East China's Anhui Province plans to designate 50 nature reserves by the year 2010, covering a combined area of more than 406,000 hectares.

This will bring the province's total number of nature reserves to 71, and their aggregated area will account for nearly five percent of the province's area, sources said.

Anhui's nature reserves have contributed to the protection of wild animals and local forests, and the number of wild animals under key protection has been increasing, sources added.

Nature reserves will be added in the densely populated Wannan and Dabie mountainous areas in this decade, and the province will also take measures to protect the rare and endangered animals in the province.