Unfortunately, it was once a rare, endemic animal to our country, but it went extinct domestically and can now only be introduced from abroad.
Recently, the news that the Hubei sturgeon, a national Grade I protected animal, has gone extinct has topped trending searches. As one of the largest freshwater fish in the Yangtze River, the Hubei sturgeon was once a resident of the Yangtze, and people believed that it may have already gone extinct sometime between 2005 and 2010. It wasn't until recently that Chinese experts issued a statement, and people reluctantly admitted that the Hubei sturgeon had indeed gone extinct.
Hubei sturgeon
In addition to the Hubei sturgeon, there is actually another rare animal in China's modern history that is even rarer than the Hubei sturgeon, but it has already gone extinct domestically and can only be introduced from abroad. What happened?
Przewalski's horse
This animal is the Przewalski's horse, an animal with a head like a horse, horns like deer, hooves like cattle, and a tail like a donkey, commonly known as the 'Four-legged Creature'. It originated in the wetland areas of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. It is gregarious, good at swimming, and likes to eat tender grass and aquatic plants. Przewalski's horses were once widespread in China. Later, due to natural climate changes and the hunting tradition of the Han Dynasty emperors, who particularly loved hunting Przewalski's horses, the Przewalski's horse faced near extinction as early as the late Han Dynasty. By the Yuan Dynasty, the Yuan government captured the remaining Przewalski's horses and raised them in the imperial hunting grounds for the Yuan Dynasty emperors to hunt. Until the 19th century, the Przewalski's horse had become so scarce that it was only left in the Beijing Nanhai Imperial Hunting Ground. In 1866, French missionary Father David discovered a group of Przewalski's horses, and was amazed. The news spread within Western countries, and then foreign envoys used bribery, theft, and other means to obtain some for their own countries, which led to a further reduction in the number of Przewalski's horses in the Imperial Hunting Ground. Later, in 1894, the flooding of the Yongding River destroyed the wall of the Imperial Hunting Ground, and the remaining Przewalski's horses escaped and were hunted and robbed by peasants and later the Eight-Nation Alliance. Thus, this rare animal native to China disappeared from the Chinese land.
Przewalski's horse
Fortunately, with China's opening up to the outside world and the improvement of China's international relations, in 1983, the British government sent some individuals of Przewalski's horse back to China, and more Przewalski's horses were introduced from abroad. Now, some Przewalski's horses have been released into the wild and have gradually recovered in China.
