Smart Tech Is Helping to Protect China’s Giant Pandas智能科技正在幫助保護中國的大熊貓

The giant panda has long been the face of animal conservation， ever since World Wide Fund for Nature （WWF） adopted the lovely black-and-white bear as its logo in 1961. But， after decades of conservation programs， pandas are no longer endangered.

The biggest threat to the wild panda population is habitat loss. Its reliance on bamboo for sustenance has made the species particularly vulnerable to environmental changes. And while around 54% of its wild habitat is protected， these areas are still vulnerable to natural disasters， such as wildfires.

To protect panda habitat， the “Digital Panda System”， developed in a joint venture between the Sichuan Forest and Grassland Administration and? tech company Huawei， was deployed across forest and grasslands in Sichuan Province in February 2021. The instant reporting system helps to detect wildfires in hard-to-reach areas， alerting rangers and fire departments so they can intervene quickly， as well as monitoring wildlife.

“Digital technology will play a greater role in biodiversity conservation in the future，” says Zhao Jian， who oversaw the development of the Digital Panda System.

The system collects data from 596 cameras， 45 infrared cameras， drones and satellites， which it stores in the cloud. Conservationists and researchers use this data to monitor， track and study wildlife， as well as detect wildfire hot spots.

自1961年世界自然基金會（WWF）將可愛的黑白大熊貓作為其標志以來，大熊貓一直是動物保護的代言人。不過，經過幾十年的保護工作，大熊貓不再瀕臨滅絕。

野生大熊貓種群面臨的最大威脅是棲息地的喪失。大熊貓對竹子的依賴使該物種特別容易受到環境變化的影響。雖然大約54%的野生棲息地受到了保護，但這些地區仍然容易受到自然災害的影響，比如野火。

為了保護大熊貓棲息地，四川省森林和草原管理局與華為技術公司共同投資開發的“數字熊貓系統”于2021年2月部署在四川省的森林和草原上。這款即時報告系統有助于探測難以到達地區的野火，并向護林員和消防部門發出警報，以便他們能迅速干預，并監測野生動物。

“在未來，數字技術將在生物多樣性保護方面發揮更大的作用?！睌底中茇埾到y的開發負責人趙堅說道。

該系統通過596個攝像頭、45個紅外攝像頭、無人機和衛星收集數據，并將其存儲在云端。 自然環境保護主義者和研究人員利用這些數據來監測、跟蹤和研究野生動物，以及探測野火多發地。

Because the cameras are used in remote areas where there is little or no power supply， the system is solar powered and uses microwave transmission， which doesnt require cables and is more reliable in complex terrain， says Zhao.

According to Huawei， the system assists 140，000 forest rangers， grassland managers， conservationists and researchers in Sichuan. In its first five months of operations， it detected over 600 wildfire hot spots， reducing forest fires by 71.6% compared to the same period the previous year.

Despite its name， the Digital Panda System offers protection to more than just pandas， says Zhao. The system covers the Sichuan section of the newly established Giant Panda National Park—an area of over 27，000 square kilometers that connects 67 reserves across three provinces. The park is home to Chinas 1，800 wild pandas—along with a further 8，000 animal and plant species， including endangered animals such as red pandas and the golden snub-nosed monkey.

Zhao says that in the future， the Digital Panda System could be extended across the sections of the national park that lie in Shaanxi and Gansu provinces， creating more “success stories” for other endangered species.

趙堅說，由于這些攝像頭被用于電力供應很少或沒有電力供應的偏遠地區，因此該系統由太陽能供電，使用微波傳輸，不需要電纜，在復雜地形中更可靠。

據華為稱，該系統為四川的14萬名護林員、草原管理者、環境保護主義者和研究人員提供幫助。在其運營的頭五個月，它發現了600多個火災多發點，森林火災較上年同期減少了71.6%。

趙堅說，盡管該系統的名字叫“數字熊貓系統”，但它不只是對熊貓提供保護。該系統覆蓋了新建立的大熊貓國家公園的四川部分。大熊貓國家公園面積有27 000多平方千米，連接了三個省的67個保護區。 該公園是中國1 800只野生大熊貓以及8 000多種動植物的家園，包括瀕危動物小熊貓和金絲猴等。

趙堅說，在未來，數字熊貓系統可以擴展到位于陜西和甘肅兩省的大熊貓國家公園，為其他瀕危物種創造更多的“成功故事”。

Word Bank

conservation /'k?ns?'ve???n/ n. （對環境的）保護

habitat /'h?b?t?t/ n. 棲息地

vulnerable /'v?ln?r?bl/ adj. 脆弱的;易受傷害的

Those most vulnerable to heat stress are the elderly.

deploy /d?'pl??/ v. 部署;調度

detect /d?'tekt/ v. 查明;探測

The tests are designed to detect the disease early.

terrain /t?'re?n/ n. 地形;地勢