As one of the first five national parks announced in 2021, the Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park spans an area of over 1.41 million hectares in the provinces of Jilin and Heilongjiang.

Lying in the heart of Asia's temperate conifer and broad-leaved mixed forest ecosystem, the national park is rich in temperate forest plant species like oak, beech and pine. The vast region provides a rich biodiversity environment for the species here, such as Siberian tiger and Amur leopards.

The Siberian tiger, a subspecies of tiger, is the largest wild cat in the world. Also known as the Amur tiger, the Siberian tiger resides in a small region in southeastern Russia, China and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. It is under China's national first-class protection. The species' population has been in rapid decline due to human activity and forest destruction. The population survey from 1998 to 1999 suggests that there were only 12 to 16 Siberian tigers in China.

The same thing happened to the Amur leopards, species under China's national first-class protection. According to the population survey from 1998 to 1999, there were only 7 to 12 Amur leopards in China at that time.

However, with the implementation of the natural forest protection project, the establishment of nature reserves and the all-out ban on hunting, their habitat environment got better, and more Siberian tigers and Amur leopards have been seen in the region. The latest data shows that the population of wild Siberian tigers in the park has exceeded 50, while the figure was 27 around five years ago. And the number of Amur leopards has increased from 42 in 2017 to more than 60.

Also, the Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park and Russia's Land of the Leopard national park signed a three-year cooperative action plan in 2019 to beef up cooperation in the protection of Siberian tigers and Amur leopards.

It is a comfortable place to live for the sika deer and Siberian roe deer, but it is also fraught with danger. The Siberian tigers and the Amur leopards are waiting for them, ready to pounce. However, they have their own skills, making it not so easy to be caught.

The sika deer which are under China's national first-class protection, have developed senses of hearing and smell and they live in groups and are good at running.

The Siberian roe deer, under China's national second-class protection, mainly live in the forest areas. Although many predators such as tigers, bears, leopards can threaten their survival, lush forests provide good protection for them.

The Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park as one of the national parks in China provides a suitable habitat for wild animals, which is critical for ecology and biodiversity conservation.

(Images designed by CGTN's Yu Peng)

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