Newly release surveillance video clips showed three rare leopards were spotted together twice in a month at a national nature reserve in northwest China's Shaanxi Province, indicating the big cats' healthy reproduction in the region.
Staff members at the Zhouzhi National Nature Reserve reported three leopards were seen in two videos recorded in May by an infrared surveillance camera, with only 10 days in between, after sorting out the field monitoring data recently.
The three sturdy leopards were captured strolling along a path on the sunny afternoon of May 16. One of them stopped to lick its big forepaw before catching up with the other two.
The leopards appeared on the same surveillance camera once again on the morning of May 26. Two of the leopards stood at the path that divides in the morning mist, seeming to decide on which way to go. And then one of them headed to the right, joined by the third leopard. The one that hesitated at first followed away as well. The big cats in the two videos, one adult and two sub-adults, should be the same three, probably a mom carrying her two cubs, the reserve staff interpreted according to the law of leopards' regular activity range.
A survey result shows that there are around 10 leopards in the Zhouzhi National Nature Reserve. They were captured a total of 86 times by 31 infrared surveillance cameras across the reserve in the second half of this year.
Leopards are classified as national first-class protected animals in China. As apex predators, they play a vital role in balancing the biologic chain in the Zhouzhi County Nature Reserve. The frequent appearance of leopard cubs, sub-adults or adults indicates a young and stable leopard pack in the reserve.
Three rare leopards spotted at nature reserve in northwest China's Shaanxi
Apple CEO Tim Cook said Monday the American tech giant's present achievements would not be possible without Chinese partners, as he was to attend the 2nd China International Supply Chain Expo in Beijing.
It's Cook's third visit to China within a year and his first-time presence at the supply chain-themed expo, scheduled for November 26-30 at the China International Exhibition Center in Beijing.
"I'm thrilled to be here and I'm so proud that Apple has an exhibit here with our partners," Cook said while touring the expo in the company of Ren Hongbin, chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade.
"I valued them very highly. We could not do what we do without them," he said.
More than 80 percent of Apple's 200 major suppliers have factories in China.
As the world's first exhibition with the theme of supply chain, the China International Supply Chain Expo aims to connect upstream, midstream and downstream sectors, bring together large, medium-sized and small enterprises, coordinate industry, academia, research and practical application, and foster interaction between Chinese and international businesses.
It serves four significant functions of promoting trade, fostering investment cooperation, aggregating innovation, and encouraging learning and exchange. The expo is committed to creating a new window for promoting high levels of openness, a fresh platform supporting the establishment of a new development paradigm, as well as a new vehicle for promoting the construction of an open world economy.
Themed "Connecting the World for a Shared Future," the second edition vertically showcases advanced concepts, products, and technologies of relevant industrial chains, and horizontally showcases supporting services such as finance and insurance, logistics and distribution, business consulting, and legal service.
Apple values highly Chinese partners: CEO
