Abstract:[Objective] Conducting a spatial analysis on wetlands ecosystem restoration along Yangtze River in Anqing City, Anhui Province, in order to provide scientific basis for improving the wetland ecological environment. Wetland restoration is critical to manage these conditions.[Methods] In this study, hydrological regulation and habitat suitability, as the most important functions of wetland, were selected to identify suitable wetland restoration sites. Using these two function layers, together with the spatial analysis function of geographic information system(GIS) and remote sensing(RS) image data, we identified and prioritized suitable sites for wetland restoration in the study area. Those areas which have high hydrological regulation and are good or fair habitat suitability for water birds, can support wetland restoration. The potential sites were prioritized in terms of patch size and proximity of natural wetlands and water bodies.[Results] We obtained two priority classes(the high one and a low one) of wetland restoration in a spatial scale. The results of this study showed that the areas with high and low priority classes for wetland restoration are 82 628 and 247 039 hm2, respectively, which account for 1.23% and 3.67% of the total study area.[Conclusion] The high-priority class areas would be used for the wetland restoration. Besides the wetland restoration in the northeast region, wetland landscape pattern is also more advantageous for wetland ecological function. It will provide scientific basis for the implementation of northeast region wetland restoration.