Jian'ou Zoo and Botanical Garden

Jian'ou Zoo and Botanical Garden

Jian'ou Zoo and Botanical Garden

Jian’ou City's vegetation belongs to the typical mid-subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest zone. The city’s vegetation includes 6 formation groups: broad-leaved forest, coniferous forest, evergreen broad-leaved forest, bamboo forest, shrubland, and shrub-grassland; 9 formations: warm coniferous forest, warm mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forest, temperate coniferous forest, evergreen and deciduous broad-leaved mixed forest, evergreen broad-leaved forest, bamboo forest, deciduous broad-leaved shrubland, shrub-grassland, and evergreen broad-leaved shrubland; 16 formation series, 73 formations, and 205 associations.

Jian’ou City has 1,416 species of vascular plants from 442 genera and 177 families, including 121 species of ferns from 37 genera and 32 families; 22 species of gymnosperms from 15 genera and 8 families; and 1,292 species of angiosperms from 390 genera and 137 families. Common plant families include Taxodiaceae, Pinaceae, Fagaceae, Poaceae, and Fabaceae, among 21 others. Major tree species include Chinese fir, Masson pine, sweet chestnut, moso bamboo, and miscanthus, totaling over 70 types. Rare and ancient tree species include ginkgo, liriodendron, dawn redwood, torreya, Chinese fir, submersed cinnamon, machilus, rosewood, yew, beech, nanmu, camellia, michelia, and magnolia, numbering 14 in total. Key economic tree species include oil-tea camellia, tung tree, lacquer tree, palm, and Chinese chestnut, among 14 others.

The city is home to 330 species of wild animals from 87 families and 28 orders, of which 17 are under national protection. These include 1st-class protected species such as the South China tiger, clouded leopard, leopard, sambar deer, golden cat, and yellow-bellied tragopan; and 2nd-class protected species such as the tufted deer, serow, large Indian civet, musk deer, small Indian civet, pangolin, otter, macaque, silver pheasant, mandarin duck, brown wood owl, python, and black bear. Animal distribution varies by species and location. Animals with high reproductive capacity are mainly found in areas with less pristine forest and more human activity, while rare species with low reproductive rates mostly inhabit deep mountainous regions with sparse human presence and primitive broad-leaved mixed forests. Due to the reduction of pristine forests and lax wildlife conservation management, the population of wild animals has significantly declined.