Special investigation sustains Kiang protection in China's Qinghai

XINING, March 14 (Xinhua) -- A special winter investigation on Kiang living in northwest China's Qinghai Province has been completed, aiming to better protect this endemic species of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

This was the first round of a province-wide Kiang investigation undertaken by the Qinghai provincial forestry and grassland bureau and Qinghai Normal University.

"Kiang plays a very important role in the whole ecosystem here on the plateau. By carrying out this investigation, we aim to better understand how the population of this species interacts and uses its habitat," said Zhang Yu, director of the wildlife conservation department of the Qinghai provincial forestry and grassland bureau.

Qinghai Province is one of the major areas where Kiang is distributed. The current investigation will gather data on the population size, density, distribution, habitat status of Kiang, as well as its shared grasslands with domestic ungulates such as yak and Tibetan sheep.

The investigation will provide a scientific basis for the continued efforts to strengthen the Kiang protection, Zhang added.

Six teams with 24 members participated in this winter investigation. They traveled about 17,000 kilometers across Qinghai, covering all distribution areas of Kiang in the province.

A total of 13,060 Kiangs were recorded in the area such as the Qilian and Kunlun mountains, as well as Sanjiangyuan, where the Yangtze, Yellow, and Lancang rivers originate.

Kiang, a large herbivorous mammal, normally lives on plateaus, alpine desert grassland and mountain desert areas. It often has a reddish brown coat, with white hair on the chest, belly and legs. Its body length can reach more than 2 meters.

It is categorized as a national first-class protected wildlife species in China.

Kiang conservation is significant as the species plays a vital role in the ecological chain of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, according to Zhang.

Following this winter investigation, two more investigations will be carried out in the Kiang breeding in August and the mating season in November this year.

Then, the population density and size of Kiang in Qinghai will be estimated based on the investigations and ecological modeling, according to the Qinghai provincial forestry and grassland bureau.

Once the population size, density and distribution of Kiang in Qinghai are confirmed, suggestions will be proposed to balance the relationship between Kiang protection and husbandry grassland utilization in the province, the bureau added.  ■