Wetland creation for rare waterfowl conservation: A project designed according to the principles of ecological succession

The practices of wetland creation and restoration for mitigating wetland lo ss have been frequently carried out throughout the world; however, many of these projects do not work well. In this paper, the authors analyze wetland creation from the aspect of whole-ecosystem development, and explain the e xtreme difficulty of human design in wetland creation by the theories of ec ological succession. More space should be given to self-design than human d esign in wetland creation, and the principles of ecological succession enab le us to better use the great design ability of nature in just the way we w ish. A wetland creation project for rare waterfowl conservation in China Ya ncheng Biosphere Reserve was chosen as a demonstration, designed totally ac cording to the principles of ecological succession and allowed to self-desi gn free of interference from human activities. A 240 ha reed wetland was cr eated from the lalang grassland after 4 years of self-design. Success was p roved by its plant composition and a good habitat value for many more birds than in the same area 4 years before. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All r ights reserved.