Lishui city – located in East China's Zhejiang province – is one of 32 designated priority areas for the conservation of terrestrial biodiversity in China.

Lishui began an investigation into its biodiversity on December 2019 and so far a number of new species – such as the Megophrys baishanzuensis, a new frog species, as well as a variety of wildlife under State key protection – have been discovered in the areas administered by the city.

To further strengthen the protection of its biodiversity, Lishui started a new round of investigations this year. They are being carried out in 12 key habitats – including Yunhe terrace, the Songyang Ruoliao primary forest area and in the Jingning Wangdongyang alpine wetland.

The total area covered by the 12 habitats is 1,556 square kilometers and the investigations are targeting vascular plants, terrestrial vertebrates, aquatic organisms, insects and macrofungi, among others.

In addition, the Lishui municipal government has in recent years established several nature reserves to protect rare species, such as mandarin ducks, Chinese mergansers and ancient trees.

Furthermore, the city has rolled out a series of regulations and policies to ensure the species are well protected.