Zoigê Marsh
Encyclopedia
The Zoigê Marsh also known as the Ruoergai Marsh or the Songpan Grasslands, is located in the eastern part of the Tibetan Plateau
and forms the largest high-altitude marsh area in the world.. The marsh areas are mainly located in northern Sichuan
Province, but extend into southern Gansu
and southeastern Qinghai
. The marshes are formed in a region of poor drainage that is located between the watersheds of the Yellow
and Yangtze River
s. The marshes are located at an altitude of about 3,600 meters above sea level and cover an area of about 2,600 square kilometers. To east, they are bordered by the Min Mountains
and to the west by the Amne Machin
mountain range. The marshes can be divided into four geomorphological regions: the Zoigê plateau plain, the Hong Yuan plateau mound, the A Ba plateau mountain, and the Songpan-Lixan Alp. The soil of the marshes contains a layer of peat
that is about 2 to 3 meters thick in most places, but can reach up to 7 meters in thickness. The Long March
passed through the Zoigê Marsh in August 1935. The marshes were partially drained for grazing of cattle, sheep, and horses in the 1970s. In 1994, a nature preserve was established in the marshes.
Tibetan Plateau
The Tibetan Plateau , also known as the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau is a vast, elevated plateau in Central Asia covering most of the Tibet Autonomous Region and Qinghai, in addition to smaller portions of western Sichuan, southwestern Gansu, and northern Yunnan in Western China and Ladakh in...
and forms the largest high-altitude marsh area in the world.. The marsh areas are mainly located in northern Sichuan
Sichuan
' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...
Province, but extend into southern Gansu
Gansu
' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...
and southeastern Qinghai
Qinghai
Qinghai ; Oirat Mongolian: ; ; Salar:) is a province of the People's Republic of China, named after Qinghai Lake...
. The marshes are formed in a region of poor drainage that is located between the watersheds of the Yellow
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...
and Yangtze River
Yangtze River
The Yangtze, Yangzi or Cháng Jiāng is the longest river in Asia, and the third-longest in the world. It flows for from the glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau in Qinghai eastward across southwest, central and eastern China before emptying into the East China Sea at Shanghai. It is also one of the...
s. The marshes are located at an altitude of about 3,600 meters above sea level and cover an area of about 2,600 square kilometers. To east, they are bordered by the Min Mountains
Min Mountains
Min Mountains or Minshan are a mountain range in central China. It runs in the general north-south direction through northern Sichuan and southernmost borderlands of Gansu...
and to the west by the Amne Machin
Amne Machin
Amne Machin is the highest peak of a mountain range named Amne Machin , or, in Chinese,Animaqing Shan in the province of Qinghai in west-central China.-Geography:...
mountain range. The marshes can be divided into four geomorphological regions: the Zoigê plateau plain, the Hong Yuan plateau mound, the A Ba plateau mountain, and the Songpan-Lixan Alp. The soil of the marshes contains a layer of peat
Peat
Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...
that is about 2 to 3 meters thick in most places, but can reach up to 7 meters in thickness. The Long March
Long March
The Long March was a massive military retreat undertaken by the Red Army of the Communist Party of China, the forerunner of the People's Liberation Army, to evade the pursuit of the Kuomintang army. There was not one Long March, but a series of marches, as various Communist armies in the south...
passed through the Zoigê Marsh in August 1935. The marshes were partially drained for grazing of cattle, sheep, and horses in the 1970s. In 1994, a nature preserve was established in the marshes.