Ecotourism is considered to be an effective means of promoting nature conservation and sustainable development in less developed regions. However, its widespread adoption may be the result of a misunderstanding due to confusion about definitions and interpretations. Using web map browsers, we assessed the distribution pattern of ecotourism sites in both number and density in the 31 provinces of mainland China, and found that it positively correlated with gross domestic products (GDP) and population size, showing spatial dynamics similar to the general tourism model. However, negative-weak or no correlation at all was found with the presence and size of nature variables such as protected areas. These results support previous suspicions that the term ecotourism and its associated concept may be misused in China and that the regions that could benefit the most from this form of tourism have yet to properly develop it. Although this pattern could reflect a huge demand for genuine ecotourism, we recommend that China, to achieve its ambitious sustainable development goals, adapt ecotourism policies in its environmental and socio-cultural context, manage them with a trans-disciplinary expert board, and regulate its market by introducing a rigorous admittance system with continuous monitoring and evaluation.

Sexual dimorphism exists widely in animals, manifesting in different forms, such as body size, color, shape, unique characteristics, behavior, and sound. Of these, body mass dimorphism is the most obvious. Studies of evolutionary and ontogenetic development and adaptation mechanisms of animals’ sexual dimorphism in body mass (SDBM), allow us to understand how environment, social group size, diet, and other external factors have driven the selection of sexual dimorphism. There are fewer reports of the ontogenetic development of sexual dimorphism in body mass in Rhinopithecus. This study explores the ontogenetic development pattern of SDBM in wild black-and-white snub-nosed monkeys (R. bieti), and the causes resulting in extreme sexual dimorphism compared to other colobines. A significant dimorphism with a ratio of 1.27 (p < 0.001) appears when females enter the reproductive period around six years old, reaching a peak (1.85, p < 0.001) when males become sexually mature. After the age of eight, the SDBM falls to 1.78, but is still significant (p < 0.001). The results also indicate that males had a longer body mass growth period than females (8 years vs. 5 years); females in larger breeding units had a significantly higher SDBM than those in smaller ones (2.12 vs. 1.93, p < 0.01). A comparative analysis with other colobines further clarifies that Rhinopithecus and Nasalis, which both have multilevel social organization, have the highest degree of SDBM among all colobines. The large SDBM in R. bieti can be explained through Bergman’s and Rensch’s rules. Overall, environmental adaptation, a distinctive alimentary system, and a complex social structure contribute to R. bieti having such a remarkable SDBM compared to other colobines. In addition, we found that females’ choice for males may not be significantly related to the development of SDBM.

Mountain freshwater ecosystems are threatened all over the world by a range of human-induced stresses, ensuing in a rapid loss of habitats and species diversity. Many macroinvertebrates are reactive to habitat disturbance, and mayflies (Ephemeroptera) are amongst the most sensitive groups. Despite they are susceptible to environmental deviation, knowledge concerning their species richness and diversity is still unknown in remote areas. The objectives of this study were to (1) investigate the mayfly species assemblage and community composition along different mountain streams and assess potential differences, and (2) identify the environmental variation and its influence on the structure of mayfly communities within such freshwater systems. We collected biological and environmental data from 35 sites situated along elevation gradients in the Baima Snow Mountain, northwest Yunnan, China. Multivariate analyses were performed on the environmental variables and the mayfly species composition, as well as on richness and diversity indices. We found that the community composition of mayflies was different across all three watercourses. Among the 18 Ephemeroptera taxa identified, Baetis sp. and Baetiella marginata were highly dominant, accounting for over 50% of the dissimilarity of each stream. In terms of species assemblages, almost all sites in the Yeri stream hosted good-quality habitats for several mayfly species, as reflected by the highest species richness. The Benzilan stream followed, whereas the Sharong stream showed relatively low mayfly assemblage. This variation was explained by the high environmental heterogeneity between the three watercourses. In particular, the RDA model revealed that among the different environmental factors analyzed, altitude, conductivity, total dissolved solids, water temperature, dissolved silicon, and pH explained most of the variation in species composition. Moreover, the altitude alone explained 17.74% of the variation, and in-depth analysis confirmed its significant effect on diversity indices. Further research should focus on evaluating the scale of threats to this important group of insects in the mountain freshwater ecosystem, particularly the impact of human-induced disturbances such as land use/landcover alterations.

The elevational range where montane species live is a key factor of spatial niche partitioning, because the limits of such ranges are influenced by interspecies interaction, abiotic stress, and dispersal barriers. At the regional scale, unimodal distributions of single species along the elevation gradient have often been reported, while discontinuous patterns, such as bimodal distributions, and potential ecological implications have been rarely discussed. Here, we used extensive camera trap records to reveal the elevation distribution of Himalaya blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur) and its co-existence with other ground animal communities along a slope of Baima Snow Mountain, southwest China. The results show that Himalaya blue sheep exhibited a distinctive bimodal distribution along the elevation gradient contrasting the unimodal distributions found for the other ungulates in Baima snow mountain. A first distributional peak was represented by a population habituating in scree habitat around 4100 m, and a second peak was found in the dry-hot valley around 2600 m. The two distinct populations co-existed with disparate animal communities and these assemblages were similar both in the dry and rainy seasons. The extremely low abundance of blue sheep observed in the densely forested belt at mid-elevation indicates that vegetation rather than temperature is responsible for such segregation. The low-elevation population relied highly on Opuntia ficus-indica, an invasive cactus species that colonized the region six hundred years ago, as food resource. Being the only animal that developed a strategy to feed on this spiky plant, we suggest invasive species may have formed new foraging niche to support blue sheep population in lower elevation hot-dry river valleys, resulting in the geographic separation from the original population and a potential morphological differentiation, as recorded. These findings emphasize the important conservation values of role of ecological functions to identify different taxa, and conservation values of apparent similar species of different ecological functions.

Given the importance of protected areas (PAs) in promoting the balance between conservation and sustainable development, it is crucial for planners and decision-makers to focus attention on the core areas that are of priority to PAs. However, few studies have addressed the balance between ecosystem service provision in PAs and regional development demands based on spatial valuation data. Herein, we present an integrated approach using the Cangshan Nature Reserve as a case study with the aim of identifying the core conservation areas of the reserve—the only national nature reserve in the 18-creek watershed of Cangshan—under different urbanization scenarios. The results show that the overall farmland in the watershed decreased and the architectural area increased, but the land use in the nature reserve remained stable from 1995 to 2035. With the increase in demand for water in the watershed, at least 24.3% of the Cangshan Nature Reserve should be designated as core conservation area to ensure the maintenance of sufficient water quantity and quality. This study can be used as a reference for the sustainable management of PAs based on our example of balancing ecosystem service provision and demand in a single watershed.

Nature reserves (NRs) have been the backbone of biodiversity conservation and the construction of China’s ‘ecological-civilization’ since the 1950s. With over 11,800 protected areas (PAs) covering 18% of the country’s land area, Chinese NRs have made a great contribution to global biodiversity conservation. At this point, better protection effectiveness can be achieved by optimizing the management organization rather than expanding the area. We analyzed the management structure of Chinese NRs by looking at their ranks, the hierarchy of administrative organs, number of grass-root stations, manpower, and financial resources, among other variables. We found that the average number of staff employed and yearly financial input per km² of Chinese NRs were both higher than the world and US averages. However, the range was extremely high, revealing great unbalance among different regions and ranks of NRs. In particular, the western part of China, which is less developed and features the least disturbed ecosystems, received less funding and staff resources than the developed east. A further analysis of the highest-ranked nature reserves, i.e., the national nature reserves (NNRs), showed that administrative organs of different hierarchical statuses (the lowest being Deputy family, the highest being Division level) could be in charge of them. Unexpectedly, we found that the amount of human and financial resources injected into NNRs was correlated with the level of their administration but dissociated from other important factors such as the reserve’s size or ecological value. Furthermore, the management organization was inadequate, with many NRs lacking key departments as defined by Chinese nature reserve regulations. We suggest that the administrative levels of management organization in NRs should be unified, and through the existing ecological transfer payments policy, strengthen the financial and staffing input in the western NRs of China. Moreover, the internal structure of NRs management should include all relevant departments with specific tasks and the creation of grass-root stations should be promoted without neglecting the capacity building to improve staff’s knowledge.