Dynamic status of Sichuan snub-nosed monkey in Foping National Nature Reserve, China

Foping National Nature Reserve in Shaanxi is characterized by habitats adopted by many rare and endangered animal species including the giant panda and the Sichuan snub-nosed monkeys. Since the late 1990s, the State Forestry Administration of the People's Republic of China started implementing a specific protection project, the Natural Forest Protection Project, which, in addition to enhancing reserve protection, featured local governments carrying out a series of supplementary projects aimed at promoting developments in agriculture, industry and economy-which have remarkably upgraded life standards of the locals. In order to assess whether simultaneously such projects have improved conservation status of the Sichuan snub-nosed monkeys(Rhinopithecus roxellana), and perhaps other animals as well, we carried out a broad field survey in order to get the monkeys' spatial-temporal distribution patterns and census data; and retrospectively reviewed similar records since 1999 from academic publications and the archives kept in the Reserve and by local governments. The results indicate that both population size has increased(from less than 500 to about 671 individuals)and habitat areas have been significantly extended(from 147.8 to 236.5 km²), with an increasing tendency of approaching lower altitude areas, particularly in autumn(1 680±304 meters above sea level), getting closer to agricultural regions(less than 1 200 meters above sea level); and the monkeys much prefer habitats with evergreen broad-leaf forest(40.11%) and deciduous broad-leaf forest(38.41%), but less prefer scrub-grassland and bamboo. Thus, the study implies that the implementation of the Natural Forest Protection Project and the improvements of local agriculture, economy and local life standards have significantly reduced the interference of humans with wildlife habitats, and improved the quality of natural habitat conservation and ecological environment adopted by the monkeys. Therefore, what has been done in Foping has established an ideal model showing how nature reserves and wild animals can be effectively protected through integral and systematic endeavours in which local agriculture, economy and life quality, wild habits and animals are mutually considered and improved.