Near Yulin, Shaanxi Province, China Photograph by Geography Department of Hong Kong Baptist University   China: Primarily Ningxia and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Regions; also Sha'anxi and Gansu Provinces Montane Grasslands and Shrublands   83,200 square miles (215,500 square kilometers) -- about the size of Idaho Critical/Endangered

· In the Bend of the Yellow River
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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In the Bend of the Yellow River

The Ordos Plateau lies within the Great Bend of China's Yellow River, also known as Huang He. High, shifting sand dunes to the north give way to sparse scrub vegetation and forest thickets at the river margins. Although this region was once home to some rare large mammals, it has lost much of its animal and plant diversity because of heavy human use.

Special Features

This ecoregion lies at roughly the same latitude as Washington, D.C., but its temperatures are much colder. Average January temperatures range from 9 to 14° F (-13 to -10° C). Unprotected by surrounding mountains, the region is blasted with cold winds from the north and west. Vegetation varies across the region. Parts of the region have supported centuries of farming, so irrigated fields cover places once filled by native forests and scrub vegetation. Elsewhere, desert plants cling to life on the sand dunes.

	Chances are slim that any Przewalkski's horses remain in the Ordos Plateau. Although about 200 of the last of these wild horses now live in zoos, none has been seen on the Ordos Plateau since 1968.

Wild Side

Scientists aren't sure what kinds of mammals currently inhabit the Ordos Plateau. At one time, wild two-humped Bactrian camels inhabited the region along with snow leopards, Przewalski's gazelles, and Przewalski's horses--the only species of wild horse left in the world. Although all of these species live in nearby regions, there are no data to show that they are still living in the Ordos Plateau. Scientists do know that Asiatic wild asses have been pushed out of this region into less densely populated areas near the Mongolian border. Several rare bird species breed on the plateau's saline lakes, including about a quarter of the world’s population of relict gulls.

Cause for Concern

Heavy grazing and agriculture have taken a severe toll on this region, creating areas of desert and increasing the occurrence of dust storms. Sheep grazing is very heavy in areas too dry for agriculture. And high prices for cashmere wool have encouraged increased grazing of goats, which are particularly damaging to the grassland habitat.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.