As the world marks the International Day for Biological Diversity on May 22 under the theme "Acting locally for global impact," China is showcasing how local conservation efforts contribute to global biodiversity governance, from wetland and mangrove restoration to endangered species protection and stronger legal safeguards.

China is one of the world's most biodiverse countries, with around 3,100 recorded terrestrial vertebrate species and more than 39,000 higher plant species.

On Friday, the Biodiversity Committee of the Chinese Academy of Sciences released the Catalogue of Life China 2026 Annual Checklist, recording 168,871 species and infraspecific taxa, an increase of 6,154 from the 2025 edition.

China is the only country in the world to publish a biodiversity species catalogue on an annual basis.

According to the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, more than 200 rare and endangered animal species have entered a recovery stage, while over 100 endangered wild plant species have received emergency protection.

The country has accelerated a national park-centered protected-area system and strengthened habitat conservation through restoration and scientific monitoring. More than 80% of nationally protected terrestrial wild animal and plant species are now under effective protection.

In Shanghai's Chongming Dongtan wetland, a key stopover along the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, restoration efforts have reversed habitat degradation caused by invasive species.

Waterbird numbers, which had fallen to fewer than 40,000 in 2009, rebounded to nearly 498,000 in 2025 after large-scale habitat restoration. In March 2026, the reserve recorded 5,216 tundra swans, surpassing previous records.

Mangrove restoration has become a major focus of China's coastal conservation.

In south China's island province of Hainan, more than 16,000 red-flowered black mangroves, a first-class nationally protected species once close to extinction in China, have been cultivated, with over 4,000 returned to the wild.

Since 2018, the province has restored more than 1,200 hectares of mangroves, while Dongzhai Port reserve alone has restored another 107 hectares since 2023, helping increase recorded bird species from 180 to 230.

Across the Yangtze River basin, ecological recovery has accelerated under protection efforts and the 10-year fishing ban. From 2021 to 2025, 351 indigenous fish species were recorded in the Yangtze basin, 43 more than before the fishing ban.

The Yangtze finless porpoise population, once in steep decline, has achieved a historic rebound.

Rare species recovery has become a key indicator of China's biodiversity progress.

The Hainan gibbon population has grown to 44 individuals in seven groups after three newborn gibbons were recorded last year, making it the world's only steadily growing wild gibbon population.

Wild Asian elephant numbers in southwest China's Yunnan have risen to nearly 400, while the crested ibis population in east China's Zhejiang has surpassed 1,000.

Plant conservation has also shown notable progress. The critically endangered Baishanzu fir population has increased from just three wild trees to more than 4,000, while the number of the Spicer's slipper orchid has risen from 10 to over 200.

More than 300 endangered plant species, including cycads and orchids, have been successfully reintroduced into the wild.

China has also strengthened biodiversity governance through legislation.

The recently adopted Ecological and Environmental Code, the world's first code named after the ecological environment, integrates over 30 environmental laws, 100 administrative regulations and more than 1,000 local regulations, with a dedicated section on ecological conservation.

Chinese Minister of Ecology and Environment Huang Runqiu said China is shifting biodiversity protection from preventing degradation to systematic restoration, while strengthening legal safeguards for harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature.

China has also expanded international cooperation through conservation, research and funding support. The Kunming Biodiversity Fund, launched in 2021, has supported 31 projects in 45 developing countries.

China has also carried out more than 30 joint cross-border expeditions during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).

China has worked with Russia on cross-border protection of Siberian tigers and Amur leopards, partnered with Indonesia and Thailand on mangrove conservation, and helped establish the Global Allium Garden with Uzbekistan for germplasm preservation and research.

China also played a key role in advancing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework adopted at the COP15 biodiversity conference.

As China advances its ecological civilization agenda, its biodiversity efforts are increasingly linking local ecological recovery with global environmental governance, offering a practical pathway toward harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature.

For more:

Land of Diversity II: The story of humans and the biosphere

International Day for Biological Diversity: Technological solutions for global biodiversity conservation