Hong Kong Wetland Park is a conservation, education and tourism facility, located at the northern part of Tin Shui Wai, in Yuen Long. It was to be an ecological mitigation area for the wetlands lost due to Tin Shui Wai New Town development. The Hong Kong Wetland Park comprises a visitor centre, Wetland Interactive World, and a Wetland Reserve. The Wetland Interactive World has themed exhibition galleries, a theatre, a souvenir shop, an indoor play area and a resource centre. Wetland Park currently holds the highest recorded temperature in Hong Kong, at on 22 August 2017, the day before Typhoon Hato affected the region.
History
In 1998, a project named International Wetland Park and Visitor CentreFeasibility Study was initiated by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department and the Hong Kong Tourism Board with a view to expanding the ecological mitigation area to a wetland ecotourism attraction. After concluding that it was feasible to develop a Wetland Park at the site without compromising its ecological mitigation functions, and that development of the Wetland Park would also enhance the ecological function of the site to a conservation, education and tourism facility, the concerned parties started the Wetland Park Project, which is one of the Millennium projects of the Administrations. In 2007 the park was one of five winners of the Awards for Excellence: Asia Pacific Competition, from the Urban Land Institute.
Facilities
Themed exhibition galleries with floor areas ranging from showcase the importance of wetland on biodiversity, civilisation and conservation. Visitors can learn more about the native flora and fauna of Hong Kong through the animals and models displayed in the Living Wetland Gallery, such as false gharial, mouse deer and green turtle. The Wetland Reserve consists of re-created habitats designed for water fowls and other wildlife. The Wetland Discovery Centre, located in the Wetland Reserve, provides visitors more hands-on experience on local wetlands. Other facilities include Stream Walk, Succession Walk, Mangrove Boardwalk and three bird hides situated next to the fish pond, mudflat and riverside, leading visitors to venture habitats of wildlife such as fiddler crab, mudskipper and the rare black-faced spoonbill.
Pui Pui is a crocodile's name, which is a Chinese pun indicating that it came from Shan Pui River and is the apple of the public's eye. On 29 August 2006 she was moved into her landscaped enclosure and can be easily viewed by the public. Pui Pui's Home was designed to provide the reptile with a healthy and comfortable living environment. The outdoor enclosure is, of which 70% is pool area. With a maximum depth of, the pool is landscaped with plants to provide sheltered areas, hiding places and basking areas for the reptile. Outdoor facilities include infra-red heaters, a heat pad and a weighing scale. Water in the pool is continuously circulated through a filtration system.
