Functions of Chongming Dongtan Bird National Nature Reserve in Shanghai

The natural environment of Shanghai Chongming Dongtan Bird National Nature Reserve provides a good habitat for all kinds of creatures. It is located in Australia, the middle of the migratory route of migratory birds in East Asia, and is an important post station for migratory birds. Hundreds of thousands of species of snipe stop here every spring and autumn migration period, and 8 species of snipe have important international significance in the protection of migratory birds. Every winter, thousands of geese and ducks spend the winter here. At the same time, Chongming Dongtan is also an important habitat for rare and endangered birds. By 20 10, there were 4 species of wild birds under national first-class protection, 35 species under national second-class protection, and 20 species of birds were listed in China's Red Book of Endangered Animals.

Not only that, Chongming Dongtan and its adjacent waters are spawning grounds and migration routes for aquatic organisms. Eriocheir sinensis (commonly known as hairy crabs) lays eggs in this area; Young Japanese eels entered the Yangtze River through the waters and began to migrate upstream. The juvenile Chinese sturgeon bred in the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River enters the waters near Chongming Dongtan every summer for fattening. Therefore, this area plays an indispensable role for aquatic organisms to complete their complete life history process.

Chongming Dongtan, as the largest tidal flat wetland in Shanghai, plays an important role in regulating climate, purifying water quality and resisting natural disasters such as storm surge. The environmental characteristics of rapid siltation also provide ideal conditions for studying the formation, development and succession of estuarine wetland ecosystem.