Feather in the cap for Chongming Dongtan National Nature Reserve
Chongming Dongtan National Nature Reserve.
The area has rich biodiversity.
Shanghai's Chongming Dongtan National Nature Reserve has been forwarded as a nominated area of China's Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the coast of the Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf (Phase II) for UNESCO World Heritage listing.
It will be the city's first World Heritage site if inscribed.
In 2019, China's Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the coast of the Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf (Phase I) were inscribed on the World Heritage List as a natural site.
The sanctuaries, located in the Yellow Sea eco-region, contain the world's largest continuous mudflat seashore.
At the same time, the Chinese government started the application of China's Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the coast of the Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf (Phase II) for UNESCO World Heritage listing.
China's Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the coast of the Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf (Phase I) are the central node of the East Asian-Australasian Flyway. It is the most threatened migratory flyway worldwide and boasts the largest number of endangered and critically endangered species, according to Xinhua News Agency.
The area has a high biodiversity, with about 280 species of fish and more than 500 species of invertebrates, providing a variety of food resources for millions of migratory birds.
The total nominated area of Phase I, located in Yancheng City of China's Jiangsu Province, is 186,400 hectares, which accounts for 42 percent of the total area of the serial nominated property that consists of 16 nominated components.
Chongming Dongtan National Nature Reserve has recorded about 300 species of birds, including 22 global threatened species, 18 national first-class protected species and 59 national second-class protected species.
The biological diversity of Chongming Dongtan National Nature Reserve endows it significant ecological value, experts said. The inscription result will be announced in 2023 during the new session of the World Heritage Committee.
The reserve has some 300 species of birds.
