User:Slashem/env
Habitats
The world's third largest country, China rises from sea level in the east to peak of
steppes cover additional areas in the Altai, Tian, and Kunlun Mountains in the far west, a region blocked from the southwestern monsoon by the Tibetan plateau and from the southeastern monsoon by its distance from the sea. This massive diversity of geography and habitats has resulted in an extraordinary range of plant and animal
life.
Forests
China contains a variety of
Hainan Island, actually contain a quarter of all the plant and animal species
found in China.
Grasslands
manpower
to enforce policy.
Freshwater ecosystems
Brahmaputra rise in the south. Downstream these rivers serve as sources of irrigation and drinking water, modes of transportation, and centers of cultural and religious importance for some two billion people in China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and throughout Southeast Asia
. These rivers rise and gather strength from many of the thousands of freshwater lakes of the region.
China's
marshland provides breeding grounds for the black-necked crane and bar-headed goose
.
China's freshwater
Siberian Cranes
, and as many as five hundred thousand birds may be on Poyang Hu at any one time during the winter months. In recent years, however, some of Poyang's larger lakes have been drained at the end of autumn, leaving waterfowl with inadequate shallow land on which to feed.
Saltwater lakes
About half of China's lakes are
Ordos plateau area of Inner Mongolia as well as the Xinjiang's Taolimiao-Alashan Nur (lake) support breeding sites for the endangered relict gull
. Most of these lakes and marshes fluctuate seasonally and are threatened by increased diversion of water for human use.
Coastal wetlands
China's coastline is approximately 18,000 km long, extending from the
Bohai Gulf, which freezes in the winter, to the tropical waters of the South China Sea. Coastal wetlands are important as fuel stops for waterfowl on the migratory route between Siberia and Australia. Chongming Island in the Yangtze River delta near Shanghai
- China's largest city and one of its fastest growing regions - is vital for these migrants.