Photo of Macaca thibetana. Screenshot of 163.com

The Macaca thibetana, a second-class protected animal, has been observed in the wild for the first time in the South China Tiger Provincial Nature Reserve in South China's Guangdong Province.

This is the first video recording of the activity of the Macaca thibetana and the first discovery of a primate in the region. The macaque quite familiar to Chinese people is a subspecies of Macaca thibetana, living in Mount Emei in Southwest China's Sichuan Province. They are not afraid of humans and can live peacefully with visitors, although they sometimes play tricks on people.

As the largest category of the Chinese macaque genus, the Macaca thibetana has a body length of 61 to 72 centimeters, a tail length of about 7 centimeters, and a weight of 12 to 18 kilograms. It is an endemic species in China, mainly distributed in Central China in the past. It usually lives in the mountainous broad-leaved forest area and likes to move on the ground. The sighting of the species in Guangdong indicates that the region's forest resources are well protected and the diversity of the species is gradually improving, experts said.