CHANGCHUN, Aug. 10 (Xinhuanet) -- An incessant drought, excessive farming and domestic animal raising have all contributed to the rapid shrinkage of the wetland of Xianghai State Nature Reserve innortheast China's Jilin Province, experts have said.

    Zhao Jun, deputy head of the nature reserve administration, said the acreage of wetland in the nature reserve has reduced to less than 6,000 hectares from the former 36,000 hectares, the number of lakes in the nature reserve reduced to the current five from the former 22, with 17 lakes totally dried up.

    Reed, cattail and other vegetation has also deteriorated in thereserve, Zhao said.

    If the current drought continues, the existing surface water inthe nature reserve will dry up by the end of next year, Zhao said,warning Xianghai would become a "sea of sand" if the the wetland environment goes on deteriorating.

    The average annual rainfall in the nature reserve is 400 mm while the average annual evaporation level is 1,945 mm.

    The Xianghai nature reserve, boasting one of China's six majorwetlands, is home to 253 kinds of rare and valuable birds, including bustard and red-crowned cranes. Nine of the 15 kinds of cranes in the world, including red-crested cranes, are visible in the Xianghai reserve, along with other rare species of birds, suchas swans, golden eagles, white storks. The total species of birds discovered here are over 250.

    Sparsely populated and dotted with pastures and lakes and covered with varied vegetation, the reserve is ideal for the reproduction of migratory birds.

    "As a result of environmental deterioration, the number of the birds in Xianghai are depleting sharply," said Prof. Gao Wei, a bird expert with the Dongbei (Northeast China)Teachers University.

    Gao said there were about 200 cranes in the nature reserve in 2001, and the figure has reduced to the current less than 100.

    Another factor contributing to the plight of the nature reserveis the damage done by human activities. There are more than 20,000people living in the nature reserve, most of them farming and raising livestock. In 2002, 936 hectares of wetland were fenced upby farmers for growing crops. The reclaimed land was returned to the wetland two months later.

    Moreover, the number of domestic animals in the nature reserve has amounted to 300,000, six times the number for 1986 when the nature reserve was established.

    In order to stop Xianghai from further deteriorating, the central government has taken a series of measures to improve the environment in the nature reserve. These measures include diverting water from nearby rivers into the wetland, building facilities to store water, and fencing up hills for afforestation.

    The measures also include the relocation of 4,800 people out ofthe nature reserve for the purpose of better protection of Xianghai wetland.

    Located at the juncture of the Plain between the Songhua and Liaohe rivers and the Horqin grassland in Western Jilin Province, the Xianghai Nature Reserve, once an imperial hunting ground, was set up as national reserve in 1986 with the approval of the State Council.

    It covers an area of 100,000 ha and boasts vast tracts of wetland and grassland. It is designed for the protection of cranesand a rare species of elms. There are over 60 red-crowned cranes living in the protection zone, while the total number of birds is approximately 1,500 around the world.

    The Xianghai Nature Reserve has been listed on the International Major Wetland Register, rated as a top nature reserve of international importance by the World Wildlife Fund, and it has been part of the "man and biosphere" in China. Enditem