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Dandong held its first International Bird Watching Festival in 2002, and since that time, the municipal government has asked all institutions and the public to pay greater attention to the national nature reserve in the wetlands of the Yalu River estuary and to the annual Festival, so that each and every one of us contributes to wetland and ecological protection.
Wetlands are sometimes referred to as the earth’s “kidneys", because they take in floodwater during the rainy season and provide it during droughts. They regulate the climate, control soil erosion, and create more land through the use of silt.
The nature reserve in the Yalu River wetlands is rich in water resources and has a unique geographical location. It has a diverse ecology and many rare species, and provides strong support for biodiversity. It acts as a biological gene bank, when compared with similar life zones around the world and has nearly 365 plant, 250 wild bird and 76 fish species this fertile wetland.
Some of the migratory birds spend the winter in New Zealand and Australia then fly to Xiboli to reproduce. They fly north from their winter stopover at one go. The distance is about 6,500 km, as the crow flies, but they actually cover almost 10,000 km during a week’s time because of the weather. While migrating, they neither eat nor drink, so they lose some 50 percent of their weight by the time they arrive at Donggang. Therefore, food and refection are of the essence when they drop in and the ecology and environment of the Yalu River estuary are the perfect refueling stop.
The estuary wetlands are listed on the East-Asian-Australasian Shorebirds Network, which is managed by the Asia-Pacific Council of Wetlands International Union. In recent years, bird experts from China and abroad have said that this is the "best preserved ecosystem and optimal place for bird watching".
During the annual Bird Watching Festival, as many as 500,000 migratory birds, including endangered species such as the black-mouth gull and black-faced spoonbill, flock to the park within the estuary wetlands. The park has ideal natural conditions and, during the Bird Watching Festival, is packed with visitors. It’s a spectacular sight for bird lovers and shutterbugs from China and abroad.
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