The Hunshandake Sandy Land, a vital ecological barrier 180 km from Beijing, suffered severe degradationdegradation/ˌdɛɡrəˈdeɪʃən/L3（土地或生态系统的）退化，恶化The process by which the quality or condition of something, especially land or an ecosystem, deteriorates or becomes worse over time. from a tenfold livestock increase between 1950 and 2000, stripping vegetation and triggering desertification. Restoration via livestock exclusion initially succeeded but later failed; nutrient depletion from hay harvesting and dung beetle collapse—decimateddecimated/ˈdɛsɪmeɪtɪd/L3大量毁灭，严重削弱To destroy or kill a large proportion of something, causing severe reduction in numbers or effectiveness. by antiparasitic residues from non-native cattle—prevented natural fertilization. This ecological crisis demanded an innovative solution that integrated ecological restoration with economic viability. Consequently, researchers turned to free-range chickens for manure replenishment.
In 2009, Li Yonggeng introduced 50,000 chickens as a silver bullet for soil fertilization and income generation. However, intensive poultry farming proved disastrous: predators such as badgers killed hundreds per night, and stampeding caused suffocation, resulting in 90% mortality within a year. Herders, witnessing worsening desertification, demanded restoration. The conventional wisdom of large-scale monoculturemonoculture/ˈmɒnəˌkʌltʃər/L3单一栽培，单一作物经营The cultivation of a single crop or the raising of a single type of livestock over a large area, often leading to ecological vulnerability and reduced biodiversity. had failed spectacularly, underscoring the perils of ignoring ecological complexity.
A shift to small-flock rotational management, using mobile coops housing 600 laying hens and relocated every three to five days, transformed outcomes. Forage yields tripled compared to control plots, and herders embraced the model, one describing poultry farming as his 'mini ATM.' The system, now piloted in multiple regions, integrates automatic watering and nesting, offering a scalable, low-capital solution. Notwithstanding initial setbacks, the approach demonstrates that adaptive management, grounded in ecological principles, can restore degraded landscapes while generating economic value.
The success contributed to the UNESCO inscription of the Site of Xanadu and has inspired a vision to extend the poultry-grazing model across the Eurasian Steppe. This Chinese solution to desertification, combining traditional pastoralism with innovative agroecology, holds promise for enhancing food security and climate resilienceresilience/rɪˈzɪliəns/L3恢复力，韧性The capacity of a system, ecosystem, or organism to recover quickly from disturbances, adapt to change, and maintain essential functions. in arid regions worldwide. More than two decades of perseverance have yielded a replicable blueprint for ecological restoration. Indeed, the journey from catastrophic failure to pragmatic triumph illustrates the necessity of iterative experimentation in environmental science.
