Dashanbao Black-necked Crane National Nature Reserve, Nature reserve for black-necked cranes in Zhaoyang District, China

Dashanbao Black-necked Crane National Nature Reserve covers all of Dashanbao Town in Zhaoyang District, Yunnan, across 19,200 hectares: an 8,686-hectare core zone, a 4,890-hectare buffer zone and a 5,624-hectare experimental zone. Elevations run from 2,210 m at Banpo village to 3,364 m at Kèchē Liángzi. Natural lakes Dahaizi, Zhonghaizi and Xiaohaizi lie within it, alongside the Tiaodunhe reservoir.

The reserve gained recognition as a Ramsar wetland site in 2004, establishing its protected status at the international level. This designation was a turning point that secured funding and legal protection for ongoing conservation work.

The reserve's name comes from the black-necked cranes that winter here, and Zhaoyang District in Zhaotong is known as China's hometown of the black-necked crane. Local authorities work with residents to restore wetlands and convert farmland to grassland, and by 2012 sixty injured or sick cranes had been rescued.

The reserve has marked pathways and observation points set up for visitors to watch birds without disturbing them. The best time to visit is between November and March when the cranes are present and most active.

The reserve holds about 20 percent of the world's black-necked cranes, with 1,131 counted in 2005 and over 1,300 wintering in some years. Each crane stays 176 to 202 days, and by 2012 staff had rescued 60 injured or sick birds. A wetland monitoring centre opened in 2008 with state funding.