Scientific surveys on Qinghai-Xizang Plateau uncover more than 3,000 new species

China's second scientific expedition and research project on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau has unveiled a series of significant findings, providing scientific support for the ecological security of the plateau.

The Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, known as the "roof of the world" and Asia's "water tower," is China's most crucial ecological security barrier and a strategic resource reserve, playing a vital role in water, ecological, climate and environmental security globally.

Since the scientific expedition was launched in August 2017, teams comprising more than 7,000 researchers have continuously conducted comprehensive surveys across 19 key areas.

The expedition team has established a classification system for the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau ecosystem based on the integration of remote-sensing technology and ground surveys, contributing greatly to the analysis of changes in the ecosystem and biodiversity of the plateau.

Researchers have completed a 1:500,000 grassland vegetation map, a 1:500,000 soil map of the plateau and a distribution map of the alpine tree line spanning 2,400 kilometers across the Himalayas.

"These maps reveal the spatial pattern and dynamic changes of the ecosystem, and improve our assessment of ecosystem quality and its service functions," said Ouyang Zhiyun, a researcher at the Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The maps also support the formulation of biodiversity conservation strategies and the overall layout planning for national parks on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau.

The expedition team has also conducted extensive field investigations in vulnerable and critical areas on the plateau, leading to a series of new discoveries in biodiversity. It has published its findings of over 3,000 new species, including 205 new animal species, 388 new plant species and 2,593 new microbial species.

Plants once thought to be extinct, such as Lilium medogense and Meconopsis smithiana, have been found in the scientific expedition. Rare animals like the snow leopard, clouded leopard and Bengal tiger have also been frequently captured on camera.

The local government in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region has designated over 600,000 square kilometers of its land as ecological conservation red lines, accounting for more than 50 percent of the region's total land area.

Xizang has 47 nature reserves of various types and levels, covering a total area of 412,200 square kilometers. Its area of ecologically functional land, including forests, grasslands, wetlands and water bodies, has increased to 1.08 million square kilometers.

(With input from Xinhua)