Survey in Tibet finds quality ecosystem for big cats

Image data captured at three monitoring points along the upper reaches of the Nujiang River in the Tibet autonomous region show that rare species — including snow leopards and other big cats — have been stable inhabitants of the area, the Shanshui Conservation Center said.

Since 2018, with support from the China Green Foundation, a biodiversity survey and protection project in the Nujiang River Valley was carried out by Tibet's Dengchen county and the conservation center.

Local Tibetan herders have been trained as ecological monitors, and nearly 100 infrared cameras have been placed at strategic points in the Nujiang River Valley. Within a targeted area of nearly 1,000 square kilometers along the upper reaches of the Nujiang River, 21 species of mammals have been recorded.

"As the top predators in the ecosystem, the existence of snow leopards and other leopards shows that there is enough food in the area to support these large predators," said Zhao Xiang, director of the center. "The ecosystem in these areas is healthy."

Zhao said that because snow leopards traditionally inhabit places above the snow line, and other big cats live in the forests, the two species appear frequently in the same area. This means there is a need to pay more attention to the possible impact of climate change on the upper reaches of Nujiang River, Zhao said.

Over the past year, the survey also recorded at least five large carnivore species, including snow leopards, other leopards, Tibetan brown bears, wolves and jackals have been in the area.

The survey also recorded a variety of small and medium-sized carnivores, such as the steppe cat, leopard cat, red fox and Tibetan fox, as well as herbivores such as musk deer, white-lipped deer and Chinese gazelles, which shows the rich biodiversity of the valley.