Phayre's leaf monkeys eat tung tree flowers in SW China's Yunnan

A Phayre's leaf monkey, a species under first-class state protection in China, eats tung tree flowers at the Xiaoheishan Provincial Nature Reserve in Longling county, Baoshan city, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (Photo/Hu Xingrun)

Phayre's leaf monkeys, a species under first-class state protection in China, were recently spotted picking and eating tung tree flowers at the Xiaoheishan Provincial Nature Reserve in Longling county, Baoshan city, southwest China's Yunnan Province.

The number of Phayre's leaf monkeys has risen in the county thanks to ecological environment protection efforts and more frequent monitoring of wildlife, said Yang Peiji, who is in charge of the management bureau of the Xiaoheishan Provincial Nature Reserve.

There are 10 groups of about 350 Phayre's leaf monkeys at the nature reserve, Yang added.