Tongcheng Xizi Lake National Wetland Park

Tongcheng Xizi Lake National Wetland Park

Tongcheng Xizi Lake National Wetland Park is a national-level wetland park.

I. General Information

The Xizi Lake Wetland Park is situated in the southeastern part of Tongcheng City, around 25 kilometers from the city center and approximately 50 kilometers from Anqing City. It spans a total area of 5,139.69 hectares. The park is located in Xizi Lake Town, Tongcheng City, Anhui Province, with geographic coordinates between 117°00′20″ to 117°03′30″ east longitude and 30°45′30″ to 30°54′10″ north latitude.

The wetland area of Xizi Lake Wetland Park amounts to 4,310.32 hectares, accounting for 83.86% of the total park area. The park features a variety of wetland types, predominantly lake wetlands, along with rivers and artificial wetlands such as rice paddies and ponds.

Among the natural wetland types, the lake area of Xizi Lake covers 3,821.31 hectares, making up 88.65% of the total wetland area; river wetlands cover 15.0 hectares, or 0.35%; and due to agricultural and fishing activities, the park also contains numerous artificial wetlands, including 337.01 hectares of rice paddies (7.82%) distributed along the western and northern shores of Xizi Lake, and 137.0 hectares of ponds (3.18%) scattered along the lake’s western and northern edges.

II. Flora and Fauna Resources

Wetland Animals

(1) Birds There are about 60 species of waterfowl in the Xizi Lake basin, belonging to 6 orders and 12 families. The distribution of families and species by order, from most to least, is as follows: Anseriformes (1 family, 18 species), Charadriiformes (4 families, 16 species), Ciconiiformes (3 families, 15 species), Gruiformes (2 families, 6 species), Lariformes (1 family, 3 species), and Podicipediformes (1 family, 2 species). By residency type, there are 8 resident bird species and 51 migratory species—16 summer migrants and 36 winter migrants. In terms of avian fauna, 3 species are Palearctic (52.5% of the total), 13 are Oriental (22.0%), and 15 are cosmopolitan (25.5%). Summer, the wet season, sees fewer exposed shorelines, with gulls, herons, spot-billed ducks, and little grebes being common. Among aquatic vegetation like water chestnut, lotus, and water caltrop, you can spot coots, moorhens, spot-billed ducks, water rails, little grebes, great crested grebes, and common moorhens. In the air, whiskered terns and little terns are often seen. In winter, species such as tundra swans, other ducks and geese, and gulls are abundant. Cranes and northern lapwings can be found on the lakeshore, while shallows serve as key habitats for grebes, ducks and geese, herons, oriental white storks, black-faced spoonbills, and shorebirds—offering high bird diversity and numbers. The Xizi Lake area is home to 7 nationally protected bird species: 4 Class I (oriental white stork, black stork, Siberian crane, and hooded crane) and 3 Class II. The hooded crane, now listed as a Class I nationally protected wild animal with a global population exceeding 10,000, has about 3% of its population wintering at Xizi Lake. The oriental white stork, an IUCN endangered species with roughly 3,000 individuals worldwide, has approximately 5% of its global population overwintering here. The black-faced spoonbill and greater white-fronted goose populations at Xizi Lake make up about 19% and 13% of their respective global totals. Additionally, Xizi Lake is an important migration and wintering site for the dunlin among inland lakes.

(2) Benthic Animals There are about 28 species of benthic animals in Xizi Lake, belonging to 14 families and 25 genera, including 9 species of gastropods, 8 species of bivalves, 5 species of annelids, 1 species of crustaceans, and 3 species of insects. Mollusks dominate the benthic community within the planned park area. Due to early fishery development and intense aquaculture, the benthic biodiversity has been significantly impacted.

(3) Fish Xizi Lake is home to about 69 fish species across 8 orders and 18 families. Cyprinidae account for 62.7% of the total, making them the dominant family. Other notable families include Cobitidae, Bagridae, Salangidae, Engraulidae, Gobiidae, and Serranidae, each represented by about 2–3 species.

Wetland Plants The wetland vegetation of the Xizi Lake basin includes about 147 species of vascular plants from 43 families and 100 genera. These comprise 4 families and 4 genera of ferns (4 species), 28 families and 58 genera of dicotyledons (88 species), and 11 families and 38 genera of monocotyledons (55 species). There are 25 families and 74 genera of pioneer plants (104 species), with Poaceae, Polygonaceae, Cyperaceae, and Asteraceae being the main contributors to the pioneer plant communities. Emergent plants consist of 6 families and 7 genera (11 species), spread over relatively wide areas, where dominant species include Zizania latifolia, Polygonum orientale, Rumex acetosa, and Phragmites australis. Aquatic plants are mainly floating species (11 families, 12 genera, 18 species). Trapaceae and Nymphaeaceae (including Euryale ferox) form the main rooted-floating-leaved plant communities, while Azolla, Lemna, and Salvinia dominate the free-floating vegetation, though these are less common in Xizi Lake. Submerged plants include 7 families and 9 genera (14 species), with species from Hydrocharitaceae, Potamogetonaceae, Haloragaceae, and Ceratophyllaceae forming the main submerged plant communities.

III. Hydrology and Climate The area has a subtropical humid monsoon climate, characterized by distinct seasons, mild and moist weather, moderate rainfall, ample sunshine, long frost-free periods, and short severe cold spells. The annual average temperature is 16.5°C. The hottest month is July, with an average temperature of 28.8°C, and the coldest is January, averaging 3.5°C. The mean annual wind speed is 3.1 m/s. Precipitation is significantly influenced by the monsoon, being much heavier in summer than in winter. The average annual rainfall is 1,389.1 mm, while the average annual evaporation is 1,611.4 mm. There are, on average, 139.1 rainy days and 12.8 snowy days per year, with a sunshine percentage of 46%.

Xizi Lake Wetland Park The main water system of Xizi Lake Wetland Park is located in the southern part of Xizi Lake, primarily influenced by the hydrology of the lake itself. Xizi Lake lies on the northern bank of the Yangtze River and the southeastern side of the Dabie Mountains. It stretches 3.9 km from east to west and 10.6 km from north to south at its widest points. The lake has two sources, both near Laoguanling in the Dabie Mountain foothills at the junction of Tongcheng, Shucheng, and Qianshan counties. The upstream section has a pebble riverbed, while the downstream section features sandy beds. It receives surface runoff from the Longmian and Guache rivers within the region, and downstream connects with Xizi Lake before flowing into the Yangtze. It is a shallow, sedimentary freshwater lake. Originally formed as an erosional depression between hills in a tectonic subsidence zone, the area became a lake after sedimentation from the Yangtze River floodplain blocked water drainage. The lake has a perennial water surface area of 3,258.0 hectares, with depths ranging from 3–5 meters and a surface elevation of 13.42 meters.

Xizi Lake Town Xizi Lake Town is located in the southeastern part of Tongcheng City, Anhui Province. The town center is 25 kilometers from downtown Tongcheng and is surrounded by water on three sides. To the east, it faces Changyuan County, Anhui, across Bai’tu Lake; to the south and west, it borders with Cai’zi Lake and Xizi Lake, adjacent to Yixiu District of Anqing, as well as Shuanggang and Jinshen towns of our city; and to the north, it connects with Kongcheng Town. The administrative area covers 134.7 square kilometers, including 76 square kilometers of surrounding lake area—about 56% of the total. In 2001, the township was upgraded to a town. It currently governs 9 administrative villages and 281 villager groups, with a total population of 25,000. The town’s economic structure is… [More details about Xizi Lake Town++]

III. Hydrology and Climate

It has a subtropical humid monsoon climate, characterized by distinct monsoons, four clear seasons, mild and moist weather, moderate rainfall, ample sunlight, long frost-free periods, and short severe cold seasons. The multi-year average temperature is 16.5°C. The hottest month is July, with an average monthly temperature of 28.8°C, and the coldest month is January, with an average monthly temperature of 3.5°C. The annual average wind speed is 3.1 meters per second. Precipitation in the area is significantly influenced by the monsoon climate, being markedly higher in summer than in winter. The multi-year average rainfall is 1389.1 millimeters, the multi-year average evaporation is 1611.4 millimeters, the multi-year average number of rainy days is 139.1 days, the multi-year average number of snowy days is 12.8 days, and the sunshine percentage is 46%.

The main water system of Xizi Lake Wetland Park is located in the southern part of Xizi Lake Wetland and is primarily influenced by the hydrology of Xizi Lake Wetland. Xizi Lake is situated on the north bank of the Yangtze River and the southeastern side of the Dabie Mountains. Its maximum east-west length is 3.9 kilometers, and its maximum north-south width is 10.6 kilometers. The lake’s source branches into two, originating near Laoguanling at the junction of Tong, Shu, and Qian counties and cities, which are part of the foothills of the Dabie Mountains. The upper reaches have a pebble riverbed, while the lower reaches consist of sandy terrain. It receives surface water from the two major rivers within the region—the Longmian River and the Guache River—and their watersheds. Downstream, it connects integrally with Xizi Lake and flows into the Yangtze River. It is a silted, shallow freshwater lake. This area was originally an inter-mountain erosional depression in a tectonic subsidence zone. The flooding of the Yangtze River blocked the drainage of water in the depression, causing it to accumulate and form a lake. The perennial water storage area is 3258.0 hectares, with a water depth of 3–5 meters and a surface water level of 13.42 meters.

Xizi Lake Town: Xizi Lake Town is located in the southeast of Tongcheng City, Anhui Province. The town center is 25 kilometers away from downtown Tongcheng. It is surrounded by water on three sides—facing Zongyang County across Baitu Lake to the east, bordering Caizi Lake and Xizi Lake to the south and west, adjacent to Yixiu District of Anqing, as well as Shuanggang Town and Jinshen Town of our city, and bordering Kongcheng Town to the north. The administrative area covers a total of 134.7 square kilometers, of which the surrounding lake area is 76 square kilometers, accounting for approximately 56% of the total area. In 2001, the township was upgraded to a town. It currently governs 9 administrative villages, comprising a total of 281 villager groups, with a population of 25,000. The town’s economic structure is... Xizi Lake Town detailed information++