Han Ximin

    ximhan@126.vom

    DURING the Mid-Autumn holiday, Wang Hanzhi, a student at the Shenzhen School Affiliated With the National Institute of Education Sciences, spent an afternoon with her parents at OCT Wetland Park, which is widely considered the only inner-city coastal mangrove wetland area in China.

    The wetland park opened to public groups Tuesday after its limited opening in August 2012.

    OCT Wetland Park has adopted an appointment system to cap the number of visitors to 300 a day, and added reservations Thursdays last October, allowing individuals to reserve visits in the morning and group reservations in the afternoon. Saturdays are reserved for students.

    People who’d like to visit the park can make reservations every Wednesday through the “appointment manager” link at www.octbay.com. The site is only available in Chinese.

    Located in the northern part of the OCT Harbor complex and covering about 685,000 square meters, the wetland park is a Level 2 National Breeding Habitat for a variety of birds and has been given a National Ecotourism Model Area award by the China National Tourism Administration. The park contains nearly 40,000 square meters of mangrove forest and more than 100 species of rare birds.

    The naturally formed Egret Island features lush forests, flourishing vegetation and habitats for birds including the black-faced spoonbill and other rare species. OCT Wetland is an important area for many migratory bird species.