Traveling in the National Park丨The "Sky-ground" of the World's Third Pole Builds Smart Three-River Source

Editor’s Note

Recently, my country officially established the first batch of national parks, including Sanjiangyuan, Giant Panda, Siberian Tiger and Leopard, Hainan Tropical Rainforest, and Wuyi Mountain.

The first batch of national parks involve 10 provinces, namely Qinghai, Tibet, Sichuan, Shaanxi, Gansu, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Hainan, Fujian and Jiangxi, all of which are located in key areas of my country's ecological security strategic pattern. The protected area is 230,000 square kilometers, covering nearly 30% of the terrestrial national key protected wild animal and plant species.

The first five national parks are representative and unique, fully reflecting my country's concept of national parks, which is "ecological protection first, national representativeness, and public welfare for all". The construction and development of national parks, which integrate biodiversity such as mountains, water, forests, grass, lakes, seas, animals and plants, cannot be separated from the support of strong scientific and technological forces. Various scientific and technological means such as high-definition night vision gimbals, far-infrared monitoring cameras, spectral sample analysis instruments, remote sensing monitoring, satellite communications, and big data centers provide new technologies and methods for further understanding the "family background" of national parks and exploring new heights of ecological civilization in my country; new technological developments such as AI and cloud technology provide new opportunities for the protection of wild animals, including giant pandas. In addition, it also means the arrival of new opportunities and challenges for national parks.

This newspaper has planned and launched a series of reports titled "Traveling in National Parks Online", taking stock of the "technological elements" in national parks, aiming to show in three dimensions that national parks are "seen from the sky, checked on the ground, and managed online", and to inject technological momentum into the current and future development of "smart" national parks.

◎ Science and Technology Daily reporter Zhang Yun

In early December, a rare scene of a white-lipped deer and a snow leopard "confronting" in Sanjiangyuan National Park was completely recorded by an infrared camera. Other animals "specially invited to appear" in the scene include wolves, foxes, musk deer, weasels, and stoats.

If wild animals could talk, they would probably be depressed. They would be "mysteriously monitored" in public when they go out to forage, fight with friends, go on family outings, or have children together...

The domineering snow leopard, the mysterious desert cat, the adorable Tibetan fox, the agile Tibetan antelope and other animals are not even aware that they have "gone viral" and become Internet celebrities with many fans under the perspective of human technology.

Image provided by Qinghai Provincial Department of Science and Technology

Speaking of "Sanjiangyuan", vast snow-capped mountains, mysterious snow leopards and the source of rivers come into view. Not only that, in Sanjiangyuan National Park, "black technology" from "the sky to the ground" can be seen everywhere, making this national park with a strong "technological style" frequently appear in TV news, mobile phone live broadcasts, and remote images. The three-dimensional and multi-dimensional Sanjiangyuan is right before our eyes.

This is a vivid manifestation of the Sanjiangyuan National Park's full use of technological elements to create a "smart park" and protect the "Chinese Water Tower" to benefit China.

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On May 18, 2021, a reporter used a drone to capture the Tibetan antelope in the Hoh Xil Nature Reserve in the Yangtze River Source Park of Sanjiangyuan National Park. Photographed and produced by Zhang Yun, a reporter from Science and Technology Daily

“See” a different Sanjiangyuan

The "leader" among the first batch of national parks, Sanjiangyuan National Park, known as the "world's third largest national park", has rich experience in piloting the national park system, which has laid a solid foundation for Sanjiangyuan National Park to serve as a pioneer and a testing ground, and to provide the "Qinghai Plan" and "Qinghai Experience". At the same time, scientific and technological park construction is also the most effective way for Sanjiangyuan National Park to exercise ecological protection.

In addition to the well-known "Chinese Water Tower" and wild animals, Sanjiangyuan is also the most significant area of ​​biodiversity in the world's high-altitude areas, and an important ecological and species treasure house on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Monitoring shows that the endangered species snow leopard frequently appears in Sanjiangyuan, and the population has exceeded 1,000, which is recognized by the global academic community as one of the most densely distributed areas of snow leopards in the world; the number of Tibetan antelope individuals has recovered from more than 20,000 in the 1990s to more than 70,000 today. In addition, rare and endangered species such as the Eurasian otter and the leopard have been discovered in the Sanjiangyuan area, and rare species such as the black wolf have been monitored in the Yellow River Source Park.

Image provided by Qinghai Provincial Department of Science and Technology

With its changeable climate, swamps, steep mountains and sparsely populated areas, it is hard to imagine how to monitor the number of wild animal populations, grasp environmental indicators, and changes in plant and soil background data without the application of "sky-to-earth" technology in the Sanjiangyuan area with an area of ​​123,100 square kilometers.

Recently, on the ecological big data screen of the Sanjiangyuan National Park Administration, live videos and data icons of the park's wildlife communities, progress of ecological construction projects, changes in lake area, rainfall statistics, etc. were displayed one by one.

Behind the real-time grasp of the latest developments and changes in national parks is the strong support of the "sky-ground integrated" ecological monitoring network system. "Sky" refers to satellite remote sensing monitoring, "air" refers to real-time video monitoring and drone aerial remote sensing monitoring, and "ground" refers to thousands of ground monitoring stations, which realize multi-dimensional, data-based, precise monitoring and research and evaluation of key areas and ecological status.

Every May, the spectacular scene of Tibetan antelope migration can be seen clearly on the big screen of "Qinghai Ecological Window". The remote high-definition video monitoring and display interpretation system of "Qinghai Ecological Window" conducts real-time and accurate observation, monitoring, research and evaluation of ecological types, natural landscapes, wildlife, biodiversity, etc. in typical areas of Qinghai Province. According to the relevant person in charge of the Qinghai Provincial Department of Ecology and Environment, the high-end camera equipment system of "Qinghai Ecological Window" can achieve 360-degree continuous rotation, the farthest observation distance at night can reach 3 kilometers, and the video content can be saved for 8 to 10 years. As of 2020, the system has built a total of 46 observation points.

The 2020 winter Hoh Xil expedition used helicopters for the first time to detect large animals, water resources, and other ground remote sensing parameters. The helicopter was installing and debugging the photoelectric ball, hyperspectral, and polarized light cameras in the Wudaoliang area. Photo by Zhao Xinquan

At present, the "Qinghai Ecological Window" has initially covered Qinghai's five major ecological blocks, including the Sanjiangyuan area, Qilian Mountains area, and the area around Qinghai Lake.

It is worth mentioning that all herders in Sanjiangyuan National Park participate in the protection work as "park keepers". At present, there are more than 500 herders in the Sanjiangyuan area who use infrared camera technology and line sampling methods to conduct long-term monitoring of wild animals. This innovative scientific monitoring mechanism is combined with the ecological protection post policy of Sanjiangyuan National Park to effectively and continuously record the biodiversity and changes in Sanjiangyuan, providing valuable data and basis for scientific research and evaluation of protection results.

Satellites, tethered balls, national parks are full of "intelligence"

"Integrated sky-ground monitoring" is only one of the ways to monitor and protect the Sanjiangyuan area. In-depth scientific research and investigation are more urgent. To this end, in September 2018, the Chinese Academy of Sciences Sanjiangyuan National Park Research Institute, jointly established by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Qinghai Province, was established. The establishment of the institute is a pioneering initiative. This institute, which was established specifically for "researching national parks", aims to gather strong scientific research forces and cooperate with relevant research institutions at home and abroad to carry out research on biodiversity conservation and other aspects.

Since the establishment of the Sanjiangyuan National Park Research Institute, Qinghai provincial science and technology special funds have been used to support the Sanjiangyuan National Park Research Institute with 56.925 million yuan. On December 24, Zhang Yan, director of the Social Development and Science and Technology Department of the Qinghai Provincial Science and Technology Department, told reporters that in recent years, a number of science and technology projects and research have been implemented in the Sanjiangyuan National Park area, which has effectively enhanced the ecological civilization construction, overall monitoring level and people's livelihood harmony in the Sanjiangyuan area.

Photo of the scientific survey of the Three Rivers Source. Photo courtesy of the Qinghai Provincial Department of Science and Technology

Over the past few years, the department has approved major provincial science and technology projects to support the "Construction and Development of an Integrated Sky-Ground Ecological Monitoring and Data Platform for Sanjiangyuan National Park" and "Protection and Application of Representative Animal Genetic Resources in the Sanjiangyuan Region". Key R&D plans have also been approved to support projects such as "Precise Remote Sensing Monitoring and Application of Grassland Productivity and Large Herbivores in Sanjiangyuan National Park".

The projects have been implemented one after another, and they have achieved results. Zhang Yan introduced that the science and technology project has completed the sequencing and assembly of high-quality reference genomes of representative animals such as snow leopards, Tibetan wild donkeys, white-lipped deer, wild yaks, blue sheep, northern goats, and Tibetan gazelles in the Sanjiangyuan area, and established a gene database of ungulates in the Sanjiangyuan area. At the same time, innovative development of large-scale wild herbivore population survey technology based on the combination of UAV remote sensing monitoring + satellite positioning tracking + automatic infrared camera shooting + ground sample strip survey, the first aerial remote sensing monitoring of wild animals and livestock interpretation sign library, etc., provides data support and comprehensive decision-making basis for ecological monitoring, environmental protection, and sustainable development of regional suitable animal husbandry in the Sanjiangyuan National Park.

Just this year, the "Sanjiangyuan National Park Starry Sky and Land Integrated Ecological Monitoring and Data Platform Construction and Development and Application" project achieved phased results.

The "Construction and Development and Application of Integrated Space, Air and Ground Ecological Monitoring and Data Platform for Sanjiangyuan National Park" project was the first to apply helicopter and tethered ball aerial monitoring platforms in Sanjiangyuan National Park to carry out comprehensive monitoring of key areas such as Hoh Xil and Lechi Grassland. The implementation of the special project has significantly improved the acquisition and management of ecological monitoring data, data product development and sharing efficiency, and decision-making service level in Sanjiangyuan National Park.

The tethered ball of the space-ground integration project. Photo courtesy of the Science and Technology Department of Qinghai Province

Today, Sanjiangyuan has become one of the few national parks in the world that has taken the lead in integrating and applying new technologies such as 5G communications, satellite remote sensing, and big data. It will also build an information data platform to serve ecological monitoring and scientific research for national parks around the world, providing useful exploration and reference.

Not only that, Ren Yong, director of the Ecology Department of the Qinghai Provincial Department of Ecology and Environment, said that with the improvement of scientific and technological management methods and the change of public awareness of ecological and environmental protection, the picture of harmonious coexistence between man and nature is being accelerated.

"According to the results of research and observation by various institutions in various protected areas, there are two main characteristics. One is that the number of wild animal populations is increasing, and the other is that the range of their activities is expanding. For example, snow leopards were only observed in local areas of Sanjiangyuan in the past, but now their range and traces of activities have been found in most counties in Qinghai," said Ren Yong.

"After the establishment of the national park, there are more and more wild animals, the lake area is expanding, the ecological environment is getting better, and our 'home' is becoming more and more beautiful." The changes in his home have made Sanjiangyuan herder Cairang Dajie feel deeply moved. Thanks to the multi-dimensional popularization of science by government departments, non-profit organizations, and private environmentalists, more and more Sanjiangyuan herders now believe that protecting Sanjiangyuan National Park is protecting their own home.

Image provided by Qinghai Provincial Department of Science and Technology

It is the right time to build and protect national parks with science. As Chen Xu, Party Secretary of Tsinghua University, said: "It is our unshirkable social responsibility and contemporary responsibility for scientific researchers to contribute their intelligence to the construction of national parks, popularize natural education knowledge for the public, and convey the concept of national park protection to the whole society."

Source: Science and Technology Daily

Editor: Wang Yu

Reviewer: Wang Xiaolong

Final judge: He Yi