"In Qinghai province, Tibetan antelopes mostly inhabit the Hoh Xil National Nature Reserve in Sanjiangyuan National Park. Anti-poaching and protection efforts were initiated in Qinghai in the 1990s," said Dawa Drolma, an official of the Administration Bureau of the park.

"Our mission is, as always, to work toward anti-poaching and the prevention of human interference through traffic control during migration, escorting during farrowing and the rescue of injured animals," she said.

Wu Xiaomin, an expert at the Shaanxi Institute of Zoology, said the habitat of the Tibetan antelope in China covers more than 1 million square kilometers, mostly in remote, harsh environments with altitudes between 3,700 and 5,500 meters.

Wu said there are more than 200,000 of the animals in Tibet's northern Changthang grassland, more than 70,000 in the Hoh Xil areas and more than 20,000 in Xinjiang.