What Is a Land of Symbiosis? It's Breaking Cocoons, Howling Gibbons, Every Creature Across a 7,000-Meter Elevation Drop

Interdependence is the essence of life.

No living being can exist in isolation; it must coexist with others and develop into an organic community to realize its true value. A piece of land teeming with countless lives thrives when their connections are harmonious, bringing blessings to all. Conversely, disharmony may spell disaster. Only through harmonious coexistence can all things mutually flourish and achieve sustainable development.

Stichophthalma butterflies of the Butterfly Valley, Paphiopedilum motuoense of Medog, and Western black-crested gibbons of Wuliang Mountain.

Therefore, the 2023 China Wildlife Imaging Competition organizing committee has chosen "Land of Symbiosis" as this year's theme. Three teams, composed of professional photographers from Chinese National Geographic and six renowned scientists, will venture into three "lands of symbiosis": the Butterfly Valley in Jinping County, Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture; the Wuliang Mountain National Nature Reserve in Pu'er City, Yunnan; and Medog County, Nyingchi City, Tibet Autonomous Region. Partnering with imaging technology collaborator Snapdragon, they will explore the mysteries of symbiotic life and document the wonders of mutual flourishing.

Using Snapdragon devices for observation and recording during the expedition.

Butterfly Valley, Jinping County, Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture

Every May and June, hundreds of millions of butterflies emerge en masse in a short period, filling the serene forests with swirling clouds of wings—a rare spectacle of life. Hu Shaoji, associate researcher at Yunnan University, and Zhang Chenliang, director of Chinese National Geographic's media center and deputy editor of the magazine Natural History, ventured into this "land of symbiosis" to experience being surrounded by butterflies and uncover the secrets of their coexistence with this land.

Butterfly Valley, where butterflies fill the sky.

Wuliang Mountain National Nature Reserve, Pu'er City

This is the shared home of Western black-crested gibbons, Phayre's leaf monkeys, and other primates. With only about 600 individuals, the Western black-crested gibbon is rarer than the wild giant panda. Here, they occupy their niches in the ancient forests, creating a vast and profound realm of primate calls. Wuliang Mountain also hosts China's only habituated population of Western black-crested gibbons. Professor Fan Pengfei from Sun Yat-sen University's School of Life Sciences and science writer and wildlife photographer Hua Luochengshi journeyed to Wuliang Mountain to unravel their survival mysteries and experience the "jungle highway" firsthand.

A Western black-crested gibbon leaping through Wuliang Mountain's canopy.

A hidden paradise in the world's deepest and most treacherous Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon, where the northernmost tropical rainforest on Earth nestles into the embrace of the snowy plateau, creating a lush and fertile world. Medog is the warmest, wettest, and most biodiverse region in Tibet. What traces of miraculous life will Professor Lü Zhi of Peking University and Dr. Gu Yourong, associate professor at Capital Normal University, discover during their Medog expedition?

These three regions preserve exceptional biodiversity, with rich and harmonious ecological communities, making them rare ecological sanctuaries in China. Yet, each holds unique secrets of symbiosis.

The only place in China where hundreds of millions of butterflies erupt periodically.

The Stichophthalma butterfly, one of the iconic species of Jinping's Ma'andi Butterfly Valley, stands out for its distinctive wing patterns and lively flight. These vibrant butterflies coexist with other species, forming a thriving ecological community.

The intricate details of a Stichophthalma butterfly's wings captured by a smartphone lens.

Why does the periodic mass emergence of Stichophthalma butterflies occur only in Jinping?

Butterfly eruptions typically result from complex interactions of climate, vegetation, food availability, and predator populations. Ma'andi lies south of 23.5°N latitude, bordering the northern tropics and southern subtropics, with abundant rainfall exceeding 2,400 mm annually—creating ideal humid conditions for butterfly growth and reproduction.

Topographic map of Jinping's Butterfly Valley.

The answer lies in Ma'andi's 46,000 mu (about 3,067 hectares) of bamboo forests. Butterfly larvae often have specialized diets: Euploea mulciber feeds only on Marsdenia tinctoria, while Troides aeacus prefers Aristolochia tagala. These vast stands of Sinocalamus affinis provide ample food for Stichophthalma butterflies.

"Land of Symbiosis - The Butterfly Spectacle"

The Stichophthalma howqua primarily feeds on Sinobambusa tootsik, with Dendrocalamus membranaceus as a supplementary food source. During their egg-laying period, they cluster their eggs on the undersides of bamboo leaves, allowing the larvae to feed immediately upon hatching.

A single female butterfly lays 80–120 eggs at once, with the large leaves of Sinobambusa tootsik serving as the ideal "birthing bed." The larvae can also gather several bamboo leaves together and bind them with silk to create a "safe house" to evade predators. This gives the butterfly larvae a greater chance of survival and development, leading to population surges and periodic large-scale outbreaks.

The four life cycles of the Stichophthalma howqua.

The massive outbreaks of Stichophthalma howqua often overshadow another fact: Ma’andi, with its 70% primary forest coverage, is also home to an incredibly rich variety of other butterfly species. Hundreds of butterfly species have been documented locally, with their density and diversity ranking among the highest in China per unit area. Beyond Stichophthalma howqua, this region hosts the uniquely spotted leopard-patterned Argynnis hyperbius, the large-winged Troides aeacus whose wings resemble bird wings in flight, as well as numerous pierids, lycaenids, and other butterfly species.

Besides Stichophthalma howqua, hundreds of other butterfly species coexist here in symbiosis.

It’s impractical to implement tailored conservation measures for every butterfly species. Instead, prioritization is key—protecting the most important and endangered species first creates an umbrella effect, safeguarding the entire butterfly community.

In Jinping Butterfly Valley, the delicate and harmonious symbiotic relationship between Stichophthalma howqua and local flora serves as an exemplary model for ecological balance and biodiversity conservation, showcasing nature’s wonder and beauty.

Feeling like the "Fragrant Concubine" of Butterfly Valley.

The Symbiotic Philosophy of Primates in Wuliangshan’s Primeval Forest

"While monkeys chatter endlessly on both banks, the light boat has passed countless mountains." Each dawn in Wuliangshan begins with the enchanting calls of primates.

Compared to Butterfly Valley, Yunnan’s Wuliangshan is undoubtedly more mysterious and primal. In this vast subtropical mid-mountain moist evergreen broadleaf forest in the southern Hengduan Mountains, diverse primates and other organisms form unique and intricate symbiotic relationships, revealing nature’s marvels.

Wuliangshan is home to five primate species: the Western black-crested gibbon, Indochinese gray langur, stump-tailed macaque, rhesus macaque, and slow loris. The most representative are the Western black-crested gibbon and Indochinese gray langur. Wuliangshan is a core habitat and critical conservation area for the Western black-crested gibbon, hosting 104 groups (about 600 individuals) across Jingdong, Zhenyuan, and Nanjian counties in Yunnan.

Schematic map of Wuliangshan Nature Reserve.

The Western black-crested gibbon, known as the "canopy spirit," uses songs to defend territory and communicate. Tailless and about 50 cm long, they exhibit striking sexual dimorphism: males are entirely black, while females are brownish-yellow or orange. The Indochinese gray langur is another thriving primate tribe in these forests. Both species are similar in size, with adults weighing 7–10 kg.

"Land of Symbiosis - The Gibbons’ Chorus of Wuliangshan"

Wuliangshan sustains healthy wild populations of Indochinese gray langurs and Western black-crested gibbons. They frequently encounter each other in the same forest but rarely clash—sometimes even perching peacefully on the same tree.

They share ecological resources like habitats, water sources, and some food, though they compete in areas with abundant resources. By foraging at different heights or for different food types, they avoid direct conflict.

Gray langurs and Western black-crested gibbons feeding on distinct food types.

Wuliangshan’s expansive primeval forest provides them with a diverse and plentiful diet. They adjust their food choices based on seasonal availability and preferences, easing foraging challenges and enabling multiple primate species to coexist harmoniously. No one knows when this symbiosis began, but life here would surely be dull without one another.

Whether it's gibbons, gray langurs, or other primate species, they all heavily rely on this evergreen broad-leaved forest, forming an inseparable symbiotic relationship with it. The forest provides them with shelter and abundant food resources, enabling different primate species to thrive here. At the same time, these primates play a crucial role as seed dispersers. When they consume fruits, they often discard or ingest the seeds, later excreting them elsewhere, thereby promoting the reproduction and spread of various plants and ensuring the healthy succession, renewal, and expansion of the forest.

Motuo: The Epitome of Ecosystems and Biodiversity

A Tropical Paradise on the Plateau, a Plateau within the Tropics

Located in the southwestern frontier of China, Motuo in Nyingchi, Tibet, is a region of stunning natural beauty and rich biodiversity. It was the last county in China to be connected by road. Its unique geographical location and abundant ecological resources provide ideal living conditions for flora and fauna, creating a breathtaking spectacle of symbiosis.

What sets Motuo apart from other biodiverse regions in China is its extraordinarily unique ecological environment. This magnificent land boasts the most extreme vertical climate and vegetation distribution in China, with an elevation drop of over 7,000 meters. It encompasses rainforests, broad-leaved forests, coniferous forests, alpine meadows, and ice-edge zones, forming the world's most complete vertical natural mountain spectrum. Thus, there is only one Motuo in the world, but in a sense, Motuo contains the whole world.

For researchers, this place is both beloved and frustrating. They love it for its vast unexplored scientific potential, yet they are frustrated because even they find it difficult to access every corner of this land. High-quality natural imagery of the region is also relatively scarce.

The diversity of habitats provides suitable living spaces and abundant food resources for various plants and animals. Species from surrounding geographical regions—such as the Tibetan Plateau, the Indochina Peninsula, and the Hengduan Mountains—find their ideal homes here during population dispersal, coexisting in this extraordinary land.

"Land of Symbiosis: The Hidden Realm of Motuo"

Thus, this is both a place where different ecological types coexist and a land where vastly different flora and fauna thrive together. Here, China's tallest Bhutan pines and epiphytic rhododendrons entwine in a passionate embrace high above. It is where the highest-altitude tropical bananas bear abundant fruit, where alpine flowers like blue poppies and primroses gaze upon snow-capped mountains and glaciers, and where orchids such as dendrobiums and pleiones climb moss-covered trees in a magical display.

Himalayan monals and Sclater's monals display their iridescent courtship plumage on alpine meadows, while Bengal tigers, leopards, and snow leopards roam together... This grand spectacle of tropical and plateau species coexisting in harmony ultimately creates the one and only Motuo in the world.

Top left: Coelogyne punctulata; Top right: Rhododendron papillatum;

Bottom left: Rhodiola fastigiata; Bottom right: Musa motuoensis.

Moreover, intricate interdependencies have formed between plants and animals.

Sunbirds, resembling hummingbirds, sip nectar with their long beaks while aiding in pollination. Pika burrows serve as shelters for white-rumped snow finches to breed and evade predators. Bird's nest ferns cling to towering tree canopies, creating whimsical aerial gardens. Parasitic plants like Balanophora and Monotropa uniflora survive by symbiosis with other plants or fungi... The symbiotic relationships in Motuo showcase the complex and wondrous ecological balance of nature. Here, ecosystems and organisms are tightly interconnected, evolving together in mutual dependence.

Harnessing the Power of Technology to Convey the Power of Life

Over the past three years, China National Geographic, in collaboration with Snapdragon, has explored majestic mountains to "Discover China's National Parks" and ventured into deep valleys to "Uncover China's Endemic Species." This year, the biggest difference is our deep dive into three "Lands of Symbiosis," using Snapdragon-powered smart cars, wearables, laptops, and smartphones working in synergy to pioneer a new era of technology-assisted scientific exploration.

Snapdragon-powered smart cars and smartphones aiding scientific research.

Capturing butterflies is truly a technical challenge!

Visiting Butterfly Valley always inspires the desire to photograph their graceful flight. Yet, these creatures are capricious—fluttering above your head, among the trees, or by the streams. This is where the cognitive ISP technology in Snapdragon-powered smartphones (hereafter "Snapdragon phones") proves invaluable.

The Stichophthalma butterfly is using its proboscis to sip water.

What is cognitive ISP? Simply put, it identifies and recognizes different elements in a scene, then applies multiple targeted algorithms for processing. This allows a single photo to capture a clear butterfly, a vibrant blue sky, and detailed tree textures—rather than uniform blurring—while even revealing the butterfly's straw-like proboscis in 200MP resolution.

A banded peacock butterfly in dappled light, captured by a Snapdragon-powered phone.

Waiting for butterflies to emerge or snapping them in the perfect frame demands immense patience. In fieldwork, a stable base for work and rest is crucial. Beyond aiding research, Snapdragon-powered smart vehicles serve as mobile workstations for film crews. With intelligent cockpits, we can copy and review footage on-site, ensuring the ideal symbiotic moments are captured.

What’s it like chasing gibbons on a "jungle highway"?

Western black-crested gibbons dwell atop towering trees, with arms nearly twice as long as their legs. Elusive and mysterious, they rank among China’s hardest-to-photograph wildlife.

For them, Wuliang Mountain’s dense jungle is a "highway"—but chasing gibbons here is no easy feat. Even slight added weight could be the "last straw" for photographers.

A Western black-crested gibbon mid-leap through trees, photographed by a Snapdragon phone.

Here, Snapdragon phones shine: compact yet powerful enough for observation and recording. Their AI algorithms refine gibbon fur edges, delivering clearer visuals in the jungle.

How to film gibbons without disturbing them? Coordinated Snapdragon-powered devices make it possible. Placing a phone on nearby branches and remotely controlling it via a watch avoids startling the animals, enabling close-up shots.

Snapdragon-powered wearables and smartphones working in tandem.

Smartphones have become indispensable tools for scientific expeditions!

Motuo, China’s top county for new plant species discoveries, is a mecca for botanists. To showcase this wonderland, the crew opted for 8K ultra-HD filming. Snapdragon pioneered 8K video on phones, elevating mobile cinematography. Thanks to its chip’s AI prowess, shooting 8K is now effortless.

Paphiopedilum venustum, Tupistra medogensis.

During their Motuo expedition, the "Land of Symbiosis" team used phones to photograph, identify, and document specimens—gathering data for research and preserving images of newly discovered species (e.g., Tupistra medogensis, Paphiopedilum venustum) and protected plants. They even captured the ethereal beauty of Monotropastrum humile, a parasitic plant in low light.

Its beauty escapes notice unless observed closely.

Later, Gu Yourong returned to Motuo multiple times, using Snapdragon phones to document China’s newly recorded species (e.g., Pseudopteryxia rex) and local variants (e.g., Rhododendron nivale, R. maddenii). Smartphones are now vital to expeditions, driving scientific progress.

China abounds with biodiverse havens like Motuo, Butterfly Valley, and Wuliang Mountain—each harboring symbiotic marvels forged over eons. From deserts to grasslands, rivers to mountain peaks, these lifeforms weave interconnected tales of survival, embodying a shared destiny.

Image Editor | YIRAN

Cover & Header Images | "Land of Symbiosis"

Uncredited Images | "Land of Symbiosis"