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WILDLIFE SURVEY BY WONG HOWMAN AND BILL BLEISCH

BILL BLEISCH'S FIELD JOURNAL

CHINA EXPLORATION AND RESEARCH SOCIETY

August 1, 1988: Leave Chengdu, Sichuan. Howman Wong, Peirre Odier, Ahrin Mishan, Chen Li and Bill Bleisch in party. Travel up through Jiarung Tibetan areas into area of Amdo nomads. After Lichun, more and more forest on slopes (Cunninghamia ?) until we come to treeline and the plateau itself. By the town of Hong Yuan, the land is level steppe with scattered small hills. Large yak herds and heavy grazing. Terrific wild flowers. Much bird life in contrast to Han Chinese areas. Owl, terns, wagtails.

8/4: In Aba Prefecture, Amdo region. Camp near monastery of Ton Ke, at confluence of Bai He and Huang He (Yellow River) on right bank of the Huang Jiang at about 12500 feet. More than 30 species of wildflowers blooming in a few square meters. Marmots, small ground owl, small rodents. Many terns fishing in river.

8/5-6: Move camp 10 km overland to small 100 ha lake with small island where 20 to 25 common terns are roosting. Also several small shorebirds, about 23 ruddy shelducks, including 2 with 4 young, 1 common merganser with 2 large young, 36 small diving ducks, 2 coots, 14 large all-gray geese, 2 with 4 goslings, 12 geese with white tails (Graylags?). On island, found 2 ruddy duck nests, with 2 and 4 eggs, one just hatching. 1 young dowitcher-like bird, 1 tern nest with 2 eggs. Lake is surrounded by dune fields and grassy hills.

8/7: On road from Ton Ke in SiChuan to Ma Chu in Gansu Province. In Zorgei market, Muslim merchant selling leopard skin for 500 yuan, battered tiger skin for 2500 yuan. Saw 10 Tibetans with full leopard skins worked into their outer coats. Many others have fur trim or fake leopard. Also 2 coats with otter trim.

Crossed Min Shan range to reach Lamasu. Here, some forest on slopes, especially above the town itself. Camp just outside of Lamasu on road to Ma Chu at 1400 foot pass. Bare cliffs surrounding.

8/8: Climb to small cave in cliff overlooking road from Lamasu to Ma Chu at top of pass just outside of Lamasu. Surrounding area devoid of trees, probably the result of deforestation. Outside entrance, small sheep-like pellets. Inside, entrance entirely covered in tiny pellets, up to one foot deep. On left-hand side of entrance (facing out) small pile of cat-like scat, very old and dry. Mostly fungus, but some hair. Lynx?, leopard?, once? Returning, flush flock of small partridge. Vultures circling on thermals overhead.

Interview with Gong Tung Sang Rinpoche at Yashi Gompa. He does not think Tibet needs to worry about the kind of environmental pollution found in eastern China. Supports efforts to settle nomads in towns, which would allow them to send children to school and to improve their life-style. Reports a few cranes to the south near Mar Ma on the Huang He.

8/9-11: Driving from Ma Chu south to Yashi Gompa, 10 pikas and 4 hares crossed path. Small wildlife seems very abundant in this area.

8/12: "On road back Yashi Gompa to Ma Chu. Last night a big rain and puddles everywhere. This morning, 20 minutes from monastery, two (black-necked) cranes on left (Ahrin spotted them). Black necks and heads, buff body, black tails, gray legs. We [HW and BB] move closer on parallel track, they strut, in step, up the hill on parallel course. Two Tibetans ride by on our course; cranes and Tibetans apparently not caring about each other. A second pair call below us about one half kilometer for about 30 seconds. We check them out [with binoculars and camera] as first pair continues up hill and over crest. Others below on road see them fly off from beyond crest. Total contact time about 10 minutes." This was our only sighting of cranes on the plateau.

8/12: Yashi Gompa. Festival in honor of Gong Tung Sang rinpoche, followed by lab-dza ritual (see description above).

8/13: Camp at small lake (labeled Mo Cho Gan on 500,000 map Aba) in SiChuan, offroad from Gansu - Lamasu road. About 102.5o X 34.0 o. Many waterbirds including gull with black head and wingtips, gray wings, white body, black feet and red bill. 19 coots rest near camp. Major dig out of car.

8/14: Lamasu on Sichuan side of border. Hike up past Hui mosque, woman's temple and oracle temple with hanging guns and spectacular animal murals, panels depicting ibex, deer, wild yak, wild sheep, elephants, peacocks, pandas, ape-like monkeys, pheasant, bear and many tigers. Four old guns hang from beams, donated by men who have renounced killing.

From oracle up along stream into forested gorge. On left of stream, good forest, on right, few trees. Stream arises from spring just beyond the "Tiger's cave" on the left and "Goddesses cave" on right. (Hence the name, Taksan Lhamo, meaning Tiger-Goddess). Small lab-dza in front of spring with large painted arrows stuck in ground and festooned with prayer flags. Here, see pair of catbird-like black birds with powder-white crown and red tail with black tip which it spreads repeatedly. River Redstart. Head up slope behind noisy group of six Han Chinese tourists, through denuded slope with much thorny hawthorn. Also gooseberry, juniper and wildflowers. At 13:29, still climbing slope, see six large eagles circling above. Call like a red-tail hawk. Climb into forest. Two kinds of fir, ground cover of Rubus, large-leafed rhododendron, doubly-dissected fern, grasses, sphagnum. Very moist on forest floor. At 1160 feet, large trees give way to smaller trees of less than 30 cm d.b.h. Some large windthrows. This gives way to dense rhododendron. Timberline at 12,200 feet and top at 12,500, where banners had been planted. From here, can see that this is one of only two groves of trees for miles around. This grove maybe 200-300 ha, continuing east from peak for about one kilometer. Met two young Tibetans collecting strawberries, Mo-Er fungus and other mushrooms. Later met Hui Chinese man with 5 small girls all out collecting mushrooms. At 18:20, over 22 eagles or Buteos circling overhead calling. Photograph one roosting in low tree. Also a few vultures.

Much timber being cut on eastern slope at lowest end. Lots of lumber being sawn at mills in Lamasu, probably for reconstruction of monasteries and mosque. Is it all from this forest? Yesterday saw several lumber trucks arriving in town fully loaded.

8/15: On road from Lamasu to Te Bu, following Bai Long Jiang downstream. On right bank, mostly forest, with tall fir and poplar. Te Bu Spotted Deer Natural Protected Area is on right bank. Camp about 5 km upstream from town of Te Bu. Apparent timber poaching operation last night. 17:50 to 20:50, walked one kilometer transect on dense logging track; heard bark of one deer. Much logging going on in this reserve. 1988 report claims there are about 2,000 spotted deer in reserve.

8/16: Returning to plateau from Te Bu, upstream beside Bai Long Jiang, lots of forest on some slopes. In general, as we head up, more fir and less poplar. About 1 km outside of town of Hong Xing, steep red cliffs on right bank of river with many crow, eagles and swallows.

In Hong Xing, one entire leopard skin in excellent condition costs 1,000 yuan. This would be enough for three strips of trim for Tibetan coat. Four whole otter pelts for sale, 500 yuan each. Back in Zorgei, Hui merchant has 5 otter skins at 600 yuan each and 1 leopard foreparts and one fox skin for 80 yuan each.

8/17: Leaving Zorgei, worker claims there is breeding program for black-necked crane north of Zorgei. Unable to confirm this. Heading south on road to Se Di upstream along river. Meet semi-nomad family ("not soil, not pasture"), where patriarch is avid hunter. Has shot bear, deer, musk deer, wild goat, pan yang (blue sheep), leopard, etc. Last year shot pan yang above the Jiu Zai Go Park, north of Liang He Ko. Says animals which are sold, such as musk deer, bear and leopard are all scarce now, while deer and wild goat are common on the left bank of this river and pan yang are common in the mountains. Deer can be found 10 km east of this road in the forests. Hunts on foot, on horseback, all year around.

8/18: Camp above Liang He Ko where there is a commune which formerly ran a deer farm for the mei hua lu or spotted deer (Cervus nippon szechuanensis). Formerly had herd of about 100, but all released in 1985. Deer still live on slopes above commune. 6:55 to 10:38, transect of about 4 km. Saw single deer, a yearling male, suggesting maybe on the order of 5 deer per square km. Habitat a mosaic of forest on north slopes and chaparral on south slopes in this southerly valley of about 40 square km total.

8/19: Jiu Zai Go Scenic area, a Chinese version of a national park. At least 500 tourists here, mostly Hong Kong Chinese. Westerners pay 5.30 yuan foreign exchange currency entrance fee (about $1.50), Hong Kong tourists may pay less. Local Tibetan reports one panda regularly comes down to the tourist area each winter. Three large hotels within the park, two of them upstream of scenic lakes. One hotel apparently dumping raw waste water into scenic lakes.

8/20: On the trip to and from Liang He Ko from Hong Yuan, pass dozens of families of Songpan Tibetans who migrate each August from the valleys up onto the plateau to search for the beimo herb. By government decree, these people must return home by late August.

8/21: Unable to travel into Aba county, turn south to Barkam. Pass interesting black-sect monastery. Nearby, flocks of jackdaws, gold-billed magpies and wagtails.

8/22: Near town of Barkam, down out of plateau. Visit musk deer farm. Farm started in 1958 with 100 deer. Now have 600 musk deer total. Now no new purchases, all bred. 17-18 grams of musk are collected from each male per year, a total of more than 1 kilo produced each year. Worth 30,000 yuan per kilo. In 1981, a single musk pod was worth only 70-80 yuan; now worth ten times more. There may be three other farms in China with 1,100 deer total, all bred from the original 100. Most are lin zhang (Moschus berezonskii), but this farm also has two ma zhang (M. sifanicus).

Also have about 100 dog bears (Selenarctos thibetanus). Bought 70 young bears this year alone, paying hunters about 4,000 yuan for each. Bear gall is now worth 20,000 yuan per kilo. Using technique developed in Korea to intubate the gall, can now collect about 50 grams from seven bears each day. 1,000 to 2,000 bears in captivity for this project in Sichuan alone, all captive. Will attempt captive breeding starting this year.

8/23: Interview with Sun Zeming, Director of the Bureau of Science and Technology for Aba Prefecture. He is a Tibetan originally from Li Xian. An avid hunter and amateur naturalist.

This year he saw 12 black-necked cranes on road between Zorgei and Hong Xing and about 12 at Wa Chi. He is on the standing committee for Preservation, but has not heard about any crane breeding project in Aba Prefecture. There were plans for a grassland natural protected area for cranes to set up just north of Ton Ke on the river there.

White-lipped deer are found in grassland areas at Mo Bi Shan, and in Li Xian County at Sha Ba. Parrots found in Don Ba and Xiao Jing Counties. Blue sheep in herds of 100 are found at Ya Ko, near Hei Shui in Li Xian County on 5257 meter peak. Wild yak still there as well. Leopards once were common around Mo Wen. When he was in the army in 1964, local people asked them to come and shoot the leopards. Also described tales of enormous fish, a sea-serpent like animal in river and "ye ren" (wild man). Local people don't shoot cranes because of belief that if one of pair is killed, second dies soon after.

8/26: Chengdu. Interview with the scholar rinpoche Tuteneema. Why are certain areas protected from hunting? Some are protected by a neighboring monastery. Others are the domain of certain mountain gods, some of which are also lords of the hunt. The game and forest belong to these gods and may not be violated. Even mining the earth is a violation.

8/30: Tian Chuan, Forestry Office. Interview with Lin Wen Zhao about the La Ba He Takin Natural Protected Area. Reserve established 1963, the first in Sichuan. Road in is closed by landslide. Virgin forest on border between two counties. In addition to takin, locally called "ai nu" (cliff cow), also has deer, panda, pheasant ("kuan kuan ji"). Outside of the reserve, takin now rare in Sichuan. A few years ago, Tibetans were fined 1100 yuan for shooting takin. Some takin in Bao Xin panda reserve and in Fung Tung Tsai Natural Protected Area (two names for the same place?). La Ba He Reserve will have a protection station soon. Seven forestry personnel will be stationed there to do propaganda work and monitor. Have one jeep. Reserve is under control of central Ministry of Forestry, not provincial level. In August, Takin come down the mountain to eat salty soil and grass. In herds of 60 up to 100. Herds will run from men, but solitaries will stay put. Always up high during winter, after mid-8th moon. Births in March and April. Some Takin killed in fights, especially at salt licks. No estimate of total population size. Everyone waiting for report on Tang Jia He panda reserve to appear so that other reserve staff can follow its structure.

Re. Panda: Recently hunter killed a panda in Bao Xing Reserve and sold the skin. Sentenced to life term. Another got 10 year sentence. Name of Hong Kong buyer who put poachers up to it is known.

8/31: From Kanding over 1300 foot pass towards Minya Konka (Gonga Mountain, 7556 meters). Interview hunter. Lots of blue sheep on slopes of mountains. Many are shot there, especially near Qi Mi, two days on horse from town of Lu Ba. Lots of deer in forest below as well. Also brown and black bear, bai ma ji (white eared pheasant). Also small reddish "horse", about 120 jin (132 pounds), with sharp pointed horns. Called "shan l" in Chinese or jakala in Tibetan. Must be serow from description (also see Roosevelt and Roosevelt, 1929).

9/2: Take side road in to village of Lu Ba to the east, towards west face of Minya Konka. After several landslides, met two hunters from Jiu Long coming out from Lu Ba with heads of two blue sheep. Horns from tip to tip measure 60 and 73 cm. Both were males, larger about 155 lb. Claim that horns are worth about 100 yuan, since good for headaches. Shot them within one day of Lu Ba after six days of not seeing any.

Hear ratchet-like cry in woods, then spot group of three or more white eared pheasant about 50 meters from road. Slowly move off over ridge calling.

Party secretary of Lu Ba reports that blue sheep and serow are very common everywhere around here. Leopard are here but are rare. "Wild yak" is also here, but weighs only 660-7770 pounds. Claims local people hunt very little. They do not hunt serow much, since it is sacred to one of the gods. If you kill one, then your yaks will not breed.

9/3: Solitary survey on slopes south of Lu Ba, 6:20-17:42. Climb from 11,800 to 12,500 feet by my altimeter. Birch below, with fir forest above. Larch on ridge crest, mixed with meadows. Lots of sheep-like pellets on trails. Saw nine species of birds total.

9/4: Continue east by pack-horse from Lu Ba towards Minya Konka. Camp with Sa-Ma-aBrog herders (semi-nomads).

9/5: Pass old Tibetan with skin of blue sheep, probably one of same that hunters killed. Above treeline, spot single snow partridge. Reach pass above Qi Mi at 12:30, elevation 14,200 feet. I head on foot traversing southeast slope of valley below pass. On opposite ridge crest, tracks of solitary sheep-like animal in snow, 75mm long, 70 mm wide. Buzzed by flock of snow pigeons. Later see flock of ten or more at camp. Landed on scree slope and essentially disappeared into the background. Reach camp on trail below pass at 18:30. Packers now claim blue sheep not in this valley, but in next valley to the west.

9/6: Out at 7:00 and down towards Qi Mi. At 7:40, hear three or more barks and high squeal, then flush white eared pheasant. Settle in and at 9:30 hear barking and squeal again, now on left bank of stream. Cattle herders driving sheep up trail. Across river see two pheasant in Rhododendron trees and two more below them. After 5 minutes, they disappear into undergrowth.

Above the valley, rhododendron forest has been burned, probably to create pasture.

In village of Qi Mi, interview 23 year old Jie Dong, a Tibetan farmer and hunter. Reports that blue sheep are most common above the Konka Gomba monastery. Also common above yesterdays camp on both sides and on slopes on Minya Konka. Serow are also found in the high forest above the monastery. Large deer ("shan lu", mountain deer) are common on flat land to the south east from here, 5-6 hours walk from here. (On map, this shows as vast area, more than 400 square kilometers, with no villages or roads, including a 6079 meter peak rising from a 3200 meter valley.) Not allowed to hunt above monastery. Near Qi Mi, can hunt anything. Leopards are still found, but most are back near Lu Ba. Horns of "ye nu" (wild cow) are clearly takin. Placed above door frame. 60-70 people in Qi Mi and all the males hunt. They show us pelt of blue sheep and deer with white on rump (Cervus elaphus macneilli??). As in Lu Ba, reports that if a hunter kills a serow, then his yaks will not breed. The Han hunters do not understand this, but even they will not dare to hunt near the monastery. This is because of the "Doge lu dre", mountain goddess of Minya Konka.

Just this morning they caught a black bear. Paws are being salted, and will be sold for 50 yuan per jin (1.1 pounds). The gall is being smoked. It will sell for 1,000 yuan. Also smoking the head and the ribs. Tanning pelt.

9/8: Back to landcruiser. Road to Batang blocked by landslides and washouts into river. We travel south to Jiu Long over 13,800 foot pass. Extensive grassland, but no full-time nomads here.

Interview with Supervisor Kan in Jiu Long. Claims that "pan yang" are common around this pass. He shot some there two years ago. However, these pan yang have long white hair and curled horns and are larger than the blue "ai yang". Must be argali (Ovis ammon). Up until this point, hunters referred to blue sheep as "pan yang", not "ai yang". Travel in herds of 70.

Road from Jiu Long to North blocked by landslide. Now learn that road to south blocked, too. Only two months after it opened, it was dynamited by locals to keep out collectors of the valuable "zong yong", the mitsutake mushroom. Locals now have control of the market.

9/9: Still stuck in Jiu Long. Walk up to Ye Ren Gompa, the Wildman Monastery. Ye Ren is the local name for yeti. The Gompa is in a cave above a small village. Forest here is mix with much spruce and pine. On Liquidambar tree, found large green caterpillar curled asleep on underside of leaf. When disturbed, it shoots liquid out of multiple pores on side of body (spiracles?). Repeats this. Two old guns hang above altar at gompa, donated by hunters or fighters in repentance for taking life.

Interview with Chang Qing Ze Ren, an old Tibetan hunter of Jiu Long. He has hunted throughout this prefecture and beyond. Stopped hunting in 1984, but during cultural revolution, was criticized for hunting too much. Claims to only hunt animals on the run, "will not shoot them if they are asleep". Has hunted "pan yang", which are especially common at the pass between Jiu Long and Kan Ding counties over which we just came. Worked there as a road worker for many years. In the 1960's, during the famine, hunted to provide dried meat for people. Also has hunted wild yak in Jiu Long, especially abundant in Wen Ba ("near Liang Cha He"), even up to 1984. Has hunted deer. White-rumped deer and red deer. White-lipped deer are very rare, found only above forest, very high. Also knows of two kinds of musk deer, one in forest and one above treeline. (This is true.) Forest musk can be treed with dogs, which the Yi hunters use. Now rare in this area because of recent immigration of many Yi people. Highland musk deer heads for cliffs when disturbed. When hunting wild yak, must not shoot leader, since then the rest of the herd will go wild and attack anything. Must have very good gun to hunt yak, since very large. Leopard are found in this area, but very rare. White eared pheasant is common here, good eating. Higher up, find very colorful pheasant with red crown, very long tail, white body, female has short tail (Lady Amherst's Pheasant?, Chrysolophus amherstiae). Pandas common near a 5267 meter peak, Wan Nian Xue. One was especially large, tame, stole tsampa. Died last year, and there was an investigation to determine if it was poisoned. Concluded that it died of old age.

Other local people informed us that workers from an institute from Yunnan Province (the Primate Center in Jing Hong??) came to this area to buy macaques. Bought 500, but the local people asked them to take them all, since they are pests.

9/13: Finally arrive in Batang banks of Yangtze River. Left Jiu Long on 9/11, but slides had washed road into river. After almost losing landcruiser in a slide, we left it behind and walked out, then continued by truck. Over the pass from Kan Ding into Ya Jiang County, extremely heavy clear cutting of entire slopes. From town of Ya Jiang, climb to Li Tang, back up to grasslands and true nomads. Unlike trip around Zorgei, did not see a single eagle during the entire trip. Why? Migrated already, no roosting sites or heavy hunting? In 1985, HW saw nomad shoot down an eagle here. Pikas are extremely abundant along this road, especially in the west.

9/15: Town of Batang, famous for Tibetan culture, apples, walnuts, other fruit. Up and out of town at 7:10, heading east of town. Return at 18:25. Vegetation is dry thorn scrub, similar to Californian chaparral. Walk up to mountain through birches to spruce forest and cliff face above 10,800 feet. Saw seven species of birds total, including "wild chicken" (partridge). Also two scats, both cat-like, one filled with small rodent bones and hair.

Local people say that parrots are common here in July down near the Yangtze River, where they come to eat the cultivated almonds.

9/18: Pick up landcruiser at town of Sa Dei. Give lift to local man from Ji J village, part of Sa Dei commune. He claims this village is four days from Sa Dei by horse. Area has leopard, deer, pan yang, many parrots, lots of wildlife and few hunters. Next time.