The Yangtze River is a good ＂dolphin＂ prophet
In the past, "chemical industry surrounded the river", but now "finless porpoises chase the waves". With the deep implementation of the great protection of the Yangtze River, the fate between the Nantong section of the Yangtze River and the finless porpoise has changed from "not seen for many years" to "random encounter" now, and the frequent occurrence of mother and child dolphins, family fun and finless porpoises has become the proof of the continuous improvement of Nantong’s ecological environment quality.
It is not difficult for "smiling angels" to meet.
The reputation of engineers and colleagues of Nantong Environmental Monitoring Center in Jiangsu Province just finished a new round of monitoring activities of Yangtze finless porpoise in the Yangtze River estuary. The monitoring personnel sailed from Jiangyin Bridge to Yuantuojiao waters by a research ship, and determined the population number and distribution of finless porpoises by visual means. EDNA samples were collected in the waters of Kaisha Island, Langshan Mountain, Tuanjiezha, Haiyong and Yuantuojiao for inspection and analysis.
"Can you imagine sitting in the bow and seeing the finless porpoise jump out of the water and play freely from time to time?" Zhou Yuxiang, a senior engineer of Nantong Environmental Monitoring Center, said excitedly, "It is the fourth year to join the observation and protection of finless porpoises. Every time I see the smiling angel, I can’t hide my inner excitement! In the past two years, the most intuitive feeling is that it is not difficult to encounter. "
Round head, small eyes, upward radian of corners of the mouth … The Yangtze finless porpoise is called "smiling angel" because of its adorable appearance, and it is also a "barometer" of the Yangtze River ecology. Nantong, located at the mouth of the Yangtze River, is the longest city along the Yangtze River in the province, and it is also the last ecological barrier before the Yangtze River flows into the sea. Today, it has become the perfect habitat for finless porpoises. With the improvement of water quality, the decrease of fishery activities and the increase of aquatic biological resources, the "giant panda in the water" is willing to "go home"!
It is known that finless porpoises like to live in lakes with little human interference and river sections with bends, branches and Jiang Xinzhou beaches. The natural coastline of Nantong section of the Yangtze River is 47.4 kilometers, and the artificial coastline is 118.7 kilometers, accounting for 29% of the natural coastline. Hot spots are mainly concentrated in Langshan section and Changyin Shajiang section of the Yangtze River, both of which are natural coastlines, with reeds on the shore and little interference.
For Guan Haoyu, a photographer in Nantong, it is a surprise that appears from time to time in recent years. In December 2019, he and his friends Jia Taogen and Wu Weimin photographed the finless porpoise that once disappeared from people’s sight at the observation deck of Binjiang Park. In the following years, he also photographed the birth, growth and rebirth of the finless porpoise … Since the previous year, Guan Haoyu has an additional identity-the head of the "Yangtze River Dolphin Patrol Alliance".
With the concept of "joint protection and no development" and the promulgation of policies and regulations such as the Yangtze River Protection Law, the finless porpoise has become a direct beneficiary of resource protection, water pollution prevention and ecological environment restoration. Looking into the distance from Fanyin Square in Binjiang Park, finless porpoises are often seen playing in waves, so the citizens call it "Finless Porpoise Bay". In the "finless porpoise bay", there are more than a dozen cameras aimed at the river almost every day. The photographers are absorbed, with their hands on the shutter button and their eyes fixed on the frame … Like Guan Haoyu, they are both photographers and volunteers to protect the finless porpoise. "Based on the observation of our alliance, there is a finless porpoise family living in Nantong section of the Yangtze River, and a family of three has become a’ permanent resident’." Guan Hao-yu knows a lot about this: in October 2021, 12 finless porpoises were observed at the same time within one kilometer from Fanyin Square in Binjiang Park to Customs Wharf, which was the record with the largest number of individuals in recent years; In March this year, 9 finless porpoises were observed at Wangjiangtai in Binjiang Park at the same time, and a pregnant female dolphin was recorded. In the day-to-day observation, volunteers have also seen pictures of finless porpoises preying on swordfish, and it is very rare for two rare animals to appear at the same time.
"Last year, I participated in the national scientific investigation of the Yangtze finless porpoise, and Nantong did a very detailed job in protecting the finless porpoise." Jiang Meng, executive vice president and secretary general of Nanjing finless porpoise aquatic biology protection association, said that unlike most cities in the province, Nantong, as the only city in Jiangsu with riverside and sea, is the intersection of Yangtze finless porpoises and East Asian finless porpoises. In recent years, with the continuous improvement of the ecological environment in Nantong section of the Yangtze River, finless porpoises have appeared more and more frequently in Nantong. In March of this year, a pregnant dolphin was found and recorded for the first time. "This means that the Nantong section of the Yangtze River may be upgraded from the long-distance travel of the finless porpoise to a thriving home."
Rare species have returned one after another
Random encounters are far more than the Yangtze finless porpoise.
Around June 1st this year, Nantong has become a "show" for all kinds of national treasure babies along the Yangtze River: the "Nantong" elk baby living in Rudong coastal area has a full moon; The baby oriental stork on the "Gaoju" tower was rescued in the air; On the banks of Dagang River in Nantong City, five baby grouper dogs took photos with their parents for the first time. By the Yangtze River in Binjiang Park, the baby finless porpoise is selling cute and coquettish with his parents …
New life breeds new hope. Report to the 20th CPC National Congress, the Communist Party of China, put forward "enhancing the diversity, stability and sustainability of the ecosystem" and "implementing major projects for biodiversity protection". In this regard, Nantong gave a wonderful answer.
"The ecosystem of Wushan Riverside Area carries the vast majority of species in Nantong City, and Nantong Ecological Environment Bureau has set up the first batch of fixed sample plots for biodiversity observation in Nantong." Tang Yong, director of Nature Department of Nantong Ecological Environment Bureau, told the reporter. According to observation records, there is a stable distribution of Yangtze finless porpoise population here, with a scale of about 15-20. The leaping finless porpoise is a "wind vane" that reflects the changes in the ecological environment of the Yangtze River. According to the popular science of Jiangmeng, the finless porpoise is a typical "umbrella-protected species", and its demand for habitat can cover the needs of other species. People protect the finless porpoise and provide protection for other species at the same time.
More and more animals visit Nantong and fall in love with Nantong, which is the touchstone to test the effectiveness of ecological civilization construction. Nantong Environmental Monitoring Center conducts synchronous monitoring of birds along the Yangtze River and coastal areas. From January to May this year, Nantong observed more than 200,000 birds, including 8 species of national first-class protected wild animals and more than 20 species of national second-class protected wild animals.
The "visibility" of all kinds of wild animals in Nantong is getting higher and higher, which can be described as a "report card" for Nantong and even Jiangsu to persistently strengthen the restoration of the Yangtze River ecological environment and enhance the level of biodiversity protection. On May 22nd, Biodiversity Day, Nantong released data: the number of species in the city increased from 2,234 in 2018 to 3,641 in 2022, including 78 species of wildlife under special state protection. In 2022, our city was awarded the "National Demonstration Zone of Ecological Civilization Construction", the first comprehensive biodiversity observation station in the province was built, and a "two-belt and multi-point" biodiversity protection model zone was successfully built, and a number of demonstration projects of ecological safety buffer zones and ecological island experimental zones were implemented. The ecological protection and restoration in Wushan area became a national model.
Harmonious integration of mountains, rivers, people and cities
Both the golden waterway and the green corridor are needed. In recent years, the Nantong section of the Yangtze River has reappeared beautiful scenery that has not been seen for many years: the water habitat has been obviously improved, the fishery resources have been effectively restored, the level of diversity has been gradually improved, and the ecological atmosphere of full of green in the scenery belt of the Yangtze River has come to the fore.
Man and nature are a community of life. In the Report to the 20th CPC National Congress of the Party, General Secretary of the Supreme Leader emphasized that we must firmly establish and practice Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets’s ideas and plan development from the height of harmonious coexistence between man and nature.
As for drawing a "green landscape map" at the gateway of the river and the sea, every Nantong person contributes his own "one stroke and one painting". More than a decade ago, Zhang Zufa, a citizen, took his family and 30 or 40 low-income families around him to weave fishing nets. When the business was booming, each household increased its income by more than 10,000 yuan every year. After the implementation of the Law on the Protection of the Yangtze River, Zhang Zufa gave up this business and voluntarily became a propagandist of the rule of law. From "expert in fishing" to "expert in popularizing the law", Zhang Zufa infected many people around him with practical actions, driving groups of people to join the ranks of protecting the river. "The Yangtze River fishing ban is an important decision for the overall situation and for future generations." From January 1st, 2021, the "10-year ban on fishing" in the Yangtze River Basin was fully opened, and Nantong completed the work of withdrawing fishermen from the Yangtze River one year ahead of schedule. All the 368 fishermen who "washed their feet ashore" in the city were included in the social security system, and some fishermen successfully switched jobs and embraced life on the shore with a brand-new identity.
Although Wushan and the area along the Yangtze River are separated from the central business district, the scene here used to be: the old port area, the broken factory area and the old residential area are intertwined, and the dust, odor and noise pollution are serious. In 2016, the General Secretary of the Supreme Leader emphasized at the symposium on promoting the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt that the restoration of the ecological environment of the Yangtze River should be placed in an overwhelming position, and great protection should be made and no major development should be made. Nantong takes the ecological restoration and protection of Wushan Mountain and the areas along the Yangtze River as the entry point, and uses the dialectics of "advance and retreat" to promote "industrial retreat, port relocation, urban advancement and ecological protection" as a whole, which blows the horn of "ecological priority and green development". The Wushan area of 17 square kilometers has undergone "vicissitudes of life". 203 "scattered pollution" enterprises should be moved and closed; Hazardous chemicals wharf, sulfur wharf and container wharf are all withdrawn; Tens of thousands of square meters of illegal construction were all demolished, and residential areas were re-planned. The ecological change of "returning the river to the people, returning the shore to the people and returning the scenery to the people" has been solidly promoted, and the "urban scar" has been restored to the "city cover".
Dajiang testified that with the development of high quality, Nantong spread the beautiful picture of harmonious integration of mountains and rivers, people and cities along the coastline of rivers and seas.
Daily reporter Zhu Yining Peng Junjun