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China to Help Chinese Alligators Return to Wild
China has decided to restore the wild population of Chinese alligators, with the hope to helping the endangered species to maintain viability in the wild, according to a recent symposium on alligator protection held here.
The International Symposium on Chinese Alligators' Protection and Returning to Nature, has framed the protection of the rare reptiles in two ways: to safeguard the existing wild population while releasing the captive alligators in the wild.
The wild zones chosen as the reserves for their wild existence are mainly concentrated in east China's Anhui, Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces and Shanghai.
Zoological experts attending the symposium agreed that the natural habitat of Chinese alligators must be recovered or restored.
Chinese alligators, a species as rare as giant pandas and enjoying top state protection in China, were once on the brink of extinction due to the shrinking and deterioration of their habitat.
To save this rare species, China has intensified its efforts to develop its breeding technology since the 1980s. The total number of Chinese alligators bred in captivity has climbed to over 10,000, making the reptiles safe from extinction.
However, experts at home and abroad insist that only by releasing the Chinese alligators back to nature can people coexist with them on earth.
The returning project, which is also supported by the World Conservation Union (IUCN), is aimed at turning China's efforts from captive breeding towards returning alligators to nature and protecting the existing wild alligators.
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