Females in most populations of chiru or Tibetan antelope Pantholops hodgsonii migrate up to 350 km each year to summer calving grounds. These migrations characterize the Tibet–Qinghai Plateau. The Ullughusu calving grounds adjacent to the Arjinshan Nature Reserve in Xinjiang, China, are used by multiple chiru populations and this calving ground recovered from major poaching events in 1998 and 1999, with a population increase from 2001 to 2006. We used direct methods (vehicle/walking transects and radial point sampling) and an indirect method (faecal pellet counts) from 30 June to 4 July 2011 to assess the chiru population at this calving ground. We saw substantially more chiru with all methods in 2011 compared to 2006, demonstrating that the population has increased and suggesting that conservation efforts have been effective.

Conservation strategies for apex predators, like the snow leopard (Panthera uncia), depend on a robust understanding of their dietary preferences, prey abundance, and adaptability to changing ecological conditions. To address these critical conservation concerns, this study presents a comprehensive evidence on prey availability and preferences for snow leopards in the Lapchi Valley in the Nepal Himalayas from November 2021 to March 2023. Field data were collected through the installation of twenty-six camera traps at 16 strategically chosen locations, resulting in the recording of 1228 events of 19 mammalian species, including domesticated livestock. Simultaneously, the collection of twenty snow leopard scat samples over 3800 m above sea level allowed for a detailed dietary analysis. Photo capture rate index and biomass composition analysis were carried out and seasonal prey availability and consumption were statistically analyzed. A total of 16 potential prey species for the snow leopard were documented during the study period. Himalayan musk deer (Moschus leucogaster) was the most abundant prey species, but infrequent in the diet suggesting that are not the best bet prey for the snow leopards. Snow leopards were found to exhibit a diverse diet, consuming eleven prey species, with blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur) being their most consumed wild prey and horses as their preferred livestock. The Pianka’s index of dietary niche overlap between the summer and winter seasons were 0.576, suggesting a pronounced seasonal variation in food preference corroborating with the prey availability. The scarcity of larger preys in winter is compensated by small and meso-mammals in the diet, highlighting the snow leopard’s capacity for dietary plasticity in response to the variation in resource availability. This research suggests for the utilization of genetic tools to further explore snow leopard diet composition. Additionally, understanding transboundary movements and conducting population assessments will be imperative for the formulation of effective conservation strategies.

The wild yak Bos mutus is one of the most charismatic members of the Tibet/Qinghai Plateau fauna, and 19th century explorers to the plateau described vast herds. Overhunting, in particular, has greatly reduced wild yak populations and forced them into remote areas. The species is categorized as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List and as a Class 1 protected animal in China. Introgression with domestic yaks is another threat, and the wild yak population of the Arjinshan Nature Reserve is particularly important because Uigher herders in and around Arjinshan do not have the tradition of raising yaks. We provide information on the status of the wild yak in Arjinshan based on observations in 1993 and on vehicle surveys during 1998–2009 and point samples from 2009. The steppes of north-east Arjinshan are the most important area, and we saw c. 1,700 yaks there in winter 2008. We saw more yaks in the north-east on similar routes driven in winter 2008 compared to winter 2005, suggesting that the wild yak population in Arjinshan is stable or increasing.

Lek‐breeding or lekking is the clustering of small mating territories, which females visit primarily for mating. Although lekking is widespread in the animal kingdom, it is less commonly reported in ungulates. In this paper, we present data for the presence of lekking in another ungulate, the chiru or Tibetan antelope Pantholops hodgsonii. We drove 340 km of vehicle transects and observed chiru for a total of 249 scan samples and 22 h of ad libitum observations in the winters of 1998, 1999 and 2005 at the Arjin Mountain Nature Reserve in Xinjiang, China. We documented aggregations of chiru, courtship behaviour between males and females, dominance behaviours among males, time budgets for females at lekking aggregations as well as vegetational resources on and off the aggregations. Ninety‐two per cent (n=617) of individuals in mixed‐sex groups were at aggregations, and at these aggregations, chiru males attempted to maintain harems in small closely spaced territories despite harassment by other males. Females spent a large amount of time feeding, but the vegetation analyses showed that these territories did not contain any resources to make them especially attractive to females, and the chiru mating system can justifiably be called lekking by multiple definitions. We discuss possibilities for future work to clarify the adaptive reasons for lekking in chiru.

Using camera-trap data, we describe the ecology and occupancy of several species of gamebirds while assessing associations at Namha National Protected Area (Lao People’s Democratic Republic). We detected three species of Arborophila Partridges, albeit in low numbers. Red Junglefowl Gallus gallus show typical diurnal activity, and we provide a record of a male–female pair commensally associated with a boar Sus scrofa. Silver Pheasants Lophura nycthemera have sex ratios slightly favoring females, and are mostly solitary; we provide novel findings of male age structure and rectrix molt. Gray Peacock Pheasants Polyplectron bicalcaratum sex ratios also favor females; males are recorded displaying as early as late February, while daily activity is somewhat bimodal, and we provide novel findings of male age structure. Analysis of the association between occupancy and 14 environmental covariates indicated that Silver Pheasant and Gray Peacock-Pheasant were associated with rougher terrain, and Red Junglefowl had higher occupancy far from well-groomed trails used for tourism. We discuss our results by comparing and contrasting our findings with other studies, and consider implications for conservation in the region.