In mid-September of 2026, in Zhenlai County of Jilin Province, thousands of grey cranes once again circled over the red beaches of the Erlongtao alkaline wetlands. This is not merely an annual spectacle but a signal: wetland restoration efforts are yielding tangible results.
According to local observers, four white cranes and two white-headed cranes have appeared among the flocks of grey cranes, which number more than three thousand individuals. Local waterfowl feed nearby: geese, ducks, Eurasian spoonbills and great egrets. The increase in the number of Oriental storks is especially noticeable: over one hundred birds have been recorded, more than in previous years.
Zhenlai has long been called the "home of the white cranes." An important section of the East Asian–Australasian Flyway passes through here. The Momoge and Erlongtao wetlands serve as a kind of "refuelling station" for the birds: an abundance of fish, shrimp and aquatic vegetation allows them to build up strength before the long flight south.
Over the past five years, thanks to systematic protection and restoration of the wetlands, the total number of birds stopping here has grown from 100–150 thousand to 250 thousand, while species diversity has risen from 298 to 315 species. Such figures speak not of a random surge but of the ecosystem's gradual return to balance.
It is not only specialists who keep watch over the birds, but also local volunteers. Mao Xiuya's family walks the shores twice a day, driving off poachers and picking up litter. Their work is part of a large network that makes the stopover safe for thousands of winged travellers.
When people stop destroying and begin restoring, nature does not respond at once, but it does so with certainty. In Zhenlai this is already visible to the naked eye.
