Consider Jiangya Nansha a silent witness to maritime history. It is more than just a wetland. It is part of Jiuduansha. Jiuduansha is a collection of four intertidal wetland shoals at the mouth of China’s Yangtze River.
Jiuduansha literally translates as “Nine-Part Sands”. The number nine is used like the English word “several”. The group consists of four main shoals. They are Shangsha, Zhongsha, Xiasha, and Jiangyanansha.
You might hear them called Upper, Middle, Lower, and South Jiuduansha. Jiangya Nansha gets its name from a ship. The SS Kiangya was a passenger steamer. It exploded nearby in 1948. The explosion was likely due to a mine. It could have been from the Second World War or the Chinese Civil War.
Originally, Jiuduansha was part of the Waitongsha shoal. Floods in 1949 and 1954 changed that. The floods connected troughs and separated Jiuduansha. Universities in Shanghai have studied Jiuduansha since the 1990s. In 1995, cordgrass was introduced. This was to help stabilize the shoal. Dams along the Yangtze had reduced sedimentation.
In March 2003, Shanghai established a nature reserve. This protected the environment and the birds. Pudong International Airport was being developed nearby. From 2002 to 2003, Fudan University and the reserve did surveys together. In 2005, the wetland became a national nature reserve. The cordgrass has become invasive. It crowds out native reeds. This degrades the wetlands.
Jiuduansha is important for the fishing industry. It is a spawning ground for the hairy crab. This crab is a delicacy in Shanghai. The shoals also host prawns and swimming crabs. Five protected fish species live here. There are also 14 protected bird species. This includes the black-faced spoonbill. All aquatic mammals are protected. Jiuduansha is important for finless porpoises. It also is for bottlenose dolphins and spotted seals.
Imagine the SS Kiangya, a ship packed with refugees. They were fleeing the Chinese Civil War. The ship struck a mine. The explosion echoed across the water. The name Jiangya Nansha serves as a constant reminder of this tragedy.