Xixi National Wetland Park () is a national

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

park in China, located at the west part of

Hangzhou Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the province, sitting at the head of Hangzhou Bay, whi ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiang ...

province, a total of . The park is densely crisscrossed with six main watercourses, among which are scattered various ponds, lakes and swamps. XiXi Wetland has a history of more than 4000 years and an abundant cultural heritage. It's the original site of Chinese South Opera; it has a traditional

dragon boat A dragon boat is a human-powered watercraft originating from the Pearl River Delta region of China's southern Guangdong Province. These were made of teak, but in other parts of China, different kinds of wood are used. It is one of a family of t ...

contest; it contains the vivid life of a water village, featuring

silkworm The domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''), is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of ''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. It is an economically imp ...

feeding and silk production.

History

Xixi Wetland Park has a six staged history from Liangzhu Culture to the republic of China.

Liangzhu Culture

During the Liangzhu Culture period, Xixi Wetland has its starting shape. The area and the number of lakes were much greater than now. The area of Laohe Mountain was also included in Xixi Wetland.

Han and Tang Dynasties

During Han and Tang Dynasties, human activities started to appear around Xixi Wetland. People named their village as "Tang Village". In Five Dynasty, there were garrisons set around Xixi Wetland.

Song and Yuan Dynasties

During Song and Yuan Dynasties, Xixi Wetland had a huge development. In

Southern Song Dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

, the emperor Gaozong Song adored Xixi Wetland and wanted to set it as the capital place. There was a royal river road for Gaozong Song in Xixi Wetland. Xixi Wetland started to become an important transportation river and a military area.

Ming and Qing Dynasties

This is the most flourishing period of Xixi Wetland. The local government started to regulate floods, so the lands in Xixi Wetland became visible. Citizens fed

silkworms The domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''), is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of ''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. It is an economically imp ...

on lands, and faster fish in the river. The beauty of the land and rivers attracted many literati to write poems and paint. Therefore, the education grew in this period.

Republic of China and People's Republic of China

In 2002, Xixi Wetland was assigned to

and to Xihu District. Many villagers lived here. With the growth of industrialization, factories also moved in, and cause contamination in Xixi Wetland. In August 2003, the protection project of Xixi Wetland started to preserve the wildlife and sights in Xixi Wetland, and it became the first national wetland park in China.

The sights

Wildlife

Xixi Wetland is honored as "The Green Lung In the Paradise". There are 221 species, 182 genera, and 85 families of

vascular plant Vascular plants (), also called tracheophytes () or collectively Tracheophyta (), form a large group of land plants ( accepted known species) that have lignified tissues (the xylem) for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They al ...

s, 7

phytoplankton Phytoplankton () are the autotrophic (self-feeding) components of the plankton community and a key part of ocean and freshwater ecosystems. The name comes from the Greek words (), meaning 'plant', and (), meaning 'wanderer' or 'drifter'. Ph ...

, and 6 vegetation types. There are 2802 old persimmon trees. The bird resources in the wetland are also extremely rich, with 89 species, 12 orders, 26 families, accounting for nearly 50% of all birds in

. Typical birds are: little egret, wild geese,

common kingfisher The common kingfisher (''Alcedo atthis''), also known as the Eurasian kingfisher and river kingfisher, is a small kingfisher with seven subspecies recognized within its wide distribution across Eurasia and North Africa. It is resident in much of ...

mallard duck The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Argen ...

and

silver pheasant The silver pheasant (''Lophura nycthemera'') is a species of pheasant found in forests, mainly in mountains, of mainland Southeast Asia and eastern and southern China, with an introduced population on Victoria Island in Nahuel Huapi Lake, Neu ...

. Aquatic animals are

carp Carp are various species of oily freshwater fish from the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. While carp is consumed in many parts of the world, they are generally considered an invasive species in parts of ...

, chub,

shrimp Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...

eel Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 19 families, 111 genera, and about 800 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...

and

crab Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (abdomen) ( el, βραχύς , translit=brachys = short, / = tail), usually hidden entirely under the thorax. They live in all the ...

. Some of the vegetation includes:

persimmon The persimmon is the edible fruit of a number of species of trees in the genus ''Diospyros''. The most widely cultivated of these is the Oriental persimmon, ''Diospyros kaki'' ''Diospyros'' is in the family Ebenaceae, and a number of non-pers ...

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist s ...

camphor Camphor () is a waxy, colorless solid with a strong aroma. It is classified as a terpenoid and a cyclic ketone. It is found in the wood of the camphor laurel ('' Cinnamomum camphora''), a large evergreen tree found in East Asia; and in the k ...

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, bu ...

mulberry ''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of diverse species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 identif ...

plum A plum is a fruit of some species in ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are called prunes. History Plums may have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found i ...

peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, non-fu ...

elm Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the flowering plant genus ''Ulmus'' in the plant family Ulmaceae. They are distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting the temperate and tropical-montane regions of North ...

nelumbo ''Nelumbo'' is a genus of aquatic plants with large, showy flowers. Members are commonly called lotus, though the name is also applied to various other plants and plant groups, including the unrelated genus '' Lotus''. Members outwardly resemb ...

maple ''Acer'' () is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated since http ...

, poplar and

hibiscus ''Hibiscus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the mallow family, Malvaceae. The genus is quite large, comprising several hundred species that are native to warm temperate, subtropical and tropical regions throughout the world. Member species ...

Cultural Contribution

Literature Hong Zhong is a famous judge in the Ming dynasty. He built a large courtyard that consists of messuages, parks, and colleges called "Hong Zhong Bie Ye" in the Xixi wetland area. This massive aristocratic residence is one of the primary forms of Grand View Garden in one of the four classic novels of Chinese Literature "Hong Lou Meng." Therefore, Xixi Wetland had provided a cultural background for Chinese literature. Village Xixi Wetland also has a non-material cultural heritage. It preserves the old villages. "Xixi Cultivate Cultural village," "Wu Chang Cultural Village," "Xixi Art Village," and "Xixi citizen Village" are the four villages that reserve the traditional Chinese culture and remind modern people how the culture has been developed from old times. Festivals There are five traditional festivals in Xixi Wetland Park. 1. New Year Wintersweet Festival From the Song dynasty, wintersweet is one of the famous flowers in Xixi Wetland, and there are hundreds of poems praise the wintersweet in Xixi. In the Qing dynasty, the poet Gong Zi Zhen praised Xixi wintersweet as one of the three best wintersweet in South China. Therefore, from 2003, the government set the New Year Wintersweet Festival every February and invite people to enjoy the wintersweet. 2. Xixi Hundred Flower Festival This festival has started in the Ming dynasty; the old government set the day as the birthday of all flowers. Now, the festival still preserves, and people built massive sculptures made by flowers to celebrate the flowers' birthday every April. 3. Xixi Dragon Boat Festival Dragon Boat competition starts in the South Song dynasty to develop people's teamwork and the spirit of solidarity. Form 2008, the dragon boat festival starts in Xixi Wetland Park; people gather to compete and celebrate the Duan Wu Festival every June. 4. Persimmons Festival From the Song dynasty, Xixi Wetland starts to plant persimmon trees. Until now, there are 15,000 persimmon trees, more than 4000 of them have lived for more a hundred of years. The emperor Qian Long in the Qing dynasty love eating persimmons in Xixi Wetland and set this festival. Therefore, every September, people pick persimmons and enjoy the beauty of Xixi Wetland. 5. Reed Festival The reed in Xixi Wetland is one of the three most beautiful in Hangzhou. In fall, the reed sea in the river swing in the wind. When you taking a boat, the reed will be everywhere around you. The setting sun and reed make a beautiful scene. So, every November, people will take a boat and enjoy the beauty of reed in Xixi. Throughout a year, the festivals express the beauty and treasure in Xixi Wetland.

References

{{authority control Geography of Hangzhou Wetlands of China National parks of China Tourist attractions in Hangzhou Landforms of Zhejiang Parks in Zhejiang