PhD candidate dedicated to “building houses” for birds

31-year-old Luo Kang, a Ph.D. candidate of Chinese Academy of Sciences, has built over 500 "houses" for birds in the Ailao Mountains in southwest China's Yunnan Province.

After eight years of research and study, Luo has found that some birds in the Ailao Mountains can't build nests due to the variable weather. So Luo decided to build the nests for them.

Now there are 500 artificial nests built by Luo, which are under real-time monitoring.

"Some people asked me: 'After all these years' study, you abandon the life in an office with suit and tie, and seclude yourself in remote mountains. Don't you think it's a waste of life?'" Said Luo Kang.

But Luo doesn't. He's been a lifelong bird-lover, and that's why he chose to study ornithological ecology when he entered college.

He gave up the opportunity to continue his study in big cities; instead, he preferred staying in the remote mountains to study the birds.

Luo said now he can identify over 80 different kinds of birds from their songs.