The Return of the Elk After 40 Years, No More Worries About Extinction of Elk in China – The Beijing News

On August 24th, within the protection zone of the Nanhaizi Elk Park in Beijing, dozens of elk surrounded a water source. Some of them were large, some small, either grazing on grass or lying down with their eyes fixed on you. For them, today was a special day. 40 years ago, their ‘ancestors’ (20 elk) returned from the UK to China, settling in the Nanhaizi Elk Park in Beijing, marking the beginning of the revival of elk population in China. Through the relentless efforts of researchers, China’s elk population has grown from the initial 77 to over 14,000. They now reside in 95 protected areas across 26 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions, fully covering their original ancient distribution. Bai Jiade, Director of the Beijing Elk Ecological Experiment Center, stated in an interview with The Beijing News that elk conservation…