Qianjiadong Primitive Forest Scenic Area

Qianjiadong Primitive Forest Scenic Area

The Qianjiadong Primitive Forest Scenic Area is a national AAAA-level tourist attraction and a national nature reserve.

The Qianjiadong Primitive Forest Scenic Area is located 18 kilometers southeast of Guanyang County, covering a total area of 125 square kilometers. As a national nature reserve, it boasts abundant plant and animal resources. Second-class nationally protected plants include *Fokienia hodginsii*, while third-class protected plants include *Tsuga longibracteata*, *Tsuga chinensis var. tchekiangensis*, *Taxus chinensis*, and *Pseudotaxus chienii*. Among the second-class nationally protected rare wild animals are the small Indian civet, rhesus monkey, pangolin, golden pheasant, sambar deer, and Chinese giant salamander. The scenic area includes one of the Five Ranges—the Dupang Mountains—whose highest peak, Jiucailing (Leek Peak), stands at an elevation of 2,009.3 meters, making it the second highest peak in South China. At the western foot of the mountain lies a basin surrounded by high mountains and primitive forests, with lush green grass and crystal-clear waters in the center. This is the Qianjiadong, a sacred land where the Yao people have sought their roots and yearned to return for centuries. According to the legend of the "Nine-Jointed Ox Horn" and related historical records, the Yao people were falsely accused by imperial troops and forced to leave Qianjiadong. From May 5 to 7, 1998, the "China Guanyang Dupang Mountains Qianjiadong Symposium," organized by the Philosophy Department of Wuhan University, the Anthropology Department of Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, the Guangxi Yao Studies Association, and the Guanyang County Party Committee and County Government, was held in Guanyang. Experts and scholars unanimously agreed that Qianjiadong is located in the area centered around Jiucailing of the Dupang Mountains, which has been confirmed as the birthplace of the Yao people.

The Guangxi Qianjiadong Nature Reserve was approved as an autonomous region-level nature reserve in 1982 and was promoted to a national nature reserve in February 2006. It is situated on the western slope of the Dupang Mountains in Guanyang County, northeastern Guangxi, with geographical coordinates between 25°22'–25°31' N and 111°11'–111°20' E. The reserve covers a total area of 12,231.0 hectares, including a core zone of 6,470.2 hectares (52.9% of the total area), a buffer zone of 1,999.0 hectares (16.3%), and an experimental zone of 3,761.8 hectares (30.8%). It is designed to protect the pristine mid-subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest ecosystem and its vertical zonation, particularly large native communities of *Tsuga longibracteata* and *Fokienia hodginsii*. The reserve focuses on safeguarding rare and endangered species and their natural habitats, while also maximizing the water conservation functions of the forest ecosystem. It serves as a medium-sized national nature reserve integrating ecological protection, scientific research, public education, and the sustainable use of natural resources.