Ailao Mountain in SW China’s Yunnan: treasure trove for biodiversity

The Ailao Mountain National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Yunnan Province, the largest premitive mid-montane moist evergreen broad-leaved forest in the country, boasts a valuable gene pool and represents a treasure trove of biodiversity.

The reserve has a forest coverage ratio of 85.1 percent and its highest altitude rises to 3,165.9 meters above sea-level, serving as a north-south corridor for migratory wildlife. The diversified climatic zones distributed vertically throughout the reserve determine the vertical distribution of biomass.

Ailao Mountain, known as an "emerald" embedded in the crown of the plant kingdom, is home to 14 key plant species under state protection. It also provides a habitat for 20 key wild animal species under state protection, including black bears, stump-tailed macaques, green peafowls, and western black crested gibbons.

It is listed as a forest ecosystem observation station of UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB).