High-tech surveillance

At the Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park, which covers 14,600 sq km, a high-tech surveillance system was launched this year to provide real-time protection of the flora and fauna.

The system, which currently covers 5,000 sq km, is supported by infrared cameras, fiber-optic vibration sensors, drones and the Chinese-made Beidou Navigation Satellite System. It provides real-time images of wild animals in the region and also records the activities of forest patrol teams.

At present, the system has 42 base stations and more than 3,000 wireless cameras, which are located along 200 kilometers of the Sino-Russian border in addition to other areas of tiger and leopard activity. It is expected to cover the whole park by the end of the year.

Feng Limin, a researcher at Beijing Normal University who has studied China's tigers and leopards for many years, said the system has collected more than 550,000 videos of a variety of animals within the region.

"The management center collects a large amount of data every day, from wild animals and human activities to changes in the park's environmental condition," he said. "It has significantly improved management efficiency."

According to Tang, from the forestry and grassland administration, the system is very expensive, so it hasn't been used in all the pilot parks.

"However, we hope it can be gradually adopted not only in national parks, but also in some nature reserves. It is not only beneficial to wildlife protection, but also to scientific studies for future eco-conservation," he said.