Sally Furniss
Well-known member
Qinghai province was named after Qinghai Lake, the largest saltwater lake in China. The people of this province represent diverse cultures, religions, and ethnicities but they are all connected to Qinghai Lake. Qinghai Lake, which in Chinese means ?Green Sea?, is 3,200 m above sea level and has an area of approximately 4,700 km2. Its circumference is greater than 360 km. One of the lake?s most valuable resources is the scale-less naked carp.
The Qinghai Lake ecosystem thrives on the interaction between naked carp and residential or migrating birds. Approximately 70% of the birds that use this lake during their migration are waterfowl (Anseriforms) which depend on naked carp as their main food source. These birds eat an estimated 800 tons annually. The decline of naked carp affects the migratory movement, reproduction and growth of these birds. A decline in the number of birds negatively impacts the grassland ecosystem. Naked carp also play an important role in controlling the level of aquatic plants (Chaetomorpha linum) in Qinghai Lake. If naked carp disappeared, the number of aquatic plants would rapidly increase and the water quality would deteriorate.
The value of this unique system has been recognized by both the Chinese and American governments. Qinghai Lake has been listed as an important international wetland in 1992. In 1997, the lake was endorsed as a national natural conservation site by the Chinese government and United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
Naked carp were once plentiful in the Qinghai Lake. In 1960, the estimated biomass of naked carp in Qinghai Lake was over 230,000 tons. By 1995, that biomass had dropped to 7,500 tons. These fish provided a significant source of food as well as being an important part of religious ritual. In the early 1960s, the water level of Qinghai Lake began to decline due largely to overuse for irrigation and livestock. Rivers that once fed the lake were diverted elsewhere, preventing naked carp from reaching their spawning grounds. In 1950, naked carp had over 100 rivers and streams into which they could spawn; now there are only eight.
Qinghai Lake ? over the past 4 decades, weirs have blocked most of the rivers that feed the lake and the water has been diverted for irrigation. Although current regulations prohibit water diversion from May to July, the weirs prevent the naked carp from reaching their spawning grounds. Removal of these weirs would go far towards the restoration of the species but would also displace approximately 12,000 people who depend on the water for their crops and livestock.
Naked carp (Gymocypris perzewaiskii) are predominantly found in Qinghai Lake on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. During the period from 1960 to 1995, the estimated biomass of naked carp in this lake has dropped approximately 90%.
Stocking Naked Carp into Qinghai Lake, China by John Ransier 2004
http://www.nmt.us/support/newsletters/2004_summer.pdf
The Qinghai Lake ecosystem thrives on the interaction between naked carp and residential or migrating birds. Approximately 70% of the birds that use this lake during their migration are waterfowl (Anseriforms) which depend on naked carp as their main food source. These birds eat an estimated 800 tons annually. The decline of naked carp affects the migratory movement, reproduction and growth of these birds. A decline in the number of birds negatively impacts the grassland ecosystem. Naked carp also play an important role in controlling the level of aquatic plants (Chaetomorpha linum) in Qinghai Lake. If naked carp disappeared, the number of aquatic plants would rapidly increase and the water quality would deteriorate.
The value of this unique system has been recognized by both the Chinese and American governments. Qinghai Lake has been listed as an important international wetland in 1992. In 1997, the lake was endorsed as a national natural conservation site by the Chinese government and United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
Naked carp were once plentiful in the Qinghai Lake. In 1960, the estimated biomass of naked carp in Qinghai Lake was over 230,000 tons. By 1995, that biomass had dropped to 7,500 tons. These fish provided a significant source of food as well as being an important part of religious ritual. In the early 1960s, the water level of Qinghai Lake began to decline due largely to overuse for irrigation and livestock. Rivers that once fed the lake were diverted elsewhere, preventing naked carp from reaching their spawning grounds. In 1950, naked carp had over 100 rivers and streams into which they could spawn; now there are only eight.
Qinghai Lake ? over the past 4 decades, weirs have blocked most of the rivers that feed the lake and the water has been diverted for irrigation. Although current regulations prohibit water diversion from May to July, the weirs prevent the naked carp from reaching their spawning grounds. Removal of these weirs would go far towards the restoration of the species but would also displace approximately 12,000 people who depend on the water for their crops and livestock.
Naked carp (Gymocypris perzewaiskii) are predominantly found in Qinghai Lake on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. During the period from 1960 to 1995, the estimated biomass of naked carp in this lake has dropped approximately 90%.
Stocking Naked Carp into Qinghai Lake, China by John Ransier 2004
http://www.nmt.us/support/newsletters/2004_summer.pdf