KUNMING -- Twenty varieties of rare wildlife under state protection have been spotted in a national nature reserve in Southwest China's Yunnan province, said the reserve on Thursday.

Researchers in Yunnan's Wumeng Mountains National Nature Reserve have found images of various endangered wild animals caught by infrared cameras between March and November 2021. Wildlife including large Indian civet, Sichuan partridge, and Emei Shan liocichla, all under top-level state protection, as well as other endangered animals were monitored during the period.

"The monitoring results indicate the improving ecological environment of the reserve. Based on further data analysis, we have defined the distribution and population of the wildlife under state protection," said Li Pengying with the administration bureau of the reserve.

The Wumeng Mountains National Nature Reserve, located in Zhaotong city in Yunnan, covers more than 26,000 hectares. It provides shelters for rare and endangered endemic species and safeguards subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forests.