2015
Regulated tidal exchange
China
Yangtze
121.96558
31.513289
Lagoon
Reedbed
Saltmarsh
1858 Hectares
Biodiversity Enhancement
Habitat Enhancement
Habitat Protection
Chongming Dongtan National Nature Reserve is a Wetland of International Importance designated by the Government of the People’s Republic of China under the Ramsar Convention.
The intertidal flats, which comprise some 92% of the reserve, are of particular importance for shorebirds which use the area to rest and feed during their migrations between Southeast Asia/Australasia and breeding grounds in the Arctic.
The intertidal area has been, and continues to be, severely impacted by the invasive exotic cordgrass Spartina alterniflora (introduced from North America). Invasion by Spartina makes areas completely unsuitable for use as either roosting or foraging sites by shorebirds and thus compromises the value of the site to these birds.
In 2015 a large sea wall was constructed across the intertidal areas and this 'coastal modification' site now includes wetland outside (seaward of) this wall and a series of lagoons, reedbed and saltmarsh inside (landward of) it. The internal reserve area is 1,858 ha in total.
This site is also 'twinned' with the RSPB's Wallasea Island Wild Coast Project in the UK