Explore China's Wetlands: A Journey Through Nature's Wonders

"The wise find joy in water; the virtuous find joy in mountains."

Here lies the brilliance of "a solitary wild duck flies alongside the setting sun, while the autumn river blends with the vast sky in one hue."

(Please view horizontally, grey cranes in Poyang Lake Wetland, Jiangxi, photographer @ Zhang Chunxiao)

There is also the vastness of "a crane cries in the ninth marsh, its voice heard across the wilds."

(Bayinbuluke Swamp Wetland, photographer @ Shui Dongqing)

There is the tenderness of "the ospreys are cooing, on the islet of the river."

(Please view horizontally, Ertix River Wetland, photographer @ Chen Xiaoyang)

And the serene beauty of "spring tides level with the sea, while the bright moon rises with the tides."

(The "blue tears" along the coast of Pingtan, Fujian, photographer @ Weng Wucai)

These vibrant, lush wetlands

have captivated countless poets and scholars, leaving them reluctant to depart.

Wetlands encompass all natural inland water bodies.

(Map of China's wetlands, showing wetlands within mainland China, excluding those on South China Sea islands; labeled wetlands are those mentioned below; cartography @ Wu Xintian/Planet Research Institute)

What do they bring to us?

(Poyang Lake, photographer @ Fu Jianbin)

The lake surface can span 3,500 square kilometers.

(Poyang Lake in summer, photographer @ Liao Hao)

Plants such as sedge, Miscanthus, reeds, and Polygonum hydropiper.

(Poyang Lake grass flats, photographer @ Tang Shao)

(Please view horizontally, Siberian cranes in Poyang Lake Wetland, photographer @ Zhang Chunxiao)

Poyang Lake acts like a giant sponge

expanding and contracting countless times

transforming between "seas and fields"

(Schematic diagram of seasonal changes in Poyang Lake wetlands, designed by Wu Xintian/Planet Research Institute)

(Please view horizontally, schematic diagram of lake wetlands, representing lakeshore areas with water depth less than 2 meters during dry seasons, designed by Wang Tianyi/Planet Research Institute)

People refer to these periodically submerged lakeshore areas

and regions with water depths within 2 meters during dry seasons

as one of the most common types of wetlands

(Taihu Lake wetlands, photographed by Vitamin)

creating lakeshore wetlands with distinct characteristics

(Please view horizontally, Baiyangdian wetlands, photographed by Wei Jianguo)

yet leaving traces of lakeshore wetlands behind

(Lashihai wetlands, photographed by Shi Yaochen)

Higher altitudes and drier climates

also give lakeshore wetlands many unique features

Located at the source of the Yellow River, Qinghai's Zhaling Lake

at an elevation of 4,300 meters near the limits of life

(Lakeshore wetlands of Zhaling Lake in Qinghai, photographed by Tony Star)

There are even more saline lake wetlands in the western regions

(Please view horizontally, Qinghai Lake wetlands, showing the delta at the entrance of the Buha River, the largest river flowing into Qinghai Lake, photographed by Pan Jincao)

Over 40 rivers converge into Qinghai Lake

The wetland area in Qinghai Lake's submerged lakeshore zone is only

The lakeshore of China's largest lake

Also showcases the vibrant life of wetlands

(Qinghai Lake Wetland, photographer: Wu Zhengjie)

(Please view horizontally, Qinghai Lake Bird Island Wetland, photographer: Liu Chen)

The "chain of lakes" in the heart of the Tibetan Plateau

The wonder and transcendence of plateau lakeshore wetlands

Serve as home to numerous rare wildlife and plants

(Please view horizontally, Siling Co Wetland, photographer: Chen Xiaoyang)

But if evaporation from saltwater lakes intensifies further

When salinity exceeds 35 grams per liter

Salt lakes are typically extremely flat and shallow

The lakeshore wetlands exhibit vigorous vitality

Several rivers including the Bortala River and Jing River converge here

(Ebinur Lake Wetland, image source: Visual China Group)

Other dazzling salt lake wetlands in China

Attract a large number of active "fans"

(Please view horizontally, flamingos in Shanxi Yuncheng Salt Lake Wetland, photographer: Zhang Li)

Especially those small salt lakes deep in the desert

The life legends of lakeside wetlands

Are written across the vast sea of death

(Salt lake in the heart of the Badain Jaran Desert, photographer @ Liu Bai)

One wondrous and unique world after another

Also brings us a visual feast

(Bosten Lake Wetland, photographer @ Chen Xiaoyang)

All end their lives as salt lakes

What kind of scene would that be?

(Manzha Tang Wetland in the Zoigê region, photographer @ Xiong Ke)

This was once a super lake

(Please view horizontally, Zoigê Wetland, photographer @ Jiang Xi)

As the ancient Yellow River eroded upstream to the ancient Zoigê Lake

It transformed into a lake wetland separated by hills

(Diagram of Zoigê Lake's marshification, cartographer @ Wang Tianyi/Planet Research Institute)

The oxygen-deficient environment slows microbial decomposition

Allowing large amounts of organic matter to accumulate

Eventually, hygrophytes and marsh plants take over

Land with a peat layer is typically called a marsh wetland

(Bog peat in the Inner Hebrides, Scotland, UK, image source @ Visual China)

Enabling plants to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere

and is fixed underground in another form

The peat depth in parts of the Zoige Wetland

The organic carbon storage per hectare of soil reaches 961.96 tons

Not all swamps evolved from lakes

Atmospheric precipitation, rivers, groundwater

lies the plain formed by the Heilongjiang, Ussuri, and Songhua rivers

(Sanjiang Plain in Fuyuan, Heilongjiang, photographer @ Shi Yaochen)

begin to grow on overly wet soil

gradually transitioning to dense clump-forming grasses

This process is also known as meadow paludification

(Marsh wetland in Fuyuan Sanjiang Plain, photographer @ Shi Yaochen)

while in the Lesser Khingan Mountains in the western Sanjiang Plain

hidden in the forests of depressions deep in the mountains

(Forest swamp in Wuyiling Wetland Park, Yichun, Lesser Khingan Mountains, photographer @ Zhao Gaoxiang)

and accumulating large amounts of rainwater and surface runoff

keeping the soil in a persistently waterlogged state

(Schematic diagram of forest paludification, designed by @ Hanqing/Planet Research Institute)

including the Bayinbuluke Wetland in Xinjiang

Zhalong Wetland and Qixinghe Wetland in Heilongjiang

(Bayinbuluke Wetland in Xinjiang, photographer @ Hou Ruxuan)

Swamp wetlands not only provide habitats for numerous wild animals

but also play a significant role in carbon sequestration

The wetland kingdom created by lakes and marshes

jointly shapes a brand-new world

giving rise to tens of thousands of ever-flowing rivers

and also nurtures wetlands unfamiliar to us

as well as areas outside river channels periodically affected by flooding

(Diagram of river wetland structure, distributed in meandering and braided rivers' middle and lower reaches; schematic diagram, mapped by Hanqing/Planet Research Institute)

In flat areas with no obvious constraints on both banks

(Braided river in Dinggyê County, Tibet, photographed by Yu Haitong)

coupled with the extensive development of dynamic mid-channel bars

merging into the embrace of the Yarlung Tsangpo River

(Yani Wetland in Tibet, photographed by Shen Ran)

are also typical representatives of braided river wetlands

(Ili River Wetland, photographed by Ma Junhua)

When rivers reach gentle plains or basins

(Hailar River floodplain wetland, image source@Chang Guang Satellite)

formed by the alluvial deposits of the Yangtze and Han Rivers

creating lakes such as Honghu, Bailu, Sanhu, and Changhu

floodplain lake wetlands and swamp wetlands

(The Yangtze-Han River Water Diversion Canal and Changhu Lake Wetland, photographer @ Fu Ding)

There are also shallow lakes with lush aquatic vegetation distributed

Because its shape resembles the curved wood people put around the necks of plowing cattle

This is due to the further bending of meandering river channels

Causing the original river channel to gradually become abandoned and form

(Schematic diagram of oxbow lake formation, designed by @ Wang Tianyi/Planet Research Institute)

Oxbow lakes of various sizes can be seen everywhere

(Please view horizontally, distribution map of oxbow lake group wetlands in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, designed by @ Wu Xintian/Planet Research Institute)

Because the water in oxbow lakes is isolated from rivers

Numerous aquatic plants will quickly silt them up

These oxbow lake wetlands and floodplain wetlands

Can accommodate even more floodwater during the flood season

Playing an important role in flood regulation and storage

When reaching the flatter downstream areas

River water easily breaches the banks during the flood season

So the river channels often disperse into dense networks

(Poyang Lake Ganjiang River Delta braided rivers, image source @ Google Maps)

Are typical representatives of such braided river wetlands

And also regulate the temperature and humidity of the region

(Please view horizontally, Guangzhou Haizhu Wetland, photographer @ Zhang Xiangliang)

The sediment carried by the river is unloaded and deposited here

(Please view horizontally, Yalu River Delta, photographer @ Chang Jianru)

Due to the tidal effects caused by the gravitational pull of the Moon and the Sun

Submerging the marginal areas of the delta

Because the Shandong Peninsula and Liaodong Peninsula enclose the outer sea

The wave energy in the coastal areas is weaker

Thus, the continuously seaward-depositing Yellow River Delta

Forms a vast delta wetland

(Yellow River Delta Wetland, photographer @ Fu Kun)

The delta constitutes a transitional zone between rivers and the ocean

Spanning China's 18,000-kilometer coastline

And along this extensive coastline

There are even more breathtaking wetland landscapes

The shallow seabed within 6 meters of sea level

Including coasts periodically submerged by tides

(Please view horizontally, schematic diagram of nearshore and coastal wetlands, cartographer @ Wang Tianyi/Planet Research Institute)

Their appearance changes with the types of coastal zones

Under the relentless冲刷 of waves over the years

Forming sea stacks, sea cliffs, and sea arches as representative features

Here, the shore is steep, the water deep, and the waves fierce

It also gives rise to a periodically submerged zone

(Qingdao Stone Old Man Rocky Coast Wetland, photographer: Liu Gengxin)

Countless fish, shrimp, crabs, and shellfish inhabit here

Migrating from the cold Northwest Pacific to the waters around the Liaodong Peninsula

Feasting heartily on the "seafood banquet" of the rocky coast wetland

Often sprawled out sunbathing are spotted seals

(Please view horizontally, spotted seals in Dalian Spotted Seal Wetland, photographer: Zhang Chenghao)

In coastal zones farther from mountains with stronger waves

Gravel from broken reefs and sand carried by rivers into the sea

(Beihai Shell Beach, photographer: Liang Bingquan)

Natural sandy coastlines also nurture abundant benthic organisms

Together creating the vitality of sandy coastal wetlands

(Shandong Yantai High-Tech Zone Beach, image source: Visual China Group)

Coastal currents accumulate silt into strips

Enclosing some sea areas indented into the land

(Formation process of lagoon wetlands, mapping by Zhao Bang & Han Qing/Planet Research Institute)

Supporting the growth of numerous plants and benthic organisms

Becoming an important type of coastal wetland

(Qilihai in Hebei Changli Golden Coast, image source: Visual China Group)

As well as in many relatively enclosed bays

Fine-grained silt moves with the ebb and flow of the tides

Accumulating along the coastal zone to form muddy tidal flats

Such as Jiaozhou Bay in Qingdao and Shenzhen Bay in Shenzhen

Shatang Port in Xiapu and Zhangjiang Estuary in Fujian

(Please view horizontally, Guangxi mangrove ecological coast, where mangroves often grow on coastal tidal flats in tropical and subtropical regions, photographer @ Liang Jie)

Home to one of China's most unique coastal wetlands

Although facing the open waters of the Yellow Sea

The extremely wide and gentle Yellow Sea continental shelf

The Yellow River and Yangtze River once flowed into the sea here multiple times

The sea transformed the massive delta

Gradually evolving the coast into muddy tidal flat wetlands

Becoming a home for countless precious wildlife and plants

(Please view horizontally, Jiangsu Dafeng Milu Deer Wetland, photographer @ Sun Huajin)

Coastal wetlands composed of coral reefs and seagrass beds

Subtidal wetlands formed by seagrasses like Zostera marina in the Yellow and Bohai Seas

Making coastal areas even more vibrant and colorful

(Coral reef coast of Hengchun Peninsula in southern Taiwan, photographer @ Jiao Xiaoxiang)

Lakes, marshes, rivers, and coastal areas nurture

Together adorning the land we live on

While admiring, respecting, and revering them

Beyond appreciating and utilizing natural wetlands

They are reservoirs on major rivers

(Three Gorges Reservoir, photographer: Xing Ying Bu Li)

(Yuanyang Terraced Fields in Yunnan, photographer: Ku Niao Wei Jian)

(The Grand Canal and Weishan Lake, photographer: Wu Yidan)

And exquisite pavilions and waterside towers

(Xixi Wetland in Hangzhou, photographer: Xiao Yisan)

Thousands of artificial wetlands, large and small

Together paint an ecological masterpiece

Providing habitats for more species

While purifying water and regulating floods

(Please view horizontally, wetland definition and functions. The Ramsar Convention defines wetlands as all water bodies and coastal areas between land, a system convenient for management but overly complex. This article focuses on transitional zones between land and deep-water areas, illustration by Wang Tianyi/Planet Research Institute)

Wetland degradation caused by human activities

(Shenzhen Bao'an Airport, built on reclaimed land, photographer: Wu Yidan)

Has also severely impacted people's lives and production

(Flooded riverbanks in Wuhan, photographer: Ou Changhong, XM)

People are rediscovering the vital value of wetlands

With China's accession to the Ramsar Convention

And the enactment of wetland protection laws

Wetlands in contemporary China are being systematically restored

(Liaohekou Red Beach Wetland, photographer: Zhou Xuguang)

Taking the mangrove wetlands along the southern coast as an example

In 1950, China's mangrove wetland area was nearly 50,000 hectares

But by 2001, this figure had sharply decreased to 22,000 hectares

Since then, with increasing conservation efforts

The figure has risen to nearly 30,000 hectares in recent years

Making China one of the few countries where

(Please view horizontally, Zhangzhou Zini Town Mangrove Wetland, photographer: Lin Fang)

The 14th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention

(Please view horizontally, Wuhan East Lake National Wetland Park, photographer: Wanshetang)

A more harmonious way for humans and wetlands to coexist

Our lives will not change because of this

But nature will be healed as a result

Midea Group always adheres to

The vision of "Technology for Good, Life for Beauty"

Continuously exploring more advanced technological capabilities

The intelligent environmental control system of Suzhou Metro

The construction of 160MW photovoltaic power generation, among others

With the joint participation of all sectors of society

Rippling across the ever-changing lakeshores

Endless in the vibrant marshes

Stretching for miles along the colorful coast

(Please view horizontally, Erhai Wetland in Dali, Yunnan, photographer: Yang Jipei)

The miracle where water meets land

Harmonious coexistence between humans and nature

Text | Xiao Fei & Yunwu Kongcheng

Images | Grateful Heart

Map | Wu Xintian

Design | Wang Tianyi & Han Qing

Review | Li Chuyang, Wang Luoji & Chen Jingyi

Cover Photographers | Fu Jianbin & Xiong Ke

[1] Lü Xianguo. China's Wetlands and Wetland Research[M]. Hebei Science and Technology Press, 2008.

[2] Qi Shuhua, Zhang Qiming, Jiang Feng, et al. Impact of Water Level on the Landscape Pattern of Wintering Waterbird Habitats in Poyang Lake Wetland[J]. Journal of Natural Resources, 2014(8):11.

[3] Tang Guohua. Study on the Evolution, Protection and Management of Poyang Lake Wetland[D]. Nanchang University, 2017.

[4] Li Hongmei. Study on Landscape Pattern Evolution and Soil Organic Carbon Storage in Zoige Wetland[D]. Sichuan Agricultural University.

[5] Yuan Yue, Fu Deping, Lü Guanghui. Study on Interspecific Relationships of Dominant Vegetation Species in Ebinur Lake Wetland, Xinjiang[J]. Wetland Science, 2008, 6(4):6.

[6] Zeng Xiangyun. Health Assessment of Aquatic Ecosystem in Dongzhai Port Mangrove Wetland, Hainan[D]. South China University of Technology, 2015.

[7] Wu Zhongjie, Chen Shiquan, Cai Zefu, et al. Distribution Changes and Restoration Suggestions of Seagrass Beds in Hainan Island[J]. Marine Environmental Science, 2021, 40(4):8.

[8] Xing Wei. Study on Carbon Accumulation in Marsh Wetlands of Northeast China[D]. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 2017.

[9] He Baoyin. Genetic Types and Characteristics of Lakes in Jianghan Plain[J]. Journal of Central China Normal University: Natural Science Edition, 2002, 36(2):4.

Guan Daoming, Liu Chang'an, Zuo Ping, et al. Coastal Wetlands of China[M]. Ocean Press, 2012.

[Recruitment] Planet Institute is continuously hiring writers in various fields such as urban geography, human geography, economic geography, physical geography, astrobiology, historical archaeology, architecture, as well as business planners. Please reply with "Recruitment" in the backend to view details.