Lixin Xifei River National Wetland Park

Lixin Xifei River National Wetland Park

Lixin Xifei River National Wetland Park is a national-level wetland park.

I. General Information

Lixin Xifei River National Wetland Park stretches from Lutai Bridge in the east to Butterfly Spring in the west, reaches the confluence of the Xifei River and the Cihuaixin River in the south, and extends to Madian Bridge along S305 in the north. Its geographical coordinates are between 116°08′01″—116°13′48″ east longitude and 33°02′34″—33°06′14″ north latitude. The wetland park encompasses the middle reach of the Xifei River from Madian Bridge to Feihe Estuary, as well as reservoir and pond wetlands such as Butterfly Spring, Shuanggou, and Heiyanggou on both sides of the Xifei River. It spans 6.71 km from north to south and 9.09 km from east to west, covering an area of 791.65 hectares.

Lixin Xifei River National Wetland Park boasts abundant wetland resources. According to the classification system in the “National Wetland Resources Survey Technical Regulations (Trial),” the wetlands within the park are divided into four major types: riverine wetlands, lacustrine wetlands, marsh wetlands, and artificial wetlands, and five subtypes: permanent rivers, permanent freshwater lakes, herbaceous marshes, reservoirs and ponds, and rice paddies.

The total wetland area within the Xifei River Wetland Park is 445.75 hectares, accounting for 56.31% of the total land area. Among them, permanent river wetlands cover 262.07 hectares, representing 58.79% of the wetland area and 33.10% of the total park area; permanent freshwater lake wetlands span 57.42 hectares, making up 12.88% of the wetland area and 7.25% of the total park area; herbaceous marsh wetlands occupy 25.85 hectares, accounting for 6.10% of the wetland area and 3.27% of the total park area; reservoir and pond wetlands cover 96.20 hectares, making up 21.58% of the wetland area and 12.15% of the total park area; rice paddy wetlands encompass 4.21 hectares, representing 0.95% of the wetland area and 0.54% of the total park area.

II. Flora and Fauna Resources

The diverse wetland types and favorable habitat conditions of the Xifei River Wetland provide an ideal living environment for wildlife, nurturing rich biodiversity.

1. Plant Resources

Through field surveys, specimen collection, and identification, a total of 5 families and 6 species of ferns, 4 families and 7 species of gymnosperms, 15 families and 57 species of monocotyledons, and 67 families and 212 species of dicotyledons have been recorded within the wetland park. Among them, there are two species of nationally protected wild plants under Class II: water lilies and wild soybeans.

2. Animal Resources

The wetland park is home to 8 species of mammals across 5 orders and 5 families, 132 species of birds across 15 orders and 33 families, 11 species of reptiles across 3 orders and 5 families, 4 species of amphibians across 1 order and 2 families, and 16 species of fish across 5 orders and 7 families. Among these, there are 14 species under national Class II protection: hedgehogs, greater white-fronted geese, hen harriers, northern goshawks, Eurasian sparrowhawks, common buzzards, black kites, red kites, Amur falcons, northern hawk-owls, long-eared owls, short-eared owls, as well as 33 species under Anhui Provincial Class II protection: such as yellow weasels, hog badgers, flower-backed toads, Chinese edible frogs, brown frogs, bean geese, greater white-fronted geese, greylag geese, falcated ducks, gadwalls, Eurasian wigeons, mallards, spot-billed ducks, garganey, Baer’s pochards, common pochards, ferruginous ducks, common goldeneyes, quails, common pheasants, oriental cuckoos, common cuckoos, common nighthawks, great spotted woodpeckers, grey-headed woodpeckers, Eurasian green woodpeckers, barn swallows, red-rumped swallows, brown shrikes, bull-headed shrikes, black-naped orioles, and azure-winged magpies.

III. Hydrology and Climate

The wetland park is located in a warm temperate, semi-humid monsoon climate zone, characterized by notable transitional features. These mainly include distinct monsoons, mild climate, moderate rainfall, ample sunshine, long frost-free periods, and clearly defined seasons—with changeable spring temperatures, concentrated summer rainfall, crisp autumn air, and long, dry winters. Based on meteorological data from the past five years, the annual average temperature is 15.1°C, the extreme maximum temperature is 37.8°C, and the extreme minimum temperature is -9.5°C. The average annual rainfall is 784.4 mm, with an average of 97.5 rainy days per year. The rainy season typically lasts from late June to mid-August. The annual average sunshine duration is 1,797.3 hours, with a sunshine percentage of 49.9%. The annual average relative humidity is 71%, and the frost-free period lasts 226 days.