Living National Treasures: China

Checklists of Endemics

In addition to the country's most famous endemic species, the Giant Panda (ARKive), mammals unique to China include the possibly extinct Baiji or Yangtze River Dolphin (EDGE), the Hainan Gymnure (EDGE), the Golden Snub-nosed Monkey (ARKive), the Yunnan Snub-nosed Monkey (ARKive), the Chinese Mountain Cat (Cat Specialist Group), the extinct in the wild Milu or Pere David's Deer (Ultimate Ungulate), the White-lipped Deer (Ultimate Ungulate), and as a breeding species the Tibetan Antelope or Chiru (ARKive).

China is rich in pheasants found nowhere else including the Chinese Monal (ARKive), Reeves’s Pheasant (ARKive), and the Brown Eared Pheasant (BirdLife Int'l). The Pink-tailed Bunting (Creagrus) is sometimes considered to belong to a family of its own, the Urocynchramidae. Other endemic birds include the Giant Laughingthrush (Oriental Bird Images), the Slaty Bunting (IBC), the Silver Oriole (BirdLife Int'l), the Chinese Grouse (ARKive), the Sichuan Jay (IBC), and the last wild Asian Crested Ibis (BirdLife Int'l).

Reptiles known only from China include the critically endangered Chinese Alligator (Crocodilian Species List), the Chinese Crocodile Lizard (ARKive), the Hot-spring Keelback (BBC), the Twin-spotted Ratsnake (ratsnakes.com), the Mangshan Viper (elaphe.info), and the Golden-headed Box Turtle (Turtles of the World). Amphibians exclusively found in China include the Shangcheng Stout Salamander (Caudata Culture), the Chinhai Spiny Newt (EDGE), the paddletail newts Pachytriton (Naturalis), the Hainan Little Toad Parapelophryne scalpta (AmphibiaWeb), and the toothed toads Oreolalax (ARKive). The Chinese Giant Salamander (EDGE) is the world's largest amphibian and the Concave-eared Torrent Frog Odorrana (or Amolops) tormota (EurekaAlert!) is notable for its ability to emit ultrasonic calls.

China is second only to Brazil in endemic freshwater fish species. Genera unique to China include the critically endangered Chinese Paddlefish Psephurus (Jay Capachi), Pseudexostoma (PlanetCatfish), the Beautiful Hillstream Loach Traccatichthys (Loaches Online), the Chinese Sucker Myxocyprinus (James S Koga), the golden-line barbels Sinocyclocheilus (Science Museums of China), Rhinogobio (eol), Anabarilius (eol), Aspiorhynchus (SpringerLink), and the Slender Mandarinfish Coreosiniperca (Science Museums of China).

Butterflies restricted to China include the Three-tailed Bhutan Glory Bhutanitis thaidina (Science Museums of China), the Chinese Gifu Butterfly Luehdorfia chinensis (Science Museums of China), and the endemic genera Mesapia (Pieridae holarcticae), Sinonympha (gorodinski.ru), and Davidina (SZMN). Other insects unique to China include a stag beetle Lucanus hermani (Lucanes du Monde), a ground beetle Aristochroa splendida (p. 12 of CAS pdf file) and the dragonflies Sinosticta ogatai (Asia Dragonfly), Archineura incarnata (Asia Dragonfly), and Philosina buchi (Asia Dragonfly).

China has two endemic families of vascular plants. The Hardy Rubber Tree Eucommia ulmoides (mobot) is the sole member of the Eucommiaceae and is extinct in the wild. The Maidenhair Tree Ginkgo biloba (ARKive) only occurs in the wild in Zhejiang but this may not be a naturally occurring population. The Maidenhair Tree is the sole member not only of an endemic family, the Ginkgoaceae, but also of the order Ginkgoales and the class Ginkgoopsida making it a true living fossil. Two other Chinese plants are sometimes placed in their own families: Acanthochlamys bracteata (Flora of China) and the Dove Tree Davidia involucrata (Wikipedia).

Additional endemic genera of plants include the Dawn Redwood Metasequoia (Wikipedia), the Yellowhorn Xanthoceras (SysTax), the Jacktree Sinojackia (NCSU), the Tara Wingceltis Pteroceltis (NCSU), the Chinese Pearlbloom Tree Poliothyrsis (Salisbury Univ.), the Golden Larch Pseudolarix (Wikipedia), Paraisometrum (BBC), and an orchid Aceratorchis (asian flora). Other spectacular plants unique to China include the Regal Lily Lilium regale (Nova), a gentian Gentiana hexaphylla (Flora of China), a primrose Primula blinii (Flora of China) and over 400 endemic Rhododendron species such as Rhododendron wardii (Biodiversity of the Hengduan Mountains).

The richest temperate country for endemics, China is included in several biodiversity hotspots: Mountains of Southwest China (Biodiversity Hotspots), Mountains of Central Asia (Biodiversity Hotspots), Indo-Burma (Biodiversity Hotspots), and Himalaya (Biodiversity Hotspots). Important aquatic areas include the Yangtze River and Lakes (WWF), the Xi Jiang or Pearl River (WWF), and the Southern Japan, Taiwan and Southern China coral reef hotspot (Reef Guardian pdf file).