In pics: Some of the world’s most ecologically important wetlands

The Zhalong National Nature Reserve in Qiqihar, Heilongjiang Province. The 2,100-square-kilometer reserve was established in 1979 at the site of a reed wetland. First celebrated in 1997, each year World Wetlands Day falls on the anniversary of the day the Convention on Wetlands was adopted: February 2, 1971. [File Photo: IC]