Advances in conservation research of large- and medium-sized terrestrial mammals in China

doi:10.16829/j.slxb.151101

Abstract

Abstract: As one of the world’s most biodiverse countries, China is home to more than 700 mammal species, including flagship species such as giant pandas, snow leopards, snub-nosed monkeys, and Tibetan antelopes. However, exacerbated by climate change and expanding human activities, many large- and medium-sized mammals face severe survival threats, necessitating systematic conservation research. In recent decades, with continuous advancements in research methodologies and technologies, Chinese scientists have achieved a series of groundbreaking research outcomes in mammalian conservation, providing critical foundations for developing scientific management and protection strategies. This paper systematically reviews research progress in the conservation of China’s large- and medium-sized terrestrial mammals from 2010 to 2025, covering aspects such as behavioral and physiological adaptations, population dynamics and species coexistence mechanisms, gut microbiota-host co-adaptation, disease prevention and control, and genetic and adaptive evolution. Looking ahead, it is essential to strengthen research on holistic ecosystem conservation, promote interdisciplinary integration, and actively develop and apply emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence. By systematically elucidating the impact of environmental changes on large- and medium-sized mammals, these efforts will guide scientifically informed conservation management to address the increasingly severe challenges of biodiversity conservation challenges.

Key words: Mammals, Conservation research, Behavioral adaptation, Population dynamics, Genetic evolution, Gut microbiota

摘要： 中国作为全球动物多样性最丰富的国家之一，拥有包括大熊猫 (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)、雪豹 (Pantherauncia)、金丝猴 (Rhinopithecus spp.)、藏羚 (Pantholops hodgsonii) 等旗舰物种在内的 700 余种哺乳动物。然而，随着气候变化加剧和人类活动扩张，许多大中型哺乳动物面临较严重的生存威胁，亟需开展系统性的保护研究。近年来，随着新技术与新方法的不断发展，我国学者在哺乳动物保护研究领域取得了一系列突破性进展与重要研究成果，为制定科学的保护管理策略提供了重要依据。本文从行为与生理适应、种群动态与物种共存机制、肠道微生物与宿主协同适应、疾病防控、遗传与适应性进化等方面，系统综述了 2010—2025 年间我国大中型陆生哺乳动物保护研究进展。展望未来，应加强生态系统及其重要物种的整体性保护研究，推动多学科交叉融合，积极研发应用人工智能等新兴技术手段，通过系统阐明环境变化对大中型哺乳动物的影响过程来指导科学的保护管理，以应对日益严峻的生物多样性保护挑战。

关键词: 哺乳动物, 保护研究, 行为适应, 种群动态, 遗传进化, 肠道微生物

CLC Number:

NIE Yonggang, ZHANG Chao, GAO Huayao, LIU Hanqing, XIE Bing. Advances in conservation research of large- and medium-sized terrestrial mammals in China[J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2025, 45(5): 559-576.

聂永刚, 张超, 高华窈, 刘翰卿, 谢冰. 中国大中型陆生哺乳动物保护研究进展[J]. 兽类学报, 2025, 45(5): 559-576.

References

Ababaikeri B, Abduriyim S, Tohetahong Y, Mamat T, Ahmat A, Halik M. 2020. Whole-genome sequencing of Tarim red deer (Cervus elaphus yarkandensis) reveals demographic history and adaptations to an arid-dsert environment [J]. Frontiers in Zoology, 17: 31.
Alibhai S K, Gu J Y, Jewell Z C, Morgan J, Liu D, Jiang G S. 2023.‘I know the tiger by his paw’: A non-invasive footprint identification technique for monitoring individual Amur tigers (Pantherai tigrisi altaica) in snow [J]. Ecological Informatics, 73: 101947.DOI: 10. 1016/j. ecoinf. 2022. 101947.
Bai D F, Wan X R, Zhang L, Campos-Arceiz A, Wei F W, Zhang Z B. 2022. The recent Asian elephant range expansion in Yunnan, China, is associated with climate change and enforced protection efforts in human-dominated landscapes [J]. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 10: 889077. DOI: 10. 3389/fevo. 2022. 889077.
Bao J Y, Wang Z L, Li L, Wu X D, Sang P J, Wu G Z, Ding G Y, Suo L C, Liu C J, Wang J W, Zhao W J, Li J M, Qi L. 2011. Detection and genetic characterization of peste des petits ruminants virus in free-living bharals (Pseudois nayaur) in Tibet, China [J]. Research in Veterinary Science, 90: 238-240.
Cai W M, Suding Z Y, Wang L L, Hou Z F, Liu D D, Huang S Y, Xu J J, Tao J P. 2022. A new Eimeria coccidian species (Apicomplexa:Eimeriidae) from Père David’s deer (Elaphurus davidianus Milne-Edwards, 1866) in Dafeng Milu National Nature Reserve in Jiangsu Province, eastern China [J]. BMC Veterinary Research, 18 (1): 213. DOI: 10. 1186/s12917-022-03308-2.
Cao Y F, Yang Y G, Duszynski D W, Zhu Y H, Shang G Z, Hou C, Zhang T Z, Bian J H. 2020. Prevalence and parasite composition of gastrointestinal parasites in the endangered Tibetan antelope(Pantholops hodgsonii) from the calving ground of Hoh Xil Nature World Heritage Site, Qinghai, China [J]. Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 56: 372-377.
Chen G T, Li X A, Miao Y X, Pang D P, Wang H, Fan H Z, Zhang B W. 2025. Population genomic analysis provideds insights into the evolution and conservation of two critically endangered musk deer species [J]. Evolutionary Applications, 18: e70134.
Chen J, Zhang H X, Wu X Y, Shang S, Yan J K, Chen Y, Zhang H H, Tang X X. 2017. Characterization of the gut microbiota in the golden takin (Budorcas taxicolor bedfordi) [J]. AMB Express, 7:81. DOI: 10. 1186/s13568-017-0374-5.
Chen Y, Sun Y K, Atzeni L, Gibson L, Hua M, Li K Y, Shi K, Dudgeon D. 2022. Anthropogenic pressures increase extinction risk of an isolated Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) population in southwestern China, as revealed by a combination of molecular- and landscape-scale approaches [J]. Integrative Zoology, 17: 1078-1094.
Cheng Z B, Tian X H, Zhong Z Y, Li P F, Sun D M, Bai J D, Meng Y P, Zhang S M, Zhang Y Y, Wang L B, Liu D Z. 2021. Reintroduction, distribution, population dynamics and conservation of a species formerly extinct in the wild: A review of thirty-five years of successful milu (Elaphurus davidianus) reintroduction in China [J]. Global Ecology and Conservation, 31: e01860.DOI: 10. 1016/j. gecco. 2021. e01860.
Cong W, Qin S Y, Meng Q F, Zou F C, Qian A D, Zhu X Q. 2016. Molecular detection and genetic characterization of Toxoplasma gondii infection in sika deer (Cervus nippon) in China [J]. Infection Genetics and Evolution, 39: 9-11.
Cui X Y, Fan K W, Liang X H, Gong W J, Chen W, He B, Chen X Y, Wang H, Wang X, Zhang P, Lu X B, Chen R J, Lin K X, Liu J M, Zhai J Q, Liu D X, Shan F, Li Y Q, Chen R A, Meng H F, Li X B, Mi S J, Jiang J F, Zhou N, Chen Z J, Zou J J, Ge D Y, Yang Q S, He K, Chen T T, Wu Y J, Lu H R, Irwin D M, Shen X J, Hu Y J, Lu X M, Ding C, Guan Y, Tu C C, Shen Y Y. 2023. Virus diversity, wildlife-domestic animal circulation and potential zoonotic viruses of small mammals, pangolins and zoo animals [J]. Nature Communications, 14 (1): 2488. DOI: 10. 1038/s41467-023-38202-4.
Dai X Y, Lu S, Shang G B, Zhu W T, Yang J, Liu L Y, Xu J G. 2021. Characterization and identification of a novel torovirus associated with recombinant bovine torovirus from Tibetan antelope in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau of China [J]. Frontiers in Microbiology, 12: 737753. DOI: 10. 3389/fmicb. 2021. 737753.
Deng S T, Li J Q, Qu Y S, He J, Liu K, Xue H, Cui P, Ruan X D, Wu H L. 2021. Camera trap reveals the co-occurrence patterns of two sympatric muntjac species in southern Anhui Province, China: no spatial segregation [J]. Ecology and Evolution, 11: 17801-17809.
Ding C C, Liu J, Li C W, Jiang Z G. 2022. Probable extirpation of the hog deer from China: Implications for conservation [J]. Oryx, 56:360-366.
Ding J J, Wang Y, Koirala S, Wang M Y, Xu W X, Yang W K. 2024. Factors affecting crossing structure use by khulan and goitered gazelle in China [J]. Transportation Research Part D-Transport and Environment, 136: 104417. DOI: 10. 1016/j. trd. 2024. 104417.
Du Y R, Zou X Y, Xu Y T, Guo X Y, Li S, Zhang X Z, Su M Y, Ma J B, Guo S C. 2016. Microsatellite loci analysis reveals post-bottleneck recovery of genetic diversity in the Tibetan Antelope [J]. Scientific Reports, 6: 35501. DOI: 10. 1038/srep35501.
Duan F, Zhu S Y, Wang Y, Song D Z, Shen X L, Li S. 2024. Distribution of the Asiatic golden cat (Catopuma temminckii) and variations in its coat morphology in China [J]. Ecology and Evolution, 14: e10900. DOI: 10. 1002/ece3. 10900.
Fan H Z, Wu Q, Wei F W, Yang F T, Ng B L, Hu Y B. 2019. Chromosome-level genome assembly for giant panda provides novel insights into Carnivora chromosome evolution [J]. Genome Biology, 20 (1): 267. DOI: 10. 1186/s13059-019-1889-7.
Fan P F, Zhang L, Yang L, Huang X, Shi K C, Liu G Q, Wang C H. 2022. Population recovery of the critically endangered western black crested gibbon (Nomascus concolor) in Mt. Wuliang, Yunnan, China [J]. Zoological Research, 43: 180-183.
Fei H L, de Guinea M, Yang L, Chapman C A, Fan P F. 2022. Where to sleep next? Evidence for spatial memory associated with sleeping sites in Skywalker gibbons (Hoolock tianxing) [J]. Animal Cognition, 25: 891-903.
Fei H L, de Guinea M, Yang L, Garber P A, Zhang L, Chapman C A, Fan P F. 2023. Wild gibbons plan their travel pattern according to food types of breakfast [J]. Proceedings of the Royal Society BBiological Sciences, 290 (1999): 20230430. DOI: 10. 1098/rspb. 2023. 0430.
Fei H L, Thompson C, Fan P F. 2019. Effects of cold weather on the sleeping behavior of Skywalker hoolock gibbons (Hoolock tianxing) in seasonal montane forest [J]. American Journal of Primatology, 81 (9): e23049. DOI: 10. 1002/ajp. 23049.
Fei H L, Zhang D, Yuan S D, Zhang L, Fan P F. 2017. Antipredation sleeping behavior of Skywalker hoolock gibbons (Hoolock tianxing) in Mt. Gaoligong, Yunnan, China [J]. International Journal of Primatology, 38: 629-641.
Feng N, Yu Y C, Wang T C, Wilker P, Wang J Z, Li Y G, Sun Z, Gao Y W, Xia X Z. 2016. Fatal canine distemper virus infection of giant pandas in China [J]. Scientific Reports, 6: 27518. DOI: 10. 1038/srep27518.
Feng R N, Lu X, Xiao W, Feng J, Sun Y, Guan Y, Feng L M, Smith J L D, Ge J P, Wang T M. 2021. Effects of free ranging livestock on sympatric herbivores at fine spatiotemporal scales [J]. Landscape Ecology, 36: 1441-1457.
Gao H, Chi X, Qin W, Wang L, Song P, Cai Z, Zhang J, Zhang T. 2019. Comparison of the gut microbiota composition between the wild and captive Tibetan wild ass (Equus kiang) [J]. Journal of Applied Microbiology, 126: 1869-1878.
Gao S M, Fei H L, Li Q, Lan L Y, Huang L N, Fan P F. 2024. Eco-evolutionary dynamics of gut phageome in wild gibbons (Hoolock tianxing) with seasonal diet variations [J]. Nature Communications, 15 (1): 1254. DOI: 10. 1038/s41467-024-45663-8
Gao Y Y, Duszynski D W, Yuan F L, Hu D F, Zhang D. 2021. Coccidian parasites in the endangered forest musk deer (Moschus berezovskii) in China, with the description of six new species of Eimeria (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) [J]. Parasite, 28: 70. DOI:10. 1051/parasite/2021067.
Ge R L, Cai Q L, Shen Y Y, San A, Ma L, Zhang Y, Yi X, Chen Y, Yang L F, Huang Y, He R J, Hui Y Y, Hao M R, Li Y, Wang B, Ou X H, Xu J H, Zhang Y F, Wu K, Geng C Y, Zhou W P, Zhou T C, Irwin D M, Yang Y Z, Ying L, Bao H H, Kim J, Larkin D M, Ma J, Lewin H A, Xing J C, Platt R N, Ray D A, Auvil L, Capitanu B, Zhang X F, Zhang G J, Murphy R W, Wang J, Zhang Y P, Wang J. 2013. Draft genome sequence of the Tibetan antelope [J]. Nature Communications, 4: 1858. DOI: 10. 1038/ncomms2860.
Guan Y, Yang H T, Han S Y, Feng L M, Wang T M, Ge J P. 2017.Comparison of the gut microbiota composition between wild and captive sika deer (Cervus nippon hortulorum) from feces by high-throughput sequencing [J]. AMB Express, 7: 212. DOI:10. 1186/s13568-018-0535-1.
Guo J H, Jin Y C, Tian X M, Bao H, Sun Y, Gray T, Song Y Q, Zhang M H. 2022. Diet-induced microbial adaptation process of red deer (Cervus elaphus) under different introduced periods [J]. Frontiers in Microbiology, 13: 1033050. DOI: 10. 3389/fmicb. 2022. 1033050.
Guo M, Liu G L, Chen J W, Ma J M, Lin J Z, Fu Y, Fan G Y, Lee S M Y, Zhang L B. 2020a. Dynamics of bacteriophages in gut of giant pandas reveal a potential regulation of dietary intake on bacteriophage composition [J]. Science of The Total Environment, 734:139424. DOI: 10. 1016/j. scitotenv. 2020. 139424.
Guo S T, Xu P F, Miao Q G, Shao G F, Chapman C A, Chen X J, He G, Fang D Y, Zhang H, Sun Y W, Shi Z H, Li B G. 2020b. Automatic identification of individual Primates with deep learning techniques [J]. Isicence, 23 (8): 101412. DOI: 10. 1016/j.isci. 2020. 101412.
Han F J, Fu Y, Zhang C S, Liu Q, Xu J H, Liu J. 2016. Prevalence of Antibodies against Neospora caninum in Père David’s deer(Elaphurus davidianus) in Beijing, China [J]. Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 52: 387-390.
Han L, Wang Z, Blank D, Wang M Y, Yang W K. 2021. Different environmental requirements of female and male Siberian ibex, Capra sibirica [J]. Scientific Reports, 11 (1): 6064. DOI:10. 1038/s41598-021-85550-6.
Han P, Ma H G, Wang Z D, Fan P L, Fan P F. 2025. Vocal differences in note, sequence and great call sequence among three closely related Nomascus gibbon species [J]. International Journal of Primatology, 46: 45-68.
He K, Dai Q, Foss-Grant A, Gurarie E, Fagan W F, Lewis M A, Qing J, Huang F, Yang X Y, Gu X D, Huang Y, Zhang H M, Li D S, Zhou X, Yang Z S. 2019. Movement and activity of reintroduced giant pandas [J]. Ursus, 29: 163-174.
Hu X L, Liu G, Li Y M, Wei Y T, Lin S B, Liu S Q, Zheng Y L, Hu D F. 2018. High-throughput analysis reveals seasonal variation of the gut microbiota composition within frest musk deer (Moschus berezovskii) [J]. Frontiers in Microbiology, 9: 1674. DOI： 10. 3389/fmicb. 2018. 01674.
Hu Y B, Fan H Z, Chen Y H, Chang J, Zhan X J, Wu H, Zhang B W, Wang M, Zhang W Y, Yang L, Hou X, Shen X, Pan T, Wu W, Li J, Hu H H, Wei F W. 2021. Spatial patterns and conservation of genetic and phylogenetic diversity of wildlife in China [J]. Science Advances, 7 (4): eabd5725. DOI: 10. 1126/sciadv. abd5725.
Hu Y B, Nie Y G, Wei W, Ma T X, Van Horn R, Zheng X G, Swaisgood R R, Zhou Z X, Zhou W L, Yan L, Zhang Z J, Wei F W. 2017. Inbreeding and inbreeding avoidance in wild giant pandas [J]. Molecular Ecology, 26: 5793-5806.
Hu Y B, Thapa A, Fan H Z, Ma T X, Wu Q, Ma S, Zhang D L, Wang B, Li M, Li Y, Wei F W. 2020a. Genomic evidence for two phylogenetic species and long-term population bottlenecks in red pandas [J]. Science Advances, 6 (9): eaax5751. DOI: 10. 1126/sciadv. aax5751.
Hu J Y, Hao Z Q, Frantz L, Wu S F, Chen W, Jiang Y F, Wu H, Kuang W M, Li H P, Zhang Y P, Yu L. 2020b. Genomic consequences of population decline in critically endangered pangolins and their demographic histories [J]. National Science Review, 7: 798-814.
Huang G P, Qi D W, Yang Z S, Hou R, Shi W Y, Zhao F Q, Li Z T, Yan L, Wei F W. 2024. Gut microbiome as a key monitoring indicator for reintroductions of captive animals [J]. Conservation Biology, 38 (1): e14173. DOI: 10. 1111/cobi. 14173.
Huang M P, Huang G P, Fan H Z, Wei F W. 2023a. Influence of Last Glacial Maximum legacies on functional diversity and community assembly of extant Chinese terrestrial vertebrates [J]. Innovation, 4: 100379. DOI: 10. 1016/j. xinn. 2023. 100379.
Huang G P, Shi W Y, Wang L, Qu Q Y, Zuo Z Q, Wang J F, Zhao F Q, Wei F W. 2023b. PandaGUT provides new insights into bacterial diversity, function, and resistome landscapes with implications for conservation [J]. Microbiome, 11 (1): 221. DOI: 10. 1186/s40168-023-01657-0.
Huang M P, Ma H G, Ma C Y, Garber P A, Fan P F. 2020a. Male gibbon loud morning calls conform to Zipf’s law of brevity and Menzerath’s law: Insights into the origin of human language [J]. Animal Behaviour, 160: 145-155.
Huang S Y, Fan Y M, Yao N, Yang Y, Pei M Y, Ren Y J, Gong J Z. 2020b. Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in the endangered Père David’s deer (Elaphurus davidianus) in China.Microbial Pathogenesis, 149: 104282. DOI: 10. 1016/j. micpath. 2020. 104282.
Huang S Y, Gong J Z, Ren Y J, Pan M, Cai W M, Fan Y M, Yao N. 2020c. First report on the prevalence of Fasciola hepatica in the endangered Père David’s deer (Elaphurus davidianus) in China [J]. BMC Veterinary Research, 16: 473. DOI: 10. 1186/s12917-020-02694-9.
Jiang F, Song P F, Zhang J J, Cai Z Y, Chi X W, Gao H M, Qin W, Li S Q, Zhang T Z. 2020. Assessing the impact of climate change on the spatio-temporal distribution of foot-and-mouth disease risk for elephants [J]. Global Ecology and Conservation, 23: e01176.DOI: 10. 1016/j. gecco. 2020. e01176.
Jiang X, Liu H J, Jiang Z Y, Ni R P. 2023. Identifying migration routes of wild Asian elephants in China based on ecological networks constructed by circuit theory model [J]. Animals, 13: 2618.DOI: 10. 3390/ani13162618.
Jiang Z G, Li C W, Ding C C. 2021. The roaming wild Asian elephants of Yunnan, China, pose a challenge to conservation [J]. Oryx, 55: 650.
Kong F L, Zhao J C, Han S S, Zeng B, Yang J D, Si X H, Yang B Q, Yang M Y, Xu H L, Li Y. 2014. Characterization of the gut microbiota in the red panda (Ailurus fulgens) [J]. PLoS ONE, 9:e87885. DOI: 10. 1371/journal. pone. 0087885.
Kuang W M, Hu J Y, Wu H, Fen X T, Dai Q Y, Fu Q M, Xiao W, Frantz L, Roos C, Nadler T, Irwin D M, Zhou L C, Yang X, Yu L. 2020. Genetic diversity, inbreeding level, and genetic load in endangered snub-nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus) [J]. Frontiers in Genetics, 11: 615926. DOI: 10. 3389/fgene. 2020. 615926.
Kuang W M, Ming C, Li H P, Wu H, Frantz L, Roos C, Zhang Y P, Zhang C L, Jia T, Yang J Y, Yu L. 2019. The origin and population history of the endangered golden snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus roxellana) [J]. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 36:487-499.
Lan L Y, Hong Q X, Gao S M, Li Q, You Y Y, Chen W, Fan P F. 2023.Gut microbiota of skywalker hoolock gibbons (Hoolock tianxing)from different habitats and in captivity: Implications for gibbon health [J]. American Journal of Primatology, 85: e23468. DOI:10. 1002/ajp. 23468.
Lan L Y, Liu T C, Gao S M, Li Q, Yang L, Fei H L, Zhong X K, Wang Y X, Zhu C Y, Abel C, Kappeler P M, Huang L N, Fan P F. 2025a. Comparative study of gut microbiota reveals the adaptive strategies of gibbons living in suboptimal habitats [J]. npj Biofilms and Microbiomes, 11: 29. DOI: 10. 1038/s41522-025-00653-6.
Lan T M, Li H M, Liu B Y, Shi M H, Tian Y P, Sahu S K, Cui L Y, Dussex N, Liu D, Ma Y, Kong W Y, Liu S L, Fan J L, Zhao Y, Fu Y, Li Q Y, Lin C, Dalen L, Liu H, Zhang L, Jiang G S, Xu Y C. 2025b. Revealing extensive inbreeding and less-efficient purging of deleterious mutations in wild Amur tigers in China [J]. Journal of Genetics and Genomics, 52 (5): 641-649
Lan T M, Yang S C, Li H M, Zhang Y, Li R G, Sahu S K, Deng W W, Liu B Y, Shi M H, Wang S Q, Du H Y, Huang X Y, Lu H R, Liu S L, Deng T, Chen J, Wang Q, Han L, Zhou Y J, Li Q Y, Li D S, Kristiansen K, Wan Q H, Liu H, Fang S G. 2024. Large-scale genome sequencing of giant pandas improves the understanding of population structure and future conservation initiatives [J]. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 121 (36): e2406343121. DOI: 10. 1073/pnas. 2406343121.
Li B G, Li M, Li J H, Fan P F, Ni Q Y, Lu J Q, Zhou X M, Long Y C, Jiang Z G, Zhang P, Huang Z P, Huang C M, Jiang X L, Oan R L, Gouveia S, Dobrovolski R, Grueter C C, Oxnard C, Groves C, Estrada A, Garber P A. 2018. The primate extinction crisis in China: immediate challenges and a way forward [J]. Biodiversity and Conservation, 27: 3301-3327.
Li B V, Pimm S L. 2020. How China expanded its protected areas to conserve biodiversity [J]. Current Biology, 30: 1334-1340.
Li H P, Meng S J, Men Z M, Fu Y X, Zhang Y P. 2003. Genetic diversity and population history of golden monkeys (Rhinopithecus roxellana) [J]. Genetics, 164: 269-275.
Li J, Li L, Wu X, Liu F, Zou Y, Wang Q, Liu C, Bao J, Wang W, Ma W, Lin H , Huang J, Zheng X, Wang Z. 2017. Diagnosis of peste des petits ruminants in wild and domestic animals in Xinjiang, China, 2013-2016 [J]. Transboundary and Emerging Diseases, 64: e43-e47.
Li J, Xue Y D, Zhang Y, Dong W, Shan G Y, Sun R Q, Hacker C, Wu B, Li D Q. 2020a. Spatial and temporal activity patterns of Golden takin (Budorcas taxicolor bedfordi) recorded by camera trapping [J]. PeerJ, 8: e10353. DOI: 10. 7717/peerj. 10353.
Li S, McShea W J, Wang D J, Gu X D, Zhang X F, Zhang L, Shen X L. 2020b. Retreat of large carnivores across the giant panda distribution range [J]. Nature Ecology & Evolution, 4: 1327-1331.
Li L X, Cao X A, Wu J Y, Dou Y X, Meng X L, Liu D, Liu Y S, Shang Y J, Liu X T. 2019. Epidemic and evolutionary characteristics of peste des petits ruminants virus infecting Procapra przewalskii in Western China [J]. Infection, Genetics and Evolution, 75:104004. DOI: 10. 1016/j. meegid. 2019. 104004.
Li M L, Wang S, Xu P, Tian H Y, Bai M, Zhang Y P, Shao Y, Xiong Z J, Qi X G, Cooper D N, Zhang G J, Zhu H H, Wu D D. 2022.Functional genomics analysis reveals the evolutionary adaptation and demographic history of pygmy lorises [J]. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 119 (40): e2123030119. DOI: 10. 1073/pnas. 2123030119.
Li W, Dong S X, Niu F, Li N L, Su Z Y, Wang C L, Huang K, Zhao H T, Pan R L, Zhang P, Li B G. 2023a. Infanticide in golden snub-nosed monkeys with multilevel society [J]. Current Zoology, 70: 273-275.
Li Q, Fei H L, Luo Z H, Gao S M, Wang P D, Lan L Y, Zhao X F, Huang L N, Fan P F. 2023b. Gut microbiome responds compositionally and functionally to the seasonal diet variations in wild gibbons [J]. npj Biofilms and Microbiomes, 9 (1): 21. DOI:10. 1038/s41522-023-00388-2.
Li X, Chen J M, Zhang C B, Zhang S Y, Shen Q Z, Wang B, Bao M W, Xu B, Wu Q, Han N Y, Huang Z X. 2023c. Fecal metagenomics study reveals that a low-fiber diet drives the migration of wild Asian elephants in Xishuangbanna, China [J]. Animals, 13 (20):3193. DOI: 10. 3390/ani13203193.

[1]	SUN Kai, ZHU Zhaoling, Naheya, HAO Shuxiang, LIANG Yongliang, XU Hao, Alima, LIU Zhen-sheng, TENG Liwei. Gender difference in gut microbiota composition of blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur) on the eastern slope of the Helan Mountains between summer and winter [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2025, 45(4): 492-502.
[2]	CHEN Shunde, YANG Siyu, QING Jiao, FAN Ronghui, TANG Keyi, LIAO Rui, GUO Keji, ZHANG Mengfei, WU Nanfei, LIU Shaoying. Two new species of genus Crocidura(Eulipotyphla: Soricidae) from Xizang, China [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2024, 44(5): 529-550.
[3]	NIE Haijuan, ZHANG Yazu, YAN Xiaodong, BU Shuhai, MA Youjun, ZHENG Xueli. Species diversity and distribution pattern of small mammals along an elevation gradient in the middle and low mountains of Changqing National Nature Reserve [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2024, 44(5): 622-631.
[4]	ZHAO Xing, MA Rui, WU Wei, LI Mingxi, CHEN Chao, ZHOU Yanshan, HONG Mingsheng, QI Dunwu. Changing patterns of cortisol and gut microbiota in Ailurus fulgens under different living environments [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2024, 44(4): 427-435.
[5]	WANG Hui, XU Ningning, LI Xintong, FENG Jiang. The circadian expression rhythms and adaptive evolution of the core circadian clock gene Per1 in bats [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2024, 44(3): 259-267.
[6]	SUN Taozhu, WU Qiong, ZHANG Zhenwei, LI Zhongqiu. Survey on the population and reproduction of free-ranging cats at the Xianlin Campus of Nanjing University [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2024, 44(3): 333-343.
[7]	YIN Guanghua, QIN Zhongyi, LUO Wenfu, LU Lixiong, LI Han, GAO Wenjun, XU Ping, LI Qianen, YIN Cunquan, LI Genhui, ZHANG Zhiqiang, LI Yuwu, LIU Dong, JI-ANG Xuelong, LI Xueyou. Preliminary study on the diversity of medium and large-sized mammals and pheasants at Chuxiong sub-region, Yunnan Ailaoshan National Nature Reserve [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2024, 44(2): 237-246.
[8]	YUAN Daohuan, CHENG Shoujie, YUAN Qianmin, JI Yu, QIN Jiao, LIANG Yitian, LIU Quansheng. Spatiotemporal variation of composition and diversity of small mammals in Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2024, 44(2): 252-258.
[9]	ZHENG Weicheng, ZHENG Zihong, LIU Julian, WANG Yu, YANG Xiaojun, HUANG Linping, DING Ping, ZENG Di. The occupancy of six mammal species and the potential impacting factors in Jiulongshan National Nature Reserve, Zhejiang Province [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2023, 43(4): 378-386.
[10]	Feng JIANG, Pengfei SONG, Jingjie ZHANG, Hongmei GAO, Haijing WANG, Zhenyuan CAI, Daoxin LIU, Tongzuo ZHANG. Comparative analysis of gut microbial composition and functions of forest musk deer in different breeding centres [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2023, 43(2): 129-140.
[11]	Wei KAN, Leibin LI, Xuyang ZHAO, Lin YANG, Yu SUN, Jinshan CAI. Diagnosis of peste des petits ruminants and genetic evolution analysis of N and F genes of Pseudois nayaur in Qinghai [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2023, 43(2): 171-181.
[12]	Tongzuo ZHANG, Feng JIANG, Bo XU, Bin LI, Chengbo LIANG, Haifeng GU. Research advances in conservation and management of endangered mammals on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2022, 42(5): 490-507.
[13]	Min MAO, Ming YANG, Xinyu LIU. Effects of hibernation on cecal microbiota in Daurian ground squirrel [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2022, 42(4): 420-431.
[14]	YANG Guangmei, LI Jiaqi, ZHANG Mingming, HU Canshi, SU Haijun. Camera-trapping survey and activity pattern analysis on mammals and birds in Pogang Karst Forest Nature Reserve, Guizhou Province, China [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2022, 42(3): 325-338.
[15]	LIU Jun, ZHANG Peijun, LI Songhai. Review on embryonic diapause and its regulation mechanisms in mammals [J]. ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA, 2022, 42(1): 95-107.