed on banyan fruits and the flowers of certain trees in the forest. If they're thirsty, they can fly to the Lancang River for a drink."

During the Derbyan parakeets' breeding season from March to May, chicks sometimes fall from their nests on the banyan trees, and Wang, who worked as a patrolman at the reserve for many years and has been a pioneer of the local birdwatching business, always steps in to help.

Over the years, he has rescued some 10 baby Derbyan parakeets, releasing them back into the wild once they matured.

Raising a baby Derbyan parakeet is like caring for a child. Wang's wife chews the rice into fine pieces, feeding it to the chick bit by bit, without oil or salt, observing its droppings daily, anxious it might get diarrhea. Once the chick grows larger, it can eat whole cooked rice grains and sunflower seeds.

"Newly hatched Derbyan parakeets have downy feathers like cotton wool, and slowly grow beautiful plumage," Wang said. "I feel sad when I release them back into the wild, but when I hear the parakeets' calls every morning, I feel like the birds I rescued have returned and are greeting me."

The Nuozhadu reserve has also played a significant role in supporting the villagers' efforts in parakeet conservation. Since 2018, Lu said, the reserve administration has invested over 500,000 yuan ($70,325) in these efforts.

To enhance the habitat for Derbyan parakeets, reserve workers have planted more than 500 trees that produce fruits and flowers favored by the birds, including banyan, cherry and Indian coral trees, around Mangba.

In November 2022, they constructed a 14-meter-tall artificial "tree" equipped with nearly 20 nest boxes and a water trough to cater to the parakeets' breeding and drinking needs within the reserve. This installation has successfully attracted flocks of Derbyan parakeets, who have been observed drinking and playing there. In 2023, the nest boxes had attracted three pairs of Derbyan parakeets to settle and breed.

Several campaigns have also been launched to clean up garbage around the banyan trees in Mangba. Lu said that promoting Derbyan parakeet watching among birdwatchers is perhaps their most important work. "The incoming bird-watchers are truly the main force to vitalize Mangba," he said.

Bird-watching business

Mangba remained largely unnoticed by Chinese bird-watchers until 2008, when two students from Southwest Forestry University in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan, visited the area for a bird survey. During their stay, they lodged at the home of Wang, a reserve patrolman then. The students were captivated by the Derbyan parakeets and the rich diversity of bird species around the village, prompting them to base their degree dissertations on their observations in Mangba, according to Wang.

One of the students, who was an avid bird-watcher, meticulously recorded his observations in Mangba. These records began to draw the attention of fellow bird-watchers to this previously unknown village.

In 2012, Wang established Mangba's first bird hide — a camouflaged shelter designed to observe birds up close without disturbing them — in a patch of forest near the village. Every day, he visited the hide, leaving food and water to attract wild birds. Gradually, various bird species began to frequent the hide, drawing bird-watchers from across the country. Inspired by Wang's success, other families in the area also set up bird hides, turning it into a thriving local business.

Currently, there are 15 bird hides available to bird enthusiasts, with Wang managing five of them. According to him, the prime birding season in Mangba spans from January to June, coinciding with the local dry season. "During the dry season, birds are more inclined to visit our hides for water and bathing," he said. "At any of my hides, one can document around 30 different bird species."

Mangba has recorded over 300 wild bird species, establishing itself as a must-visit destination for birdwatchers and photographers.

Ptarmigan, a bird-watcher from Wuhan, Hubei province, who prefers to use his online user name, shared his experience: "I had been searching for Derbyan parakeets in Xizang, Sichuan and other parts of Yunnan for years without success. So, I decided to visit Mangba, the 'parakeet village'. Within 10 minutes of arriving, I saw dozens of parakeets and could admire them for hours — it was surreal."

To accommodate the influx of bird-watchers and photographers, Wang began constructing a three-story homestay in August of last year, completing it in April. The building can host 23 guests, offering them the unique opportunity to observe Derbyan parakeets at eye level from the rooftop, just 20 meters away.

Wang charges 150 yuan ($21) per person for a day's accommodation, which includes three meals and visits to his bird hides. "Bird photographers typically stay in Mangba for about four days," he said. "In addition to capturing photos of the parakeets at sunrise and sunset, they explore several hides to observe different wild bird species."

Although Wang's family owns about 7 hectares of hilly land near the village, the majority of their income is derived from the birdwatching business. "We earn around 20,000 yuan from farming, but the visits from bird-watchers and photographers bring in about 100,000 yuan," he said.

According to China Green Times, Mangba attracts over 12,000 visitors, generating over 4 million yuan in revenue every year.

"We used to rely on the parakeets as our watches and alarm clocks," Wang said. "Their calls marked the beginning of our workday at dawn and signaled its end when they returned to their nests. I never imagined that one day they would become a vital source of income for us."