China's Tibet Autonomous Region, known as the Roof of the World, has stepped up efforts to protect wild animals in recent years.

Police from Tibet's forestry department handled 262 cases involving smuggling and poaching of wild animals last year, arresting nine people and fining 365 others. Money and goods confiscated by police were valued at 12.65 million yuan.

The Qiangtang Nature Reserve in northern Tibet ranked the first in the country in the number of wild animals in 1999. The cases of poaching and smuggling of Tibetan antelope and other wild animals have been on the rise in the past few years.

To curb the trend, 17 temporary and regular patrol stations were set up in the nature reserve.