Challenges

The difficulties the researchers encountered went even further. Though it was the eighth expedition the institute had conducted with Myanmar's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation, Quan said it threw the team into a completely new and strange environment that posed a range of challenges.

Instead of trekking across mountains as previous expeditions had done, the scientists were able to proceed in small boats, thanks to the interconnected waterways in the low-altitude region.

However, they faced safety threats because of the great number of large animals in the area, including elephants and tigers. Elephants cause many casualties every year, but the team frequently had to work near the largest land animals, he said.

Communication with the outside world can be hard in the depopulated zone, so contact with families was a luxury that could only be enjoyed once every 10 days, he added.

Though the difficulties went far beyond what he could describe, Quan stressed that field expeditions play a significant role in the protection of biodiversity.

"It's very important to learn about the environment (for flora and fauna), which is key for their protection. Without adequate understanding of these key factors, it can be hard to 'shoot the arrow at the target' when drafting protective measures," he said.

Song Liang, an associate researcher at the CAS Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden who has participated in joint field expeditions in Myanmar and Laos, said the limited road access and a lack of food in the areas they visited meant the researchers not only had to carry their own equipment, but also all the food they would need.

In addition to establishing a center in Myanmar's capital Naypyidaw in 2016, the biodiversity institute established an office in Laos last year. So far, three China-Laos joint expeditions have been carried out in Laos. Song's botanical garden is now in charge of the institute's operations.

"Every scientist needed the support of four or even five workers to help carry equipment and daily necessities," he said.

The consumption of food didn't mean the weight on their backs gradually reduced, because the scientists had to carry a growing number of specimens as they proceeded.

Song said it was common for his colleagues to enter pathless jungles to collect specimens, which needed to be dried the day they were collected. However, with no power available on many occasions, the work can be extremely difficult in the rainy season, so his colleagues often worked until midnight.

The scientists' efforts have paid off, though, Quan said. Although Western experts had previously undertaken field expeditions on biodiversity to northern Myanmar, papers published by Chinese scientists in the past three years have outnumbered those published by their Western counterparts.