Gutianshan National Nature Reserve, China

Description

Situated in the Yangtze River basin in eastern China, the Gutianshan National Nature Reserve was formed in 1975 to preserve an area of the old-growth evergreen broadleaved forest in the region (1) (2).

Evergreen broadleaved forest is a key habitat in eastern Asia, extending not only in a broad belt across 1,750,000 square kilometres of southern China, but also covering large areas of Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Japan (3).

The evergreen forests of Gutianshan National Nature Reserve cover slopes that rise from 500 metres above sea level up to the highest peak, Shi’er Shan, at 1,258 metres (4). The peaks and steep cliffs of the reserve give birth to an abundance of rapid streams, whose waters flow into the vast Poyang Lake before entering the great Yangtze River (4).

With an average annual temperature of 15 degrees Celsius and an average of almost 2 metres of rain each year, which falls primarily between March and September (1), the climate within the Gutianshan National Nature Reserve is highly favourable for plant growth (3). As a result, the evergreen broadleaved forests of eastern China are among the most productive agricultural regions in the country. A variety of temperate and subtropical crops thrive here, most importantly paddy rice, but also tobacco, sweet potatoes and barley (3).

Range

The Gutianshan National Nature Reserve is located in Kai Hua (or Kaihua) County, on the western border of Zhejiang Province, eastern China (2). Covering approximately 81 square kilometres (1), the reserve forms part of the Nanling Mountains (4), which divides the Yangtze River basin in the north from the Pearl River basin in the south (5).

Biodiversity

Plants

A rich diversity of flora can be found in Gutianshan National Nature Reserve, including many rare and endemic plants (6). The vegetation, which is typical of China’s evergreen broadleaved forest (1), is dominated by the evergreen trees Castanopsis eyrie, Schima superba and Pinus massoniana (Chinese red pine) (1) (7), but in total, 1,426 species of seed plants (spermatophytes) have been recorded in the reserve (1) (6). This includes 1,367 species of flowering plants (angiosperms) (6), such as the beautiful Magnolia cylindrica (1) and 18 conifer species (6). 18 species known from the reserve occur on the Chinese list of rare and endangered species (1).

Mammals

A number of charismatic mammals have been recorded in this relatively small reserve, including the threatened clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) (4) (8), the Chinese serow (Capricornis milneedwardsii) and the sika deer (Cervus nippon) (4). All three of these mammals are protected in China (4). A population of the little-known black muntjac (Muntiacus crinifrons) has also been recorded in Gutianshan (4).

Birds

Gutianshan National Nature Reserve supports a large population of Elliot’s pheasant (Syrmaticus ellioti) (4) (9), a distinctive bird that is believed to be declining due to habitat loss and hunting (10). Also found in the reserve is the endangered Cabot’s tragopan (Tragopan caboti) (11), which relies heavily on the tree Daphniphyllum macropodum for food and as a roost site (11).

Reptiles

Reptiles known from the Gutianshan National Nature Reserve include the big-headed turtle (Platysternon megacephalum) (12), which favours the cool, fast-flowing mountain brooks and streams (13).

Threats

South-east China has a long history of human habitation. Accordingly, China’s evergreen broadleaved forests have also had a long history of extensive deforestation, as areas have been cleared for agriculture and timber (3) (9). By the 19th century, large swathes of forest had already been lost (9).

In recent decades the rate of forest loss has slowed considerably, as commercial logging and deforestation for agriculture are now illegal. However, illegal logging and small-scale agricultural encroachment still occurs, and human development, such as the creation of new roads, power grids and dams, continues to degrade and destroy forest (9).

Today, very few areas of primary evergreen broadleaved forest remain in eastern China. Even within reserves, much of the forest is secondary regrowth (14).

Conservation

Since 1995, deforestation for agriculture has been illegal in China, and 1998 saw the introduction of a ban in commercial logging. Although largely effective at helping to conserve evergreen broadleaved forest, a significant amount of illegal logging still takes place, and even subsistence logging can have a major impact in certain areas (9).

There are around 27 protected areas within eastern China’s evergreen broadleaved forest, at least 15 of which were set up to specifically protect this habitat (15). The importance the forest plays in the conservation of water supplies means that their protection aids not only the survival of its remarkable flora and fauna, but also the survival of the human populations living in the region (15).

The international environmental charity Earthwatch is working with The Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IBCAS) in Gutianshan National Nature Reserve to compare how different forest types respond to climate change. It is hoped this research will enable more effective conservation approaches to be adopted within the region (2).

Find out more

Learn more about the research being undertaken in the Gutianshan National Nature Reserve:

• Earthwatch Institute – China Regional Climate Centre:
  www.earthwatch.org/europe/rcc_china

Learn more about forest conservation in China:

• WWF – Forest of the Upper Yangtze: wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/upper_yangtze_forests.cfm

Glossary

• Endemic: a species or taxonomic group that is only found in one particular country or geographic area.
• Primary: primary forest is forest that has remained undisturbed for a long time and has reached a mature condition.
• Secondary regrowth: vegetation that has re-grown after a major disturbance, such as fire or clearance.

References

1. Legendre, P., Mi, X.C., Ren, H.B., Ma, K.P., Yu, M.J., Sun, I.F. and He, F.L. (2009) Partitioning beta diversity in a subtropical broad-leaved forest of China. Ecology 90(3): 663-674.
2. Earthwatch Institute (April, 2011)
   http://www.earthwatch.org/europe/rcc_china
3. Richardson, S.D. (1990) Forests and Forestry in China: Changing Patterns in Resource Development. Island Press, Washington, D.C.
4. BirdLife International (2009) Directory of Important Bird Areas in China (Mainland): Key Sites for Conservation. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK.
5. Haggett, P. (Ed.) (2002) Encyclopedia of World Geography: China and Taiwan. Marshall Cavendish Corporation, Tarrytown, New York.
6. LuHuan, L. and ShuiHu, J. (2000) Spermatophyta flora of Gutianshan Nature Reserve in Zhejiang. Journal of Beijing Forestry University, 22(5): 33-39.
7. Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute - Gutianshan (April, 2011)
   http://www.ctfs.si.edu/site/Gutianshan
8. IUCN Red List (April, 2011)
   http://www.iucnredlist.org
9. BirdLife International (2003) Saving Asia's Threatened Birds: a Guide for Government and Civil Society. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK.
10. BirdLife International (April, 2011)
    http://www.birdlife.org
11. BirdLife International (2001) Threatened Birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK.
12. Wildlife Conservation Society (April, 2011)
    http://www.baohu.org/csis_search/content_loca.php?csp_code=030010001
13. Ernst, C.H., Altenburg, R.G.M. and Barbour, R.W. (1997) Turtles of the World. ETI Information Systems Ltd, Netherlands. Available at:
    http://nlbif.eti.uva.nl/bis/turtles.php
14. Wang, X.-H., Kent, M. and Fang, X.-F. (2007) Evergreen broad-leaved forest in Eastern China: its ecology and conservation and the importance of resprouting in forest restoration. Forest Ecology and Management, 245: 76-87.
15. Xiangpu, W. (1986) Protected natural areas in China. Arnoldia, 46(4): 38-45.