Abstract: Black-faced spoonbill (Platalea minor) is a globally endangered species. From January to March 2004, win-tering behavior of black-faced spoonbills was observed during the day in Beili Bay, Dongfang County, Hainan Island, using scan and focal sampling methods. During the day, the proportion of resting was much higher than other activities. Only in the morning and at dusk, the spoonbills foraged at mudflats, not at ponds nearby where there were human disturbances. There was a remarkable peak and valley in resting. From 8:00–17:00, the birds often rest at the mudflats. A small increase in foraging, maintenance and standing behaviors occurred after 17:00. However, there was a lower frequency of locomotion and social behaviors, and no remarkable peak and valley. There were significant differences among the duration of different be-haviors, with resting occurring for 491.4 ± 595.9 s and walking for 15.3 ± 20.5 s. In addition, there is re-markable difference in feeding frequency among the different time periods, with higher frequency recorded after 16:00 everyday. Further, there is close relationship between feeding frequency and tidal level, and higher and lower tidal level has a negative effect on feeding frequency. During the periods of observation, some threats were found, such as seafood collecting, ocean pollution and illegal hunting. Some recom-mendation for conservation and management are proposed.

Key words: cladoceran, zooplankton, community ecology, Yangtze River