Giant Panda Camera Trap Captures Elusive Animals In Chinese Wilderness (VIDEO, PHOTOS)
China has more than 6,500 species of vertebrate mammals that represent 14 percent of the global total, making it one of the 12 globally recognized “mega-biodiversity” countries. However, as is around the world, the population of more than 10 flagship and keystone species in China, which include Amur tigers, musk deer and the Yangtze finless porpoise, has undergone a marked decline. The most severe blow was between the 1960s and 1980s.
Recently, WWF - China released dozens of photographs and video footage of endangered species captured by camera traps in the mountainous giant panda reserves in China.
These rarely seen before images and footage portray an array of endangered species in their remote habitats in southwestern Sichuan Province, including giant panda, red panda, Tibetan stump-tailed macaque and leopard cat.
According to Jiang Zeyin, species program office at WWF-China, “The multimedia materials are obtained under circumstances, where there was little external disturbance and therefore they truly reflect the conditions of those species in the wild."
The footage has been filmed since 2011 by more than 100 infra-red camera traps set up in six nature reserves by WWF and it's partners from the local forestry authority. This was part of the monitoring effort under the giant panda conservation programme.
This footage has allowed the WWF conservation officers to gain a better understanding of the identification of animal traces and areas of their activities. They can also study of the impact of human activities on the species and management of nature reserves, according to Jiang.
“The images demonstrate that through the conservation of the giant panda, a flagship umbrella species, we can also protect other threatened wildlife from the same habitat and preserve biological diversity. It is a tried method in WWF’s biodiversity conservation and the reason why WWF would underscore the value of protecting flagship species," said Fan Zhiyong, director of WWF species program in China.
He continued that, “Conservation of flagship species would not only benefit the ecological system, but also human development. Large-scale planning and implementation aimed at establishing a network of habitats should always be considered."
Enjoy some of the footage below from this project.
China has more than 6,500 species of vertebrate mammals that represent 14 percent of the global total, making it one of the 12 globally recognized “mega-biodiversity” countries. However, as is around the world, the population of more than 10 flagship and keystone species in China, which include Amur tigers, musk deer and the Yangtze finless porpoise, has undergone a marked decline. The most severe blow was between the 1960s and 1980s.
Recently, WWF - China released dozens of photographs and video footage of endangered species captured by camera traps in the mountainous giant panda reserves in China.
These rarely seen before images and footage portray an array of endangered species in their remote habitats in southwestern Sichuan Province, including giant panda, red panda, Tibetan stump-tailed macaque and leopard cat.
According to Jiang Zeyin, species program office at WWF-China, “The multimedia materials are obtained under circumstances, where there was little external disturbance and therefore they truly reflect the conditions of those species in the wild."
The footage has been filmed since 2011 by more than 100 infra-red camera traps set up in six nature reserves by WWF and it's partners from the local forestry authority. This was part of the monitoring effort under the giant panda conservation programme.
This footage has allowed the WWF conservation officers to gain a better understanding of the identification of animal traces and areas of their activities. They can also study of the impact of human activities on the species and management of nature reserves, according to Jiang.
“The images demonstrate that through the conservation of the giant panda, a flagship umbrella species, we can also protect other threatened wildlife from the same habitat and preserve biological diversity. It is a tried method in WWF’s biodiversity conservation and the reason why WWF would underscore the value of protecting flagship species," said Fan Zhiyong, director of WWF species program in China.
He continued that, “Conservation of flagship species would not only benefit the ecological system, but also human development. Large-scale planning and implementation aimed at establishing a network of habitats should always be considered."
Enjoy some of the footage below from this project.
Photos courtesy of the World Wildlife Fund.
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