Monitoring Dataset on Waterbirds in the Qinghai Lake Basin (2019)

Zhang, N. N.^1,2,3  Sun, J. Q.⁴  Wang, X. Y.^1,2,3  Qi, D. S.^2,3,5  Chen, K. L.^1,2,3*  Yang, S. D.⁴  Wei, Q. C.⁴

1. College of Geography, Qinghai Normal University, Xining 810008, China;

2. Key Laboratory of Physical Geography and Environmental Process of Qinghai Province, Qinghai Normal University, Xining 810008, China;

3. Key Laboratory of Surface Process and Ecological Conservation of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Ministry of Education, Xining 810008, China;

4. Qinghaihu National Natural Reserve, Forestry Administration of Qinghai Province, Xining 810007, China;

5. College of Life Sciences, Qinghai Normal University, Xining 810008, China

Abstract: The Qinghai Lake Basin is an important natural geographical area in the northeastern part of the Qinghai?CTibet Plateau and a crucial component of Qinghai Province??s ??Two Shields and Three Zones?? ecological security pattern. The basin boasts rich biodiversity, serving as the gene pool for species on the Qinghai?CTibet Plateau and a typical area of the plateau??s ecosystem. In 2019, waterbird monitoring was conducted at 27 sites and 33 points within the basin. This dataset included recording information such as habitat types at the waterbird sites, unified disturbance types, and the distribution of migratory waterbirds in different seasons. The dataset includes: (1) the time frequency of water birds monitoring, and an overview of the sampling sites (including the GIS data); (2) the composition and spatiotemporal distribution of various water bird species; (3) the dynamic changes in water bird population numbers; (4) the diverse distribution of water bird migrations in different seasons; (5) number of four major breeding water bird clusters during 2015-2019. The dataset is archived in .xlsx and .shp formats, and consists of 8 data files with data size of 60.9 KB (Compressed into one file with 51.6 KB).

Keywords: Qinghai Lake Basin; Qinghai?CTibet Plateau; waterfowl monitoring; 2019

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3974/geodp.2024.02.02

CSTR: https://cstr.escience.org.cn/CSTR:20146.14.2024.02.02

Dataset Availability Statement:

The dataset supporting this paper was published and is accessible through the Digital Journal of Global Change Data Repository at: https://doi.org/10.3974/geodb.2024.04.01.V1 or https://cstr.escience.org.cn/CSTR:20146.11.2024.04.01.V1.

1 Introduction

Biodiversity monitoring aims to provide information on the spatial and temporal changes in biodiversity, thereby assessing the effectiveness of ecological protection^[1]. As top-level consumers in wetland ecosystems, birds cannot exist independently of lower trophic level organisms and the inorganic environment^[2]. As a unique group of higher organisms existing in wetlands, waterbirds are important indicators for assessing changes in wetland quality^{[3, 4]}. Waterbird monitoring, through predetermined spatial and temporal plans, records specific information on waterbird species, numbers, behavior, and habitats^{[5, 6]}.

The Qinghai Lake Basin, located on the eastern edge of the Qinghai?CTibet Plateau, is an enclosed and independent basin that connects the eastern, western, and southern regions of Qinghai Province. It plays a crucial role in preventing eastward invasion by western deserts, and is an important part of the ecological security barrier of the Qinghai?CTibet Plateau^{[7, 8]}. The Qinghai Lake National Nature Reserve is located at the intersection of the Central Asian and East Asian migratory routes for waterbirds, and boasts the largest wetland area in the country^[9]. The dataset utilized in this study was derived from years of waterbird monitoring data collected by the Qinghai Lake Nature Reserve Administration Bureau^[10]. The monitoring period spanned the period from March 2019 to February 2020, with a total of nine monitoring sessions. Through these monitoring efforts, data on the number, dynamics, distribution, and structure of waterbird populations were collected and compiled into the  QinghaiLakeWaterfowl2019^[11].

2 Metadata of the Dataset

The metadata of the Monitoring dataset on waterbirds in Qinghai Lake Basin (2019)^[11] is summarized in Table 1. It includes the dataset full name, short name, authors, year of the dataset, data format, data size, data files, data publisher, and data sharing policy, etc.

3 Methods

In the waterbird monitoring work, the original sites and points were renumbered and renamed, and place-names were standardized according to administrative divisions. Ten habitat types were uniformly determined, and the methods for recording disturbance types and intensities were standardized. Based on the unique characteristics of waterbird distribution in Qinghai Lake, the area around the lake was divided into 27 waterbird monitoring sites, comprising a total of 33 monitoring points (Figure 1). Among these sites, the Shadao area included three monitoring points: Reed Lake, Sun Lake, and Crescent Lake. The Ganzihe Wetland comprised four monitoring points: Xiao Dalian, Cao Dalian, Orchid Lake, and the Ganzihe Estuary. The Buha Estuary area had two monitoring points: Buha Estuary and Buha River Bay. Based on the spatiotemporal distribution characteristics of waterbirds in Qinghai Lake (the habitat utilization), the habitats at the monitoring points were categorized into five types: migratory stopover sites, non-colonial breeding sites, wintering sites, foraging sites, and colonial breeding nesting sites. According to habitat types, they were divided into ten types: estuarine wetlands, swamp meadows, agricultural land, sub-lakes, freshwater lakes, river wetlands, lakeside salt marshes, river manzanita, peninsulas, and islands. According to the functional zoning of the reserve, they were divided into five types: core area, buffer area, experimental area, outside the reserve, and the junction of the experimental area and the reserve. Based on disturbance types and intensities, they were classified into four types and three intensity levels: grazing, tourism, bird-watching photography, no disturbance, and weak, medium, and strong disturbance, respectively. The administrative divisions of the waterbird monitoring points were specified down to the township level.

Table 1  Metadata summary of the monitoring dataset on waterbirds in Qinghai Lake Basin (2019)

Figure 1  Map of waterbird monitoring sample points in the Qinghai Lake Basin in 2019

4 Data Results and Validation

4.1 Dataset Composition

This dataset, through waterbird monitoring, captures information on population numbers, dynamics, distribution, and structure. The dataset is archived in .shp and.xlsx formats, consisting of two data files, with a total data size of 60.9 KB (compressed into 1 file, 51.6 KB).

4.2 Data Results

In 2019, monitoring recorded 61 species of birds across six orders and 14 families (Table 2). Of these, three were species from one family in the order Ciconiiformes, one species from one family in the order Pelecaniformes, eight species from three families in the order Storks, three species from two families in the order Ornithales, 19 species from one family in the order Anseriformes, and 27 species from six families in the order Plovers.

Table 2  Composition of waterbird species observed in Qinghai Lake Basin in 2019

The  waterbird monitoring in 2019 indicated that the Heima River Wetland, Daotang River Wetland, Erhai Lake, Quanwan Wetland, and Jiangxi Gully habitats experienced significant disturbances, primarily from tourism, bird-watching photography, and transportation. Important waterbird habitats such as Daotang River Wetland, Ha Da Beach, and Jiangxi Gully had not yet been included in the protected area. In 2019, the number of waterbirds in Qinghai Lake was 196,000, a decrease of nearly 55,000 compared to 2018. Over the past five years, the variation of waterbird population in Qinghai Lake is shown in Table 3.

Table 3  Dynamics in waterbird populations in the Qinghai Lake Basin from 2015 to 2019

As listed at the Table 4, during the spring migration period of 2019, a total of 16 key waterbird habitats were identified, including Ganzihe Wetland, Ha Da Beach, Cormorant Island, Naren Wetland, Erhai Lake, Paerqiong Wetland, Egg Island, Quanwan Wetland, Jiangxi Gully, Daotang River Wetland, Heima River Wetland, Nuraogeta Estuary, Quanji Estuary, Qieji Estuary, Naishiji Wetland, and Erlangjian. These habitats encompassed nine types of environments: freshwater lakes, river manzanita, herbaceous swamp, lakeshore peninsulas, estuarine wetlands, agricultural land, freshwater river, sub-lakes, and lakeshore wetlands.

Table 4  Spring migration of waterbirds in the Qinghai Lake Basin in 2019

As listed at the Table 5, during the summer breeding period, a total of 13 major waterbird habitats were identified, including Cormorant Island, Egg Island, Buha Estuary, Ha Da Beach, Quanwan Wetland, Heima River Wetland, Shaliuhe Estuary, Naren Wetland, Haergai River Estuary, Sankuai Shi, Haixin Mountain, Qieji Estuary, and Paerqiong Wetland. These habitats included five different habitat types: lakeshore peninsula, estuarine wetlands, herbaceous swamp, river manzanita, and islands in the lake.

Table 5  Summer breeding of waterbirds in the Qinghai Lake Basin in 2019

As listed at the Table 6, during the fall migration period, a total of 17 major waterbird habitats were identified. These habitats included Egg Island, Cormorant Island, Paerqiong Wetland, Qieji Estuary, Ha Da Beach, Quanwan Wetland, Heima River Wetland, Daotang River Wetland, Erhai Lake, Jiangxi Gully, Naishiji Wetland, Naren Wetland, Garila Wetland, Xiannv Wan Wetland, Wuha Alanchu Estuary, Ganzihe Estuary, and Shaliuhe Estuary. They included eight habitat types: herbaceous swamp, lakeshore peninsula, freshwater river, estuarine wetlands, river manzanita, freshwater lake, agricultural land, and sub-lake.

Table 6  Fall migration of waterbirds in the Qinghai Lake Basin in 2019

From Table 7, it can be seen that the key wintering habitats for waterbirds included Jiangxi Gully, Egg Island, Qieji Estuary, Ganzihe Wetland, Quanwan Wetland, Garila Wetland, Xiaobo Lake, Cormorant Island, Naren Wetland, Xiannv Wan Wetland, Buha Estuary, and Haergai River Estuary, making up a total of 12 locations. During the wintering period, these 12 major waterbird habitats included five types of environments: agricultural land, lakeshore peninsula, estuarine wetlands, swamp meadow, and herbaceous swamp.

Table 7  Wintering staying of waterbirds in the Qinghai Lake Basin in 2019

5 Discussion and Conclusion

To address the issue of declining waterbird populations, team members strengthened patrol and monitoring efforts to understand real-time changes and the distribution of waterbirds. Additionally, they actively launched wetland protection and restoration projects, implementing ecological restoration within protected areas to help maintain the overall population stability of waterbirds in the Qinghai Lake Basin. In response to the impact of ecological environmental changes on waterbird habitats, efforts are being made to restore and rehabilitate these habitats to provide suitable breeding environments for waterbirds. The composition of wintering waterbirds in the Qinghai Lake Basin has changed, prompting enhanced monitoring and protective measures for wintering areas to ensure waterbird populations remain stable. During specific periods, patrol enforcement is intensified to reduce disturbances to waterbird habitats, creating a safe and tranquil living environment. For waterbird habitats not included within protected areas, the team is collaborating with local governments to jointly establish protected zones or implement joint defense and management measures.

Author Contributions

Zhang, N. N. and Chen, K. L. were responsible for the overall design of the dataset development. Sun, J. Q., Qi, D. S., Wang, X. Y., Yang, S. D., and Wei, Q. C. collected and processed all the data. Zhang, N. N. wrote the data paper and other related documents.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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