ECBP Diary-NW Yunnan

Biodiversity Diaries V I S I T

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H O T S P O T — 马 敬 能

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Yunnan’s glorious rhododendrons

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Visit to Biodiversity Hotspot of NW Yunnan

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Biodiversity Diary

John MacKinnon, ECBP VAC

ECBP Newsletter Supplements Feb.27-March 3, 2009

The sunlight shone on the fresh snow that clothed the forested mountains and distant glaciers but despite the bitter cold there were already signs that spring was round the corner. Alpine choughs were already gathering sticks to repair their nest in the roof of a Buddhist temple in Shangrila. On the nearby lake of Napahai, a few black-necked cranes still lingered in small flocks but the bulk of the wintering population had already left the valley on their flight north back to the breeding grounds of Rouergai on the Sichuan, Qinghai border some six hundred kilometers further north. Hundreds of coot were squabbling in courtship battles and tracks in the snow showed where wild rabbits had been cavorting the previous night. A shadow passed over the ground beside me and I looked up to see two White-rumped vultures circling lazily overhead in search of death. This is rightfully a bird of the Indian sub-continent and it was the first record of this species so far north. Maybe, their range is changing with global warming.

I was visiting the Three Parallel Rivers World Heritage Site in company of TNC expert Dr Long Yongcheng, Professor Liang Yongning of Kunming University, Mr Liu Wen the director of the WH site bureau and other officials of the Ministry of Construction.

NW Yunnan project - Baimaxueshan to the north and Laojunshan to the south. Both are homes of the rare endemic Yunnan Snub-nosed Monkey Rhinopithecus bietii and Dr Long Yongcheng is the expert on the species, having spent much of the last Three Parallel Rivers is one of the largest natural World Heritage 20 years studying these extraordinary aniSites in the world and is listed on the UNESCO wall in Paris for mals. all four natural criteria – scenic beauty, ecological processes, geological history and biodiversity and conservation importance. The The Yunnan Snub-nosed Monkey is exsite is a serial nomination involving 8 sub-sites and two of these traordinary in several ways. Firstly it lives sub-sites are also the location of the field sites of the ECBP in groups of very large size, often a hundred individuals within one group and Yunnan Snub-nosed monkey Black-necked crane sometimes more than 200. Another strange feature of this monkey is that it can live so high in the alpine conifer forests when most other monkeys are tropical.

Biodiversity Diary is a supplement of the newsletter of the EU-China Biodiversity Programme and funded from EU sources. The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of the ECBP and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.

EU-China Biodiversity Programme, 2009 Reproduction is authorized provided the source is acknowledged

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It was hard to imagine what they could find to eat, especially in the cold snowy winter-time, but Dr Long’s studies show that they derive much of their food from eating lichens. This is not a food that many animals can feed on but the monkeys have very specialized stomach that can digest this difficult food. Another unusual fact is that whilst most primate groups are rather cohesive and stable, the huge groups of Snub-nosed Monkeys can break into sub-groups and reassemble in new combinations as the monkeys wander over large areas of their mountainous home ranges.

There are many other special endemic fauna in the ranges of NW Yunnan – Gaoligong Muntjac, Sclater’s Monal, Gongshan pika, Shortridge’s langur. There are many hundreds of endemic plants especially rhododendrons, primroses, gentians, orchids and other alpine forms.

Yet in addition to large number of species listed for the site and impressive lists of endemic and threatened species of special concern, the truly unique nature of Three Parallel Rivers from a biodiversity perspective is the reason behind such richness and the unusual spatial distribution of those species present.

For almost 300 km, the three deep gorges run parallel to each other. Although only a few kilometers apart they form a series of barriers to species distribution in a differential manner before diverging widely to fan apart with the Changjiang (Yangtze emerging near Shanghai, the Lancang (Mekong) near Saigon and the Nujiang in eastern Myanmar (Burma). In the most northerly sectors of the site the Dulong river forms a fourth parallel gorge that finally reaches the sea only after joining the great Ayerawaddy flowing past Yangon some 3000 km from Shanghai. This has given the region an immensely wide lowland recruitment area (c. 3 million km2) through which species have been funneled due to changing climates up and down these valleys over several million years and contributed greatly to its overall species richness. Similarly, the upper catchments of these rivers diverge over a huge area of the Tibetan Plateau forming the largest alpine recruitment area of any site on earth.

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The overall moistness caused by the monsoon climates have ensured that most species have survived, many new forms evolved and few lost during the Pleistocene reversals (Pleistocene refuge). The steep land relief has meant that widely differing habitats for both plants and animals are found in close proximity to each other allowing close packing of species and ease of adaptation in the face of changing climate. The dynamic nature of the geology with regular earthquakes, continually opens up new slopes for colonization by new species. The repeated cross section of high ridges and deep gorges has the effect that the warm gorges form barriers for the spread of montane adapted species, whilst the high mountains form barriers for lowland species. The fastflowing rivers themselves from barriers for many nonvolant, weak swimming species. Moreover, sharp moisture gradients form yet additional barriers to some species. The main river valleys form dry rain shadows and supported a savannah vegetation – a barrier to humid forest species. Some ridges sport lush cloud forests on one side but arid meadows on the other. The narrowness of the zones has resulted in existence of small isolated populations of many species which is an ideal requirement for high levels of local speciation and radiation which has given the region its high numbers of endemic forms.

The net effect is a unique and fascinating mosaic of differential species distributions, exemplified in the lowlands by the primates. Nepal Grey langur is confined to the west side of Dulong river. The Hoolock gibbon lives only to the west of the Nujiang, together with Shortridge’s langur and further south the White-handed gibbon. Phayre’s langur lives only in the Nujiang valley but on both sides of the river.

Napahai Lake, Shangrila

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Yunnan Snub-nosed monkeys are only found between the Nujiang and the Yangtze. Pygmy loris is found only on the east of the Lancang river.

The Gaoligong mountain chain that delineated the Myanmar border to the west of the Nujiang are home to many endemic forms found nowhere else in the world – Gongshan muntjac, Gaoligong pika and Inquisitive Shrew-mole Uropsilus investigator to name but a few.

On the mountain ridges we find many different species in similar habitats on opposite sides of the great gorges. 200 species of rhododendrons are found in the site with a different species mix on either side of each ridge.

There is really no comparable site on earth that forms such as extraordinary study in species distribution and a unique example of evolutionary and ecological processes in action. It is this spread of examples rather than the variety of ecosystems or numbers of rare species that is essential to preserve and in this respect, it is connections north south along the parallel valleys and ridges rather than connectivity laterally across the gorges that needs to be conserved.

Yak runs home through the snow

New threats emerge with growing tourism, road construction, mining operations and plans to dam the major rivers to tap the huge reserves of hydropower. All are needed to allow the region to develop and modernize but all could threaten the unique natural values of the region.

Above: Tiger-leaping Gorge with Yulong Xueshan Below: Rafting down the Deqin gorges.

The ECBP project works both with local government, the park bureau, academic institutes and particularly with local communities to find a sensible balance. The project has been subsidising solar water heaters to reduce the dependence on cut firewood for heating purposes. The project works to help develop alternate ‘green’ livelihoods such as homestay ecotourism and trekking and the production of high value products such as honey and morel mushrooms.

TNC consultants have recently completed a management plan for Laojunshan, following considerable survey, and planning in collaboration with staff of Yunnan Forestry Bureau. The unit has been gazetted as a full NR. This management plan has already been approved by Yunnan provincial government.

These developments warrant some minor refinement to the boundaries of the WH site. The core areas have been linked, buffer zones extended and two small heavily occupied residential zones excluded.

The site has even been declared a provincial national park.

By supporting the work of TNC in two of the sub-sites of the World heritage Site ECBP is helping to preserve this incredible biodiversity hotspot. But despite being mostly protected the job is far from easy. This is an autonomous region with many ethnic minorities involved – Tibetans, Naxi, Lisu, Yi, Dulong, Mosuo, Kangba, Nu, and Pumi. Each have their own religious beliefs, styles of clothing and housing and special festivals and customs. Dulong women wear tattoos on their faces, Lisu stage elaborate bullfights, Mosuo are matriarchal, Tibetans deeply religious. All have used the mountains freely for centuries so applying strict protection criteria can lead to conflicts of interest.

Herders want to keep open alpine meadows for grazing their yaks and horses in summer. They do not welcome bears and

The road from Shangrila drops down into the dry valley of the Changjiang river. Changes in microhabitat are stark. In one valley the vegetation is lush and warm enough to support even palm trees and round the next border we find a rain shadow where there is no forest, only dry grassy savannah with sparse scrub. Prickly pear cacti grow like an in an American desert. Indeed this is not a species native to Asia but finds great habitat here and spreads unchecked as one of a growing number of alien invasive species.

We end our journey with a relaxing trip through a steep gorge rafting down the clear clean tributary, past lazing yaks and donkeys to a newly developed tourism hotel where we drink salted butter tea and eat traditional Tibetan cuisine to the sound of local music. White liquor flows agreeably. Tomorrow we head back towards Beijing – a different planet.

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Dry savannah valleys of Deqin

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EU-China Biodiversity Programme Add: Rm.501-504, FECO Plaza, Huoyingfang Hutong, Xicheng District, Beijing 100035, P.R. China Fax: (8610) 82200541 Email: info@ecbp.cn