XINING, April 7 (Xinhua) -- The number of Procapra Przewalskii, an antelope species being listed as endangered, has increased to a record high of 2,057 in the latest survey.
The Spring survey indicates 47 more Przewalski's gazelles, as the rare antelope species is better known, have been spotted in the 13 habitats sampled, said He Yubang, head of the administration of Qinghai Lake National Nature Reserve. A total of 2,010 was recorded in a summer observation last August.
Przewalski's gazelle was named after Nikolai Mikhaylovich Przhevalsky, a Russian explorer who found a specimen and brought it back to St. Petersburg in 1875.
A typical Procapra Przewalskii is 110 to 120 centimeters long and weighing about 15 kilograms. The long-horn animal with a short tail was described as a "ballet dancer" on plateau by Przhevalsky because it jumps in a beautiful curve.
The species used to be found in northern and western parts of China, including Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Gansu and Qinghai provinces, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and Tibet Autonomous Region.
However, the animal can now only be found near Qinghai Lake in Qinghai Province. Its population dropped to around 300 in 1990s. It was listed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN).
He Yubang said the habitats of the Przewalski's gazelle also increased to 13 from 7. Some farmland abandoned for local eco-system restoration has become new home of the rare antelope.
The local governments would consult the wildlife protection bureaus when they carry out agriculture, forestry, husbandry, or irrigation projects. Passages and drinking pools are designed for Przewalski's gazelles in new water conservancy and irrigation projects.
