Zoologists of Yunnan Province, southwest China, have identified a total of 166 species of ants living on the Gaoligong Mountain through three years of hard work.

During this period, zoologists made thorough investigations on the distribution of ants and their social structure. They also have established files on each of them.

Among the 166 species, five were discovered the first time and 40 others are yet to be identified which categories they belong to.

The state-level Gaoligong Mountain Nature Reserve covers some 120,000 hectares in area and has rich plant and animal resources. It is home to animals living in south China and animals which used to live in north China.

The provincial government plans to build a rare plants park and several stations in the zone to monitor forestry pests and insects, and bio-diversity, as well as a tourism website.

The nature reserve has been listed as one of the world's biosphere preservation zones recently.

(People's Daily 05/31/2001)