2024-09-30 03:17:19
Summer is the busiest season at Qinghai Lake, the largest salt lake in China.
Birds feed and nourish their young, shepherds drive yaks to the mountain pastures. Meanwhile, an army of naked carp, a species unique to the lake, gathers to begin their annual migration.
The fish swim at an average depth of 18 meters in the lake, which is located in northwest China’s Qinghai Province. However, the high salt and alkali content of the lake water inhibits the development of their gonads, so every year from May to August, the sexually mature naked carp move to the fresh waters of the Buha River and Shaliu River, which flow into the lake, to spawn. This is one of the great wonders of Qinghai Lake – the migration of naked carp.
The “lost and found” naked carp
The naked carp has a special place in the hearts of the people of Qinghai because it once saved countless lives. In the 1950s and 1960s, locals relied on fish to survive due to food shortages. The large-scale development of the naked carp population in Qinghai Lake began.
But in just a few decades, the “Gift of the Divine Lake,” as the fish was called, was threatened with extinction due to overfishing and habitat loss. By the early 21st century, the number of naked carp in Qinghai Lake had fallen to less than one percent of the historical high has fallen.
The local government imposed fishing bans and cracked down on illegal fishing and trafficking. Combined with artificial breeding and improving the lake’s ecology, the carp population has recovered despite low fertility rates.
Over time, the efforts paid off. In 2023, the total tonnage of naked carp in the lake had reached about 120,300 – about 44 times that of 2002. The fish’s conservation status has since been downgraded from “endangered” to “vulnerable.”
The protection of naked carp is just one example of the success of China’s conservation efforts. From giant pandas and crested ibises to golden snub-nosed monkeys, populations of rare species have gradually increased as the country’s nature reserve system has developed.
China is home to some of the greatest biodiversity on earth and is the only country where almost all ecosystem types are found. The natural protected areas have promoted the conservation of biological diversity and play an important role in ensuring national ecological security.
Various types of nature reserves have been established in the People’s Republic of China since its establishment in 1949. The protection of endangered species has been continually strengthened, international cooperation has expanded, and the network of nature reserves is bearing fruit.
Ecological civilization was included in China’s integrated development plan in 2012, when Xi Jinping became China’s supreme leader. Since then, major changes have occurred across the country as Xi stressed the importance of harmonious coexistence between people and nature.
“The Book of Changes (l Ching) says: “We should learn to understand the changes of the seasons through the observation of natural phenomena and promote social development through the observation of human phenomena. “Wealth comes from following the path of heaven and earth and supporting the natural order,” Xi said at the National Conference on Environment and Nature Conservation on May 18, 2018.
According to China’s Ministry of Natural Resources, by June 2024, the country will have restored over 100 million mu (about 6.7 million hectares) of ecosystems, including mountains, rivers, forests, farmlands, lakes, grasslands and deserts.
China’s protected areas cover 18 percent of its land area and 4.1 percent of its marine area, accounting for 90 percent of its terrestrial ecosystem types, 85 percent of its wildlife populations, 65 percent of its higher plant communities, and nearly 30 percent of its important geological relics.
The country’s nature reserves form a solid foundation for ecological environmental protection, and the “China Biodiversity Conservation Strategy and Action Plan (2023-2030)” has identified the priority areas and Measures established for the conservation of biodiversity.
China has also shouldered its international responsibilities, participated in global environmental governance and cooperation to protect biodiversity, and been the driving force behind the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity, emphasizing interdependence and the common challenges facing all countries stand, were emphasized.
1727666696
#CGTN #Chinas #network #nature #reserves #proven #invaluable
