As the early morning mist hung over Nandagang Wetland in Cangzhou, North China's Hebei province, Pan Hongxi, a 59-year-old ranger, started his slightly old three-wheeler, beginning another day of patrols.

As he drove along the road, startled waterfowl rose into the air, their wings flapping as they disappeared deep into the vast reed beds.

"When I first started working here 40 years ago, you couldn't see this many birds," Pan says, his voice mingling with the noise of the engine, as he recalls memories from the 1990s.

Back then, this wetland on the western shore of Bohai Bay had fallen quiet, suffering from enclosed aquaculture ponds and ecological degradation.

"The water wasn't as clear, the reeds weren't as thick, and bird sightings were sparse," he says.

Today, moving through the 7,500-hectare wetland, his eyes meet an endless expanse of reeds, and his ears are filled with a constant chorus of birdsong.

This wetland has undergone a profound ecological transformation, the result of a restoration project that has lasted for years.

Meticulous work

"Ecological restoration isn't simply about removing dams and releasing water. It's a precise reshaping of the ecosystem," says Wang Lijun, deputy director of the management office of the Nandagang Wetland and Bird Nature Reserve, spreading out planning charts to explain the major surgery the wetland has undergone.

He pointed to a drawing marked with dense symbols.

"In the past, this area was divided into isolated aquaculture ponds. Water didn't flow freely, and ecological functions were damaged," Wang says, adding that the core task was to restore it to a natural wetland with a complete ecological cycle by returning aquaculture ponds to wetlands.

He details the interlinked steps of the restoration project: removing artificial embankments to restore natural water flow; creating diverse habitats like deep-water areas, shallows, and gentle slopes through careful micro-topography modification; and then replanting native vegetation like reeds and seepweed.

"But the most crucial step was building a safe home for the birds," Wang says, his finger pressing firmly on several areas of the chart marked in green.

"Birds, especially rare waders, have extremely high demands for habitat safety. Where there were no natural islands, we artificially created them," he says.

According to Wang, the size, vegetation and even gradient of these islands were strictly calculated, tailored for birds that have specific environmental requirements, like oriental storks and black-faced spoonbills.

This project, known as the "Northern Aquaculture Pond Ecological Restoration", successfully transformed 108.8 hectares of aquaculture ponds back into vibrant, natural wetlands and was selected as a national-level example of what could be achieved.

"But this was just the beginning," Wang says.

"Our goal is not just restoration, but enhancement: creating a healthy, self-sustaining and vibrant ecosystem," Wang says.

In recent years, by leveraging major projects, they have systematically addressed problems like wetland hydrological connectivity, water purification, and biodiversity recovery.