Songshan National Nature Reserve, Beijing, National nature reserve in Zhangshanying, China.
Songshan National Nature Reserve, also called Xiaohaituo Mountain Nature Reserve, lies in Zhangshanying Town, Yanqing District, Beijing, between Haituo Mountain to the north and Foyukou Reservoir to the south. Its 4,660 hectares are divided into a 1,819-hectare core zone, a 1,263-hectare buffer zone and a 1,578-hectare experimental zone. The reserve protects natural Chinese pine forest and secondary deciduous broadleaf forest.
The reserve was established on 1 April 1985 in Zhangshanying, Yanqing District, and became part of the China Biosphere Reserve Network. In 2010 experts proposed merging it with the Yudushan reserve and enlarging it to over 16,000 hectares. Ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympics, its boundaries were redrawn so the Xiaohaituo ski and sliding venues lay outside the reserve; the area grew by 31%, but the expansion fell short of the 2010 plan.
The reserve's main protection targets are natural Chinese pine (you song) forests and secondary deciduous broadleaf forest, and its zone is open to the public from April to October each year for study, teaching practice, visits and tourism. The 2022 Winter Olympics ski and luge venues were sited on Xiaohaituo Mountain, which the authorities placed outside the adjusted reserve boundary.
The reserve is about 90 kilometers from downtown Beijing and features marked pathways for visitors. Bring appropriate footwear and be prepared for varying elevation as you explore the terrain.
The reserve is also known as Xiaohaituo Mountain Nature Reserve, and its boundaries were redrawn before the 2022 Winter Olympics. The alpine skiing and sliding venues were built on Xiaohaituo Mountain; officials said the adjusted reserve grew by 31%, while ecologists argued the core zone had simply been excluded.
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