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Hangzhou's wetland biodiversity, beauty bring expats together

chinadaily.com.cn| Updated: October 22, 2021 L M S

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Wild birds swim leisurely in West Lake. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The group was invited to the Xixi National Wetland Park, which is known as the "kidney of Hangzhou" due to its cleansing properties contributed from the abundance of natural resources and water networks, rivers, ponds, moors, swamps and mudflats.

Mutawarira Takudwa from Zimbabwe said he was amazed by the views of plants and birds at Xixi National Wetland Park during the tour. He recommended others to take a tour of the park for rest, pleasure or other exploration purposes.  

According to Shi Xiaodan, the bilingual guide at the park, the Xixi wetland has been minimizing the impact of human activities in wildlife habitats by improving water quality, controlling pollution, and regularly monitoring the environment.

Shi also mentioned that Chaotian Muyang, an ecological protection area, was set up in the park for experts and scholars to research biodiversity. 

Statistics from the latest research show that by the end of 2020, Xixi wetland housed 711 vascular plant species, which is 490 more than in 2005, 898 insect species, which is 421 more than in 2005, and 193 bird species, which is 114 more than in 2005.

The city of Hangzhou is rich in wetland resources, with the total area of wetlands that are above eight hectares having reached 140,000 hectares, accounting for 8.5 percent of the city’s total area. Statistics also show that 2,731 species of various animals and plants are recorded in Hangzhou now including 506 species of terrestrial wild animals, 159 species of freshwater fish, and 2,066 vascular plant species.

Due to its achievements in conservation of biological diversity, Hangzhou was invited to share its experience at the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15), which was held in Kunming, Yunnan province on Oct 11.

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