Preserving the Elusive: The Fight for China's Golden Snub-Nosed Monkey

Wed Oct 22 2025 00:07:26 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Scientists and local protectors unite to save one of China's rarest primate species, the golden snub-nosed monkey, facing extinction due to habitat destruction and poaching.

Once on the brink of extinction, the golden snub-nosed monkey population is slowly recovering thanks to conservation efforts led by Professor Yang Jingyuan and local communities in Shennongjia National Park. This article explores the comprehensive strategies implemented to protect these unique primates and the ongoing challenges they face amidst environmental changes.

The battle to save China's rare snub-nosed monkey

Until the 1980s, people roamed the mountains of Shennongjia in central China hunting monkeys for their meat and fur. Poor farmers were still clearing vast areas of trees, and as their environment collapsed around them, so did the local population of golden snubbed-nosed monkeys, dropping below 500 in the wild.

This was the situation when new graduate Yang Jingyuan arrived in 1991, still in his early 20s. The monkeys' home was being destroyed by logging so their numbers were going down fast, he says. Now it's being protected, and the monkey figures are really improving. Today, Professor Yang is the director of the Shennongjia National Park Scientific Research Institute, the resident expert on this endangered species.

Katherina — Professor Yang took the BBC into the forest to meet the rare monkeys

Prof Yang, 55, has dedicated his life to understanding and conserving this endangered sub-species of snub-nosed monkeys that exist only in the mountains of Hubei province. He elaborated on their complex social structure, revealing that a family can consist of one male, three to five females, and their offspring.

Finding these elusive creatures, which have been able to thrive over a 400 square kilometer area solely due to conservation measures, is still a challenge due to their speed and shyness. Teams like Prof Yang's have spent years building trust and understanding the monkeys' behaviors.

Now more than 1,600 golden snub-nosed monkeys inhabit the region, with hopes to exceed 2,000 in the next decade. Prof Yang remains optimistic, crediting improved habitat protection and community engagement as crucial to their thriving population.