4hw.org: Recently, as the most beautiful snake in the world, hengbanjin snake is about to be born. As a giant panda among snakes, hengbanjin snake has been questioned for half a century, and the significance of this artificial cultivation is also significant.
For half a century there was no trace, and it was questioned whether it existed
As early as 2000, as a unique species in China, the snake was included in the list of national protected beneficial or important land wildlife with economic and scientific research value, and then it was included as a very dangerous animal in China. But research on it has stagnated for a long time.
'it's too quiet and alert. At noon on August 14, when the reporter came to the laboratory again, Chen zeju was debugging the room temperature. At present, it is the critical period of incubation, and the control of temperature must be strict.
When it comes to the tranquility of the snake, Chen Zeming mentions its nickname 'the most beautiful snake in the world' the elegant snake '.
The former is due to its outstanding appearance and its inclusion in the genus chrysophilidae, which is translated as' beautiful snake 'in foreign countries. According to the latest taxonomic research results, it is classified into a new genus that has the title of "beauty snake" with its near source species. They are regarded as the most beautiful three kinds of snakes in China, together with another kind of "jade lady snake" in China. It is also the rarest of the three species.
The latter is related to its original discovery of Yaan and character. Chen Zejie introduced that the first discovery of the snake was in 1929. At that time, American zoologist Stejneger collected a male specimen in Ya'an area. But for the next half century, it was gone.
Because stanger did not mark the specific collection site, nor did he record the key data of his living habits and living environment. Because this is the only specimen in the world, and far away in the United States. So, during its disappearance, there were constant questions about its existence. It is also believed that stange was mistaken and confused it with the jade spotted brocade snake similar to its shape.
Liu Shaoying, vice president of the Provincial Academy of forestry, said that if a species doesn't appear for a long time, some people will question whether it exists or not, "it is extinct, or it doesn't exist at all.".
Until the 1980s, Professor Deng Qixiang and others from Xihua Normal University collected specimens in Wolong Nature Reserve and Hailuogou forest Glacier Park in Luding County, Ganzi Prefecture. At the time of the highest controversy, academician Zhao Ermi wrote a special article to prove the existence of the snake. However, at the beginning of the 20th century, Zhao Ermi's representative work "Chinese snakes" did not explain the origin and living habits of the snake.
'in fact, it's because I haven't seen any living things. It's too few and hard to see. Dingli said that around 2012, some experts demonstrated the existence of the snake from the molecular genetic structure, and the query gradually disappeared. Although he has always been a strong supporter of the existentialism of Hydra cristata, dingley first came into contact with living beings in July 2014. At that time, according to the limited information and the living habits of the close relatives of the snake, he went around the Labahe Nature Reserve for more than a month and finally determined the suspected snake cave.
'I stayed here for three or four days. It was the rainy season. There were leeches everywhere. Every day I slapped my palms to get rid of them. Fortunately, two snakes were caught one after another. Once checked, they could be matched. Dingli said that it was the wild capture that finally determined the character and living habits of the snake: it likes to be quiet; it will not go out at all unless the weather is particularly hot or it has just rained in the morning and dusk. Its research:
Basically consistent with the distribution of giant panda, the regional population appears variation
'the serpent is a snake giant panda worthy of its name, whether in terms of treasure or resource distribution'. Dingli said the survey found that at the macro level, the habitat of the snake is highly consistent with that of the giant panda. Microscopically, it mainly lives in the humid mountains with an altitude of 1500-2600 meters, and its habitat is mostly under the deciduous broad-leaved forest or in the grass and bush of agricultural land.
Before the start of the project, it was thought to be distributed in Wenchuan, Baoxing, Luding, Shimian and other places, and was once considered to be a unique species in Western Sichuan.
In the process of the project, in order to find out the living habits of the snake, the team members went deep into the mountains and forests for many times to find its trace. Last summer, researchers found that its habitat extends all the way to the Foping Nature Reserve in Shaanxi Province, south of the Qinling Mountains. This also breaks the previous distribution area of the snake, and greatly expands its distribution area.
What's more, through the study of the specimen photos obtained from the field observation in Shaanxi Province, the number of transverse stripes on the back of Shaanxi population is less than that of Sichuan population, which is also very interesting. The population of giant panda in Qinling of Shaanxi is different from that in Sichuan. According to Dr. Dingli, the morphological characteristics show that the two distinctive local populations have been formed in Sichuan and Shaanxi. It is not known whether they are caused by the difference of living environment or genetic drift. '
In addition, it is this discovery that confirms the previous conclusion: the distribution areas of the snake and the giant panda are highly overlapped. 'because in the place where it lives, it is almost the habitat of wild giant pandas. Dingli believes that there are still more unsolved mysteries about the same domain distribution of the snake and the giant panda. Whether they have similar evolutionary history with the distribution pattern of giant pandas needs to be further studied. This is of great significance to the study of endangered mechanism and protection of living species! "However, it can be affirmed that the existence of the snake, as an indicator of the ecological environment, is naturally a good evidence of the ecological environment of a region.
'we think that the salvation and continuation of an endangered species means more than the protection of species diversity. "Relevant experts said that, first of all, from the perspective of animal taxonomy and evolutionary mechanism, the in-depth study of the snake helps to understand the differentiation and species formation mechanism of related species; second, as an endemic and endangered species in China, it is of great significance for us to understand the distribution pattern and endangered mechanism of endangered species; finally, as an endemic, rare and endangered reptile in China The artificial breeding of animals and vipers has a milestone significance for the protection and artificial breeding of the unique and rare snakes in China, breaking the precedent that all the rare snakes in China have been successfully bred by foreigners.
Before that, the two internationally renowned Chinese snakes, Viper yubanjin and tietou Mangshan, were first artificially bred by foreign zoos and relevant scientific research institutions such as Germany, Russia and the United States.
Its future:
The level of protection needs to be clarified, and the public education of protection knowledge needs to be popularized
"This time, the Forestry Department of Tianquan County Government of Ya'an City organized the investigation of resources and the research of conservation biology, which is not only of great significance, but also very forward-looking. 'dinley said that the artificial breeding of the snake has been completely out of danger.
Dingli believes that as a unique and rare reptile in China, the snake, like many other reptiles, has not been actively protected by human beings.
'of course, it's related to the secret life of reptiles, and it's not easy to get into the sight of human beings. Dingli said that at present, with the exception of a few larger reptiles such as python, alligator and turtle, most of the reptiles in China have not been listed in the national key wildlife protection list, and thus have not been effectively protected. Nowadays, some species of reptiles, such as most closed shell turtles and turtles, have reached the edge of extinction in the wild and missed the best time to protect them.
'the snake is actually passively protected. Hou mian, a teacher from Sichuan Normal University, said that the protection of the wild population of the snake was mainly due to the construction of the giant panda reserve, 'that is, the umbrella role of the giant panda'. However, hou mian believed that we should pay attention to the particularity of the protection work. Because of its small size and poor self-protection and migration ability, it often faces various threats from human activities with the acceleration of the habitat development process.
Dingli revealed that in the field investigation, he had found that many farmers around the habitat had taken a killing attitude towards a group of non poisonous snakes, including the cross spotted brocade snake. "Some were directly run over by passing vehicles and killed on the road, which was a pity. 'he believes that the most urgent task is to raise the awareness of the public, especially the indigenous people of the origin, and popularize protection knowledge. At the same time, at the provincial level, we should strengthen their safety, take the lead in defining and upgrading their protection level, and then carry out the protection and restoration of habitat.
'the snake is a kind of beautiful and gentle non-toxic snake. It mainly preys on small rodents in the forest and does not pose any threat to human beings. Dingli said that the special and distinctive body color characteristics of the snake can easily distinguish it from other poisonous snakes and 'really don't hurt it easily'.