Bayannur's Ulan Suhai Lake | The Pearl Beyond the Great Wall

Ulan Suhai Lake: Known as the Pearl Beyond the Great Wall, it is a beautiful landscape in the northern frontier of our motherland. The name 'Ulan Suhai' in Mongolian means 'a place where red willows grow', and the name of the place existed before the lake. Located in the Urad Front Banner of Bayannur, Inner Mongolia, it is a river trace lake formed by the diversion of the Yellow River, and it is also an extremely rare large grassland lake in the global desert and semi-desert areas. With a total area of 300 square kilometers, it is reputed as the 'Pearl Beyond the Great Wall'; it is one of the largest multifunctional lakes in arid grasslands and desert areas globally, and it is also the largest wetland at the same latitude on Earth. On August 7, 2012, the area of Ulan Suhai Lake was only a quarter of what it was 60 years ago, and experts once predicted that it might disappear within 10 to 20 years. In recent years, with the advancement of comprehensive management projects, the overall water quality of Ulan Suhai Lake has significantly improved, and the ecology has turned for the better. Today, the waters of Ulan Suhai Lake are clear with waves, reeds swaying, and fish and birds in flocks. The water quality of the lake has been upgraded from below Grade V in the past to generally Grade V, with some areas reaching Grade IV. The species and number of birds residing have significantly increased, with currently more than 20 species of fish and more than 260 species of birds, totaling over 6 million individuals.