A grown black muntjac, an endangered species of the deer family, has been caught on camera in a nature reserve in east China's Jiangxi Province.

This was the first time a wild black muntjac was captured on camera in the nature reserve in Fuliang County, Jingdezhen City.

Footage of the camera showed the black muntjac making a beeline at the camera video and then pausing in front of it for a long time seemingly noticing the camera's existence.

The endangered deer species is under first-class protection in China. It has a sparse population of less than 6,000 usually in mountainous areas at an altitude of about 1,000 meters.

Although Fuliang County is traditionally a habitat for black muntjacs, the animal used to disappear for a long time in the region due to the deteriorated environment. 

"Jingdezhen started to build a nature reserve for black muntjacs in 2002. The discovery of this black muntjac fully demonstrates that our conservation efforts have paid off and the eco-environment of Jingdezhen has been improved," said Lyu Linglang, deputy director of the Jingdezhen Municipal Forestry Bureau.

(Cover image from a screenshot of the camera, modified by CGTN's Li Yueyun.)

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