Ground-dwelling pheasants are vital indicators of forest ecosystem health. Understanding their distribution and response to climate change is crucial for regional biodiversity conservation. Based on 97,000 camera-days of infrared monitoring from 2019 to 2022 in Huzhou, China, we analyzed the spatial patterns and niche overlap of five pheasant species, including the first class national protected animal Elliot’s Pheasant (Syrmaticus ellioti), using MaxEnt modeling and Schoener’s D index. Results showed the following: (1) Pheasants in Huzhou exhibited distinct vertical gradients, with Elliot’s Pheasant restricted primarily to mid-mountain forests (200–600 m) in western Anji. (2) Iso-thermality and winter thermal limits were the primary drivers of its distribution. (3) Niche analysis revealed intense competitive pressure; Elliot’s Pheasant habitat was largely encompassed by dominant species like the Silver Pheasant (Lophura nycthemera), showing a high overlap (D = 0.642) with the Koklass Pheasant (Pucrasia macrolopha). (4) By 2050, its suitable habitat is projected to shrink by 84.6% (from 1085.7 to 118.8 km²) and shift eastward. These findings highlight the high climate sensitivity and competitive vulnerability of Elliot’s Pheasant. We recommend prioritizing micro-habitat maintenance in mid-mountain zones and proactively establishing ecological corridors between Anji and Deqing to mitigate habitat loss and displacement.

Understanding long-term movement ecology is critical for conserving endangered species; however, comprehensive spatiotemporal analyses remain limited. In this study, we leveraged a decade-long GPS tracking dataset (2014–2024) of 31 endangered Crested Ibis (Nipponia nippon) individuals to elucidate their spatiotemporal behavioral patterns. The study focused on three key aspects: (1) fidelity to nesting, foraging, and roosting sites; (2) movement patterns and their ecological drivers; and (3) foraging habitat preferences across regions and activity periods. The results revealed exceptional fidelity to nesting, foraging (mean value = 0.253), and roosting sites (mean value = 0.261), underscoring the species’ pronounced spatial memory. Temporal factors emerged as the primary drivers of movement patterns, demonstrated by a significant annual reduction in home range size (p < 0.01) and a decline in daily flight distance in 2019 (β = −1890 ± 772 m, p < 0.05) and 2022 (p = 0.052). Behavioral factors also significantly influenced daily flight distance, with notable variations across different activity periods. Foraging habitat selection exhibited considerable spatial heterogeneity (14.2% constrained variance, p < 0.01). Cultivated lands, particularly paddy fields (Yangxian population) and drylands (Tongchuan population), served as core foraging zones. In contrast, spatiotemporal variables such as age had limited effects (<5% variance). This study provides the first empirical evidence of long-term site fidelity and habitat partitioning in the Crested Ibis, emphasizing the importance of landscape-level conservation planning. To this end, we propose two targeted strategies: establishing habitat corridors to enhance connectivity and safeguarding stable foraging areas within agricultural landscapes. These findings contribute to movement ecology theory while offering actionable frameworks for endangered species management.

The Nipponia nippon is a critically endangered species, and its breeding efforts are of vital importance for its conservation. Although artificial shell removal is sometimes employed in current breeding programs to increase survival rates, it may also have unknown impacts on chicks’ development. To investigate the influence of artificial shell removal on the gut microbiota composition in Nipponia nippon, metagenomic sequencing and untargeted LC-MS/MS analyses were performed. Samples from the early, mid, and late stages of natural hatching (ZE, ZM, ZL) and artificial shell removal (RE, RM, RL) were compared. Results indicated that the natural hatching groups formed a unique, highly diverse, and stable community by the late stage (ZL). Conversely, artificial peeling caused the microbial community succession to stagnate at an intermediate state. The RL group experienced a sharp decline in alpha diversity and a significant enrichment of opportunistic pathogens, such as Edwardsiella, Clostridium, and Fusobacterium. Functionally, the microbial community in the RL group remained in a stage of expanding basic functions rather than reaching an advanced equilibrium state. Metabolomic analysis confirmed this developmental arrest, revealing abnormal accumulations of organic acids, such as citric acid, and indole derivatives in the RL group. This indicates metabolic dysregulation, stress, and altered microbial–host chemical signaling. Furthermore, the significant biomarker Edwardsiella was strongly correlated with multiple differential metabolites in the RL group. Ultimately, these results indicate that artificial peeling intervention disrupts environmental adaptation and induces metabolic alterations in the intestinal development of the Nipponia nippon chicks.