XINING,March20(Xinhua)--OnthevastJinyintanGrasslandsinnorthwestChina'sQinghaiProvince,afluffyChinesedesertcatnamedHuangTaiJiisroamingaroundinsearchofprey.Itishardtobelievethisadorableandinquisitivefelinewasascaredandinjuredcreatureonlyafewmonthsago.Accordingtoitsrescuers,HuangTaiJiwascaughtinamousetrapwhilehuntingforchickensinaherder'syardinQinghai'sHaiyanCountyinJune2023.Listedasanationalfirst-classprotectedanimalinChina,theChinesedesertcatisapreciousfelinespeciesofgreatimportancetoecologicaldiversity.Fortunately,thetrapdidnothurtitsbones,andHuangTaiJiwassoonrescuedandtransportedtoXiningWildlifeParkinQinghai'scapitalcityofXiningfortreatment.TheparkdecidedtoreleaseHuangTaiJiintothewildafteraboutamonthoftreatmentandrecovery.TogetherwithresearchersfromtheCollegeofVeterinaryMedicineofChinaAgriculturalUniversity,rescuerssetthecatfreeonJuly23,2023.Asatellitepositioningcollarwasattachedtotheanimal.ItwasthefirsttimeaChinesedesertcatwasreleasedwithasatellitepositioningdeviceattachedtoit,saidQiXinzhang,deputydirectorofXiningWildlifePark."Thecollarcollectsinformationconcerningitslatitude,longitude,altitude,temperature,andeveninstantaneousvelocityviaGPSsatellitepositioningtechnology,anduploadsthedataeverytwohours,"saidQi.Thankstosuchinformation,Qiandhiscolleaguescaneffectivelymonitorthecat'sconditionandactivities."Wecantellfromthecollecteddatawhetherthecatiscapturedorinjured,andthusoffertimelyaidshouldanyemergencyhappen,"headded.Thecollardoesnotonlyprovideresearcherswithquicksolutionstosavingthecat'slife.Inaddition,QiisabletopinpointHuangTaiJi'smovementrangeonasatellitemap,whichrevealedatotalrangemeasuringabout200squarekilometers,whilehighlightinga36-square-kilometerareawherethecatspentmostofitstime."PreviousresearchsuggestedthattheaverageactiveareaofChinesedesertcatswasonlyabout3.3squarekilometers.Withinsightsprovidedbysatellitepositioningcollars,wegottolearnthattheroamingareaforthiscatismuchlarger,sheddingnewlightonrelatedstudies,"saidQi.Basedoncollecteddata,XiningWildlifeParkofficialssetupeightinfraredcamerasintheareaswhereHuangTaiJiwasmostcommonlyfound,andobtainedlotsofvaluableinformationaboutthecatandotherwildanimalsinthisregion."Wenowhaveabetterunderstandingofthelivingenvironment,diet,andnaturalrivalsofChinesedesertcats,allthankstothesatellitepositioningcollar,"Qisaid.SatellitepositioningtechnologynotonlyoffersamoreefficientwaytoprotectandstudytheChinesedesertcat,butisalsoempoweringwildlifepreservationinvariousotherplacesinChina.AccordingtoareportreleasedbyChina'sBeidouNavigationSatelliteSystem,satellitepositioningdeviceshavebeenusedfortheprotectionandresearchofendangeredanimalsrangingfromAsianelephantstogiantpandas.Inadditiontoaccuratepositioningdata,thesystemalsooffersinnovativefunctionsincludingsignal-freetelegraphcommunication,enablingfieldresearcherstotrackanimalsinremoteareas.Qibelievestechnologieslikesatellitepositioningarethefutureofwildlifepreservation."WewillkeepreleasingrescuedChinesedesertcatsfittedwithsatellitepositioningcollars,andinitiateartificialbreedingofthesecatsbasedonwhatwehavelearned,"Qisaid.Editor:DisclaimerTheviewsandopinionsexpressedinthisarticlearethoseoftheauthor's,GMW.cnmakesnorepresentationsastoaccuracy,suitability,orvalidityofanyinformationonthissiteandwillnotbeliableforanyerrors,omissions,ordelaysinthisinformation.