Shennongjia's monkeys make golden return

Tech empowerment

Peng Linpeng, director of the information management center at the Shennongjia reserve, highlighted the importance of a rounded, three-dimensional monitoring network for the recovery of the Shennongjia golden snub-nosed monkey population.

Established in 2025, the network goes beyond regular patrols, integrating satellite remote sensing to monitor broad habitat changes like forest pests and diseases. Drones, being more precise and cost-effective, support routine comparative monitoring, deter illegal activities, and collect high-definition three-dimensional geographic data for emergency command and dispatch.

"Considering the species' lofty living requirements, we have set up water quality monitoring stations at the sources and outlets of rivers flowing into the Yangtze and Hanjiang rivers, as well as air quality monitoring stations at elevations ranging from 600 to 3,000 meters," Peng said, adding that highly sensitive smoke detectors have been installed to warn of fire risks.

For real-time wildlife tracking, high-altitude cameras equipped with artificial intelligence have been deployed, offering a detection range of up to 1,000 meters to automatically track, identify and record animals upon their appearance. Over 700 infrared cameras have been installed, with 50 of them capable of real-time transmission. Supplemented by acoustic detectors, monitoring has turned from manual tracking in the past to a highly efficient, precise and automated approach.

"All technological means are designed and deployed for the sole purpose of wildlife protection, rather than for purely academic research," Peng said.

As a flagship species, the recovery of the Shennongjia golden snub-nosed monkey from the brink reflects the ecological prosperity of the reserve — which, with just 0.03 percent of the national land area, is home to more than one-tenth of China's vascular plant and vertebrate species — a thriving reality under the watchful eyes of caretakers, local villagers and cameras.

limenghan@chinadaily.com.cn