The natural reserve sits between Qishui Port and Wushi Port, and is one of the best protected typical tropical ecosystems, with the most abundant ecological forms, in the coastal area of the Chinese mainland. The reserve covers an area of 25,800 hectares and was named a national natural reserve by the State Council in January 2008. It is home to dugong and Chinese white dolphins both under first-grade State protection, as well as Pinctada maxima (Pinctada maxima Jameson), Branchiostoma belcheri, green turtles, leatherback, hawksbill, sea calf, Stenella attenuata, bottlenose dolphin, and cowfish under second-grade State protection. The reserve has a total of 599 aquatic animals in 209 families and is a very important shelter for offshore rare aquatic animals in the tropics.