"So far, we have observed more than 10 naturally formed breeding groups of varying sizes among the milu deer," says Zhang Yuming, a 45-year-old engineer who has been monitoring and caring for milu at the reserve for the past 12 years.

He adds that more fawns are expected to be born this year.

At the reserve in Jingzhou, Hubei, milu deer usually mate between June and August, during which the males fight each other for the privilege to stay with as many females as they wish. To ensure a safe and tranquil environment for reproduction, a team of two engineers and eight rangers have increased patrols of the reserve.

At the same time, advanced technologies, such as drones, infrared cameras, intelligent monitoring, have been applied at the reserve to help observe and analyze the milu's habits, routines and environment.