Combined efforts needed to protect China’s wildlife

The State Forestry Administation launched a wildlife protection campaign on March 2 in Beijing Zoo.(Na CHunfeng provided to China Daily)

Greater efforts from all members of society are needed to protect China's wildlife, conservationists urged on Monday.

Monday — March 3 — marked the first World Wildlife Day, designated by the United Nations General Assembly to celebrate and raise awareness of the world's wild fauna and flora.

Environmental pollution, logging and illegal trading remain a threat to wildlife and their habitats, Wan Ziming, an official with the State Forestry Administration, said at a seminar on animal protection organized by the country's wildlife watchdog.

"The government and the public need to take more measures to improve protection," he said.

Meng Xianlin, director of the China Management Authority for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora, said that under joint efforts by the government and the public, the situation of more than 70 extremely endangered species, such as wild pandas and the crested ibis, is improving.

China introduced special protection for endangered species, such as golden monkeys and white-flag dolphins, since the late 1980s, and strictly banned poaching and trading.

The country also led an operation code-named Cobra II against international wildlife crimes between Dec 30, 2013, and Jan 26, 2014. The operation uncovered more than 350 cases and involved the capture of more than 3 metric tons of ivory and ivory products, more than 1,000 hides and a number of other wildlife products.

The Chinese government also destroyed 6.1 tons of confiscated ivory it had seized over the years in January in Guangdong Province.