The Chongming Dongtan Nature Reserve is located on the easternmost tip of Chongming Island, the biggest estuarine alluvial island in the world. The Site mainly comprises estuarine waters and intertidal mud, sand or salt flats. The wetland holds the biggest and the only remaining natural mudflat on the Yangtze estuary. The rich natural resources of the wetland include flourishing mudflat vegetation, well developed tidal creeks and diverse benthos. Located within the ecotone of the Yangtze River, Yellow Sea and East China Sea, the Site is a typical, unique, diverse and thriving ecosystem. Plants such as Phragmites and the endemic Scirpus mariqueter, which occupy a large part of the wetland, play important roles in enriching primary productions, purifying water, resisting storm tides and protecting the coastlines from erosion. The wetland serves as an important wintering and stopover site for 111 species of migratory waterbirds, including globally threatened species such as the critically endangered spoon-billed sandpiper (Eurynorhynchus pygmeus), endangered black-faced spoonbill (Platalea minor) and vulnerable hooded crane (Grus monacha). It is also an important habitat and migratory channel for the critically endangered Chinese sturgeon (Acipenser sinensis). The 94 species of freshwater, seawater and migratory fish found here account for over 80% of the total Yangtze estuarine fish species.

Last publication date: 27-07-2017