Endangered forest musk deer spotted in Guiyang

During a recent biodiversity survey in Guiyang, researchers from the College of Forestry and the Research Center for Biodiversity and Nature Conservation at Guizhou University captured images of forest musk deer, a national first-class protected wild animal in China, using infrared cameras in the suburban Huaxi area.

A forest musk deer is captured by an infrared camera in Guiyang. [Photo/ddcpc website]

This marks the second time Guiyang has recorded this endangered species, following a previous sighting in the Ahahu National Wetland Park in 2021.

Yang Guangmei, a doctoral student at the Research Center for Biodiversity and Nature Conservation at Guizhou University, said that forest musk deer are rarely found in Guizhou province and typically appear only in national nature reserves with excellent ecological conditions.

Yang explained that forest musk deer are naturally timid and secretive, with extremely high demands for undisturbed, pristine habitats. The discovery of one in the suburban forests near Huaxi suggests that a relic wild population may have survived in the area's large patches of woodland amid urbanization.

This discovery is a strong indication that Guiyang – known as the forest city – has steadily increased its ecological capacity and improved its environment.