Sour note: Leading Chinese opera singer lands in hot water for flaunting headdress made with feathers from EIGHTY kingfishers
- Liu Guijuan shared pictures of the headdress on Chinese social media
- Headpiece is said to cost £10,775 and uses feathers from 80 kingfishers
- Conservationists criticised Miss Liu as condoning animal cruelty
- Artist fought back stating she bought the luxurious piece in name of art
Opera isn't normally a field associated with animal cruelty, but the two worlds have collided in China after a singer posted pictures of herself wearing a headdress made from kingfisher feathers.
Web users and conservationists quickly criticised her indifference towards animal welfare after it emerged the accessory was made from the feathers of no less than 80 of the colourful birds, according to the People's Daily Online.
Outcry: Opera singer Liu Guijuan is heavily criticised for showing off her headdress (pictured) made with feather from 80 kingfishers
Peking opera singer Liu Guijuan wrote in her post on Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter, that she had bought the rare headpiece more than a decade ago for 120,000 yuan (£10,775).
'It is made with the feathers from under the wings of 80 kingfishers,' she said the post.
Miss Liu, a well-respected opera artist from Tianjin city, said the current market price for the headdress is no less than 400,000 yuan (£42,583).
Share this article
She added that she is often envied by fellow artists at the backstage for wearing such pieces.
The post immediately attracted attention of Chinese animal lovers, who said art shouldn't come at the cost of sacrificing innocent birds.
'I feel like these people should step down. Who wants to see you if you build your art upon animal's suffering. We would rather you get out!' Commented one web user.
In the name of art: Miss Liu, an established opera singer in China, is seen on stage (right) in the headdress that landed her in hot water
But there were some supportive voices too.
'Liu Guijuan has followed industry rule and the headdresses are just for performing purpose, it has nothing to do with environmental protection,' wrote one unnamed web user.
Others suggested that artists could just as easily use fake feathers to create realistic costumes.
Victim: Two of the 11 types of kingfisher in China are protected species
Faced with public outcry, Miss Liu initially didn't back down.
She replied in her comments: 'I'm doing this in respect to art. In order to buy the best (headdress), I'd rather spend more money and use more kingfishers.'
She also indicated that Chinese Peking opera master, Mei Lanfang, used to collect headpieces with feathers from kingfishers.
However, she took down her original post not long after.
Two of the 11 types of kingfisher in China are protected species.
People's Daily Online reported in the same article that the police authority in Guangdong seized nearly 60,000 dead kingfishers last October.
But no further information was released on what these kingfishers had been killed for.
Most watched News videos
- Moment fire breaks out 'on Russian warship in Crimea'
- Lords vote against Government's Rwanda Bill
- Shocking moment balaclava clad thief snatches phone in London
- Russian soldiers catch 'Ukrainian spy' on motorbike near airbase
- Shocking moment man hurls racist abuse at group of women in Romford
- Mother attempts to pay with savings account card which got declined
- Shocking moment passengers throw punches in Turkey airplane brawl
- Shocking footage shows men brawling with machetes on London road
- Trump lawyer Alina Habba goes off over $175m fraud bond
- Shocking moment woman is abducted by man in Oregon
- Brazen thief raids Greggs and walks out of store with sandwiches
- China hit by floods after violent storms battered the country
