High-tech tools keep track of rare milu deer

Ranger Wang Chuanjun's workday used to be a 10-hour battle against the elements. Patrolling the 1,567-hectare Hubei Shishou Milu National Nature Reserve meant trekking through waist-high weeds and sinking into mud pits swarming with mosquitoes and snakes.

Today, the 57-year-old ranger's morning begins not with a motorbike ride into the reserve, but with a digital dashboard.

The reserve, home to the rare milu deer — also known as Pere David's deer — has undergone a massive digital transformation. By deploying an intelligent information platform powered by 5G and artificial intelligence, the reserve has replaced manual logs and "blind" patrols with a network of 450 high-definition cameras, 50 infrared cameras and a suite of environmental monitors.

The shift from manual labor to data-driven conservation is already paying dividends. Since March 2024, the system has issued over 3,000 early warnings, ranging from equipment malfunctions to potential fire hazards and illegal human intrusions into the reserve.

Wang's daily routine is to review the feeds from cameras to check the distribution of the deer, whether any fawns have been born, and whether any deer seem unwell.

Then he checks the environmental data, such as soil moisture, water quality and weather, to make sure they're all within normal ranges.

He still patrols daily, but he follows the most ideal route to wherever any abnormal alerts have been reported. "It makes our work so much easier, efficient and effective," Wang said.