Aerial photo taken on May 20, 2016 shows egrets flying over mangrove forests in Dongzhaigang mangrove natural reserve, China's first and biggest natural reserve for mangrove forests, in Haikou, capital of south China's Hainan Province. (Xinhua/Yang Guanyu)

China's natural reserves take up a total area of 1.47 million square kilometers, accounting for 14.83 percent of China's territory. This is higher than the global average, according to Chen Jining, China's Minister of Environmental Protection, on May 22. May 22 was International Biological Diversity Day, and also the 60th anniversary of China’s natural reserves conference in Beijing.

According to Chen, China has established a relatively mature natural reserves system, with a sensible layout and diverse environments. Currently, China has 2,740 natural reserves, which represent 90 percent of natural ecosystem types and contain the environments for 89 percent of protected wildlife. Many important natural relics have been preserved thanks to these nature reserves, and the populations of some endangered species have gradually recovered.

China's 13th Five-Year Plan specifies that the construction and management of natural reserves should be strengthened, and that common ecosystems, species, genes and landscapes should be better preserved.