Qingsong Nature Reserve

Qingsong Nature Reserve

The Shulan City Qingsong Provincial Wildlife Nature Reserve is situated in the eastern part of Shulan City. It lies at 127 degrees 30 minutes east longitude and 44 degrees 15 minutes north latitude, within the jurisdiction of the Qingsong Forest Farm. Established in April 1974, the Qingsong Forest Farm was designated as a no-hunting zone by the provincial government in 1980 and came under nature reserve management in 2005. In October 2012, following Shulan City’s successful application as the “Hometown of Northeast Forest Frogs in China,” the Qingsong Nature Reserve was designated as a “Northeast Forest Frog Germplasm Base.” To the east, the reserve borders the Jianshe Forest Farm and Shuguang Forest Farm, both managed by the Shanshuotun Forestry Bureau of Wuchang City, Heilongjiang Province. To the south and west, it neighbors the Liuhe Forest Farm, Shilazi Forest Farm, and Lihua Forest Farm, which are under the jurisdiction of the Shangying Forest Management Bureau in Jilin City. To the north lies the Yongsheng Forest Farm of Shulan City. The reserve is part of the Zhangguangcai Mountain Range, an extension of the Changbai Mountain Range. It covers a total area of 9,406 hectares, including 9,037 hectares of forestry land, 9,030 hectares of state-owned forestry land, 8,847 hectares of forested land, and has a forest coverage rate of 94.12%. The total standing timber volume reaches 890,000 cubic meters.

The reserve boasts abundant plant resources, with vegetation characteristic of the Changbai Mountain plant region, forming a natural mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forest. Major tree species include valuable types such as Korean pine, Yezo spruce, Scots pine, Manchurian walnut, purple magnolia, amur corktree, Manchurian ash, birch, maple, and elm, with an average tree height of over 15 meters and an average age of more than 50 years. The area is home to a diverse range of wildlife, including second-class nationally protected animals such as black bears, sika deer, and mandarin ducks, as well as dozens of species such as wild boar, river deer, roe deer, otters, and various snakes. There are also hundreds of bird species, including pheasants, wild ducks, and hazel grouse, making it a key wildlife protection area. The Qingsong Nature Reserve is also the source of the Zhuzhi River, one of the three major rivers in Shulan City. The local climate is continental monsoon, with an average annual temperature of 3.5 degrees Celsius, average annual precipitation of about 700 millimeters, a frost-free period of around 120 days, and dark brown forest soil.