Seven people convicted of poisoning endangered birds at the Eastern Dongting Lake Nature Reserve and selling them to restaurants were sentenced in Yueyang, Hunan province, to prison terms of between one and 12 years.

The verdict announced on Monday sentenced one member of the gang, surnamed Fang, to 12 years of in prison for wildlife poaching and ordered him to pay 10,000 yuan ($1,537) in compensation.

Law enforcement officers at the reserve discovered the poaching on Jan 18 when a boat was found with dozens of dead water birds, including cygnets, spot-billed ducks and white herons.

An investigation found the gang had been poisoning the rare birds for many months and had been selling them to restaurants in Changde or to other buyers.

Two members of the gang, surnamed He and Zhong, who revealed the extent of the poaching to police, were sentenced 10 years each.