Jilin Province

Jilin is one of the three provinces of Northeast China and covers 191,126 km² (73,794 square miles) and has a population of around 24 million people. Its capital and largest city with 3.5 million citizens is Changchun. Other major cities include: Major cities in this province include Jilin City, Baishan, Baicheng, Siping, Yanji, Songyuan, Tonghua and Liaoyuan. The province borders North Korea and Russia to the east, Heilongjiang to the north, Liaoning to the south, and Inner Mongolia to the west. It is rich in natural mineral deposits with 136 types of minerals, of which 70 have been extracted. Jilin has an abundance of Traditional Chinese medicine resources, with approximately 27,000 kinds of wild plants and 9,000 kinds of medicinal herbs.

Jilin’s agricultural production is centred upon rice, wheat, maize, and sorghum. Rice is mostly cultivated in the eastern parts, such as Yanbian Prefecture. The Changbai Mountains are an important source of lumber. Sheep herding is an important activity in the western parts, such as Baicheng. The province is rich in large reserves of oil, gas, coal, iron, nickel, molybdenum, talc, graphite, gypsum, cement rock, gold and silver; its reserves of oil shale are the largest in the country.

Sanjiaolong Crater Lake, Longwanqun National Forest Park – ©Rolfmueller CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

It is highest in the southeast and drops gently towards the northwest. The Changbai Mountains run through its southeastern regions and contains the highest peak of the province, Paektu Mountain at just over 9,000 feet. Other ranges include the Jilinhada Mountains, Zhang Guangcai Mountains, and Longgang Mountains. Paektu Mountain, especially Heaven Lake on the border with North Korea, are popular tourist destinations due to their natural scenery.

Heaven Lake – ©Dcpeets CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Jilin is drained by the Yalu and Tumen rivers in the extreme southeast (which together form parts of the border between the People’s Republic of China and North Korea), by tributaries of the Liao River in the southwest, and by the Songhua and Nen rivers in the north, both eventually flowing into the Amur.

Jilin has a northerly continental monsoon climate, with long, cold winters and short, warm summers. Average January temperatures range from −20 to −14 °C. Rainfall averages 14 to 40 inches.

Birding Jilin

The Changbai Mountains are important breeding habitats and the plain serves as a stopover for a large number of migratory birds. The province has recorded over 350 bird species. Red-crowned Cranes has been chosen as the Provincial Birds.

Changbai Shan – ©Mätes II CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Located in Antu, Fusong, and Changbai County southeast of Jilin, Changbaishan Nature Reserve covers an area of 196,465 hectares. The reserve is included in the list of biosphere reserves by UNESCO. It is one of the richest biodiversity regions in north China. C. 280 bird species have been recorded in the reserve, including c. 50 residents, c.150 summer migrants, and the rest passing through. Key species include: Scaly-sided Merganser, Grey-headed Woodpecker, Spotted Nutcracker, Pallas’s Warbler and Naumann’s Thrush.

Momoge Nature Reserve is located where the Nen River and Zhaoer River converge in Zhenlai County northwest of Jilin and covers an area of 144,000 hectares. With 80% of the reserve’s area covered by wetlands, it is the largest wetland in Jilin Province. The number of breeding Siberian Cranes account for about 20% of the total number of the world. There are also 500~800 Oriental Storks Ciconia boyciana during migration. The total species of birds that have been recorded in the reserve is c.300. Target species include:  Black-winged Stilt, Grey-headed Lapwing, Amur Falcon and Daurian Jackdaw.

Baer’s Pochard Aythya baeri – ©Bird-Photo-Tours ASIA

Located in Tongyu County, Xianghai Nature Reserve covers an area of 105,467 hectares. The reserve is a RAMSAR site and aims to maintain the wetland and aquatic ecosystems. The reserve has abundant botanical and animal resources with about 595 plant species and 373 species of vertebrates. There have been c.300 bird species recorded in the reserve. It serves as a breeding habitat for a large number of rare birds including Demoiselle, Siberian, White-naped, Red-crowned & Common Cranes, Swan Goose, Baer’s Pochard,  Daurian Partridge, Black-necked Grebe, Watercock, Black-winged Stilt, Pacific Golden Plover, Grey-headed Lapwing, Kentish Plover, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Asian Dowitcher, Oriental Pratincole, Gull-billed Tern, Chinese Grey Shrike, Chinese Penduline Tit, Black-browed Reed Warbler, Manchurian Reed Warbler, Meadow Bunting and Ochre-rumped Bunting.

Oriental Pratincole Glareola maldivarum – ©Bird-Photo-Tours ASIA

Flocks of rare migratory birds, including Steller’s Sea Eagle and White-tailed Sea Eagle, have been seen at the Jinxin Wetland in Hunchun city, in Northeast China’s Jilin province. Covering an area of more than 5,800 hectares, Jingxin Wetland is one of the key wetlands in the province. Each spring, a large number of rare birds fly to the wetland where they rest and forage for food, including Red-crowned Crane, Taiga & Tundra Bean Goose, Baikal Teal, Falcated Duck, Hazel Grouse, Glaucous Gull, Black Vulture, Steppe Eagle, White-tailed Eagle, Rough-legged Buzzard, White-backed Woodpecker, Chinese Grey Shrike, Varied Tit, Brown-eared Bulbul, Bohemian Waxwing, Japanese Waxwing, Long-tailed & Pallas’s Rosefinches.