Original title: Xinhua All Media+Hello, "Neighbor" - Ways to get along with urban biodiversity

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, May 22

Xinhua News Agency reporter

May 22 is the International Biodiversity Day. When it comes to biodiversity, do you think of wild and protected areas? In fact, in the city, in residential areas, parks, schools... more and more creatures appear around, becoming the new "neighbors" of mankind.

Meet more "neighbors" in the city

Walking in the urban forestry demonstration base of Northeast Forestry University in Harbin, Heilongjiang, you can often see squirrels jumping on the branches; In Kunming Green Lake Park, Yunnan, tourists interact closely with waterfowls; In Haizhu National Wetland Park in Guangzhou, Guangdong, children can observe the morphological characteristics of various animals and plants... More and more creatures live in cities.

"In life, properly managed parks and wetlands can become places where we meet biological 'neighbors'," said Li Weiwei, senior engineer of Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Butterflies, dragonflies, birds, fish, etc. are the most common biological "neighbors". Fan Cunxiang, a senior engineer of the Wetland Protection and Management Office in Haizhu District, Guangzhou, said that some "neighbors" who are more consistent with the daily routine of human life have relatively more opportunities to "meet", while "neighbors" who like nighttime activities such as owls and frogs are not always able to "greet".

Take butterflies and dragonflies for example. They have short life cycles and strong sensitivity. They are "barometers" of environmental change and ecosystem health. Wang Wei, deputy director of the Natural Ecology Protection Division of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Ecology and Environment, said that in 2023, 24 butterfly species and 29 dragonflies were recorded in the central urban area of Beijing, accounting for 24% and 36% of the cumulative records in the city's survey respectively.

In Li Weiwei's opinion, animals are also divided into "social cattle" and "social fear". Some "social cattle" birds, small mammals, amphibians and reptiles can better adapt to urban life after the implementation of wildlife protection laws and regulations and the improvement of citizens' quality.

"The wild animals living in the Green Lake Park have obviously adapted to the lights and sirens in the city and become truly 'urban residents'," said Li Weiwei.

Create a natural "home" so that "neighbors" love "visiting"

The ingenious "Squirrel's House" log cabin on the trunk, the palm sized "Hedgehog's House" cave on the soil slope, and the "Earthworm Tower" standing in the experimental field... In Beijing 101 Middle School, located in Haidian District, Beijing, by building a biodiversity conservation community, a variety of wild animals and plants have naturally integrated into the campus environment.

On the 22nd, under the guidance of professional teachers, students participated in microbial modeling, animal specimen display and production, recognized the characteristic animals and plants in the campus, and understood the forest ecosystem, wetland ecosystem, etc.

Beijing has built a biodiversity conservation community in the city to provide a natural or near natural living and breeding environment for wild animals and plants by creating micro wetlands, shrubbery stations, animal drinking spots, etc.

"According to the results of artificial investigation and infrared camera monitoring, in these biodiversity conservation communities, hedgehogs have settled down in the 'Hedgehog House', the artificial nest has welcomed birds such as mandarin ducks to settle in, and the animal drinking spots have monitored that birds such as swallows, yellow throated bunting, and turtledoves have come to drink and bathe." Wang Da'an, assistant researcher of the Institute of Ecological Protection and Restoration of the Chinese Academy of Forestry Sciences, introduced.

In recent years, more and more cities have increased ecological environment construction, promoted afforestation, ecological restoration, etc., and "neighbors" are more and more willing to "visit".

"The common birds in Cuihu Lake are black water fowl, egret, kingfisher, yellow rumped bulbul and so on. In order to make them have a better garden for rest, life and reproduction, the 'Bird Island' was born," said Guo Hongwei, director of Cuihu Park.

"Bird Island" is a pilot project for intelligent monitoring of biodiversity jointly established by Li Weiwei and the team, together with the government, the park and other parties. It is equivalent to a small ecosystem: Iris planted on the island is evergreen all the year round, and thin leaves can let birds rest; The "underwater forest" composed of submerged plants, emergent plants and algae has become a place for fish to eat, live and play. The "wedding house" composed of hollow bricks and special materials has also been built for them to multiply.

"Some fish will become food for the birds on the island, but for these fish, the number of reproduction is more huge, so that the food chain of the urban wetland ecosystem is completely formed." Li Weiwei said.

Join together to explore ways to get along with "neighbors"

How can people get along better with these "neighbors" in a city?

The theme of this year's International Biodiversity Day is "Biodiversity You and I Participate". As long as more people act together, our city will have more "neighbors" to settle down.

"In addition to busy workplaces, there should also be places in cities where people can wander in the nature, and can associate with flowers, plants, trees, fish, birds, frogs and insects, and contact with natural creatures." Li Weiwei, for example, said that architectural designers can design bird friendly buildings to facilitate the settlement of birds and other animals; When designing urban greenways and parks, landscape planners can leave insect wildflower belts, gentle small slopes, rubble piles and other "homes" conducive to the survival of "neighbors".

Biodiversity protection concerns everyone and requires more public participation. "There are many things people can do, from restoring a native plant to caring for a grass, from using less disposable products to using more renewable recycled materials," Fan Cunxiang said.

Wang Da'an said that in daily life, everyone can participate in biodiversity conservation. For example, do not capture, do not harm wild animals, do not pick wild plants, etc.

"A variety of flowers may create a small temporary habitat for butterflies," said Gu Jiayin, a teacher at the School of Wildlife and Nature Conservation of Northeast Forestry University. (Reporter Zhao Xu, Tian Chenxu, Lu Junyu, Zhou Ying, Xie Jianfei)