Chinese researchers at Dali University have recently reported their discovery of a new plant and four insect species in Cangshan Mountain in southwest China's Yunnan Province.
The five species include a new Iris and four Panorpa.
The new plant species discovered is named the Iris cangshanensis. Irises are a diverse genus, with over 300 species globally and more than 60 found in China.
"This iris is distinct from the other iris species we've known. We've determined it to be a new iris species," said Jiang Xianfeng, one of the researchers.
The researchers also documented four new Panorpa species endemic to the Cangshan Mountain: the Panorpa Huadianba, Panorpa kurong, Panorpa shengyingfeng, and Panorpa vajroides.
Panorpa are sensitive aquatic insects that inhabit pristine high-altitude forest streams. China is home to over 200 known Panorpa species, representing roughly half of the global diversity of the insect order.
Five new plant, animal species discovered in Yunnan
China and Kazakhstan have witnessed an upsurge in people-to-people and cultural exchanges in recent years, a development that Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed in a signed article published in Kazakh media outlets prior to his visit to the central Asian country.
Xi arrived for a state visit to Kazakhstan on Tuesday, where he will also attend the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
On the same day, the signed article from the Chinese president was published in the Kazakhstanskaya Pravda newspaper and Kazinform International News Agency under the title "Staying True to Our Shared Commitment and Opening a New Chapter in China-Kazakhstan Relations."
In the article, Xi highlighted the enduring friendship between the Chinese and Kazakh peoples, citing an example involving Chinese musician Xian Xinhai and Kazakh composer Bakhytzhan Baikadamov.
Over 80 years ago, Xian and Baikadamov met and became close and devoted friends despite their different nationalities and languages.
"In 1943, my father happened to meet Xian Xinghai, who was sitting on a box holding a violin. Seeing how helpless and homeless Xian was, my father took his hand and brought him home," Baikadamova's daughter Baldyrgan said.
Xi also mentioned the much-respected Kazakh ophthalmologist Saulebek Kabibekov, who treated more than 200,000 patients during his 25-year stay in northeastern China.
There was also a nod to the hugely popular Kazakh singer Dimash Kudaibergen, who took China by storm after he won the second place in a popular reality singing competition, "Singer 2017", and later had the chance to meet Xi.
"I first met President Xi in 2017. After the performance, he came to me and told me about his impressions [of] my work and musical journey in China. Since then, I've been exploring Chinese culture and history which, of course, has inspired me infinitely," said Kudaibergen.
People-to-people exchanges between the two countries have also become more frequent since mutual visa-exemption arrangements took effect last year, facilitating greater travel between the two sides.
Last year, a total of 600,000 cross-border trips were recorded. In the first quarter of 2024, the number of visits in both directions had already amounted to 200,000 and are expected to reach a new high by the end of the year.
China, Kazakhstan see upsurge in people-to-people, cultural exchanges
