Tibetan macaque

The Tibetan macaque, Macaca thibetana, also known as the Chinese stump-tailed macaque or Milne-Edwards’ macaque has been described in 1870 by Alphonse Milne-Edwards of the National Natural History Museum (Paris). It is the largest macaque species, with males weighing up to almost 20 kg.

The species is listed near-threatened by IUCN but some populations thrive in areas such as Mount Emei, Sichuan, where groups of the western subspecies M. thibetana thibetana are common and fed by tourists and Buddhist clerics around temples.

Tibetan macaques waiting for food at XiXiangChi temple (2040 m asl)

This situation of relatively close contact between humans and wild primates raises a number of questions about its implications for human and animal health and population management.

Looking for food, including in plastic bags at XiXiangChi temple

November 2023: first recognition at Mount Emei, China terrestrial ecosystem research station and tourist area

Pr Li Li (李丽)，Tim Slate, Eve Afonso and Patrick Giraudoux had a first assessment of the monkey feeding area near the China Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Station at WuXiangGang (五显岗) close to LongMenCun，龙门村 (103.33E 29.52N) on November 8. In addition to the natural food they find in the forest, the monkeys are fed with peanuts wrapped in plastic bags and fruits thrown away by tourists.

March 2024: recognition treck from the heights of HeiShuiCun（黑水村）to Linjue temple (灵谷寺)

A two-day trek (March 13-14) started from the heights of HeiShuiCun 黑水村 (1100 m asl), from temple to temple and rest stations up to LinJueSi (灵谷寺) (2390 m asl). The night was spent at XiXiangChi temple, 洗象池寺 (2040 m asl) where the first group of monkeys was observed. Throughout the trek, there are many signs warning trekkers about how to behave with monkeys, which can steal bags for food or be aggressive in order to get bags from them.

Main points visited along the trek

Then we made a quick visit by cable car to the Golden Summit（金顶） at 3079 m asl, which is visited by up to 50,000 tourists and believers every day. Signs also warn tourists about feeding monkeys and their behaviour.

This illustrates a contrasting and contradictory situation where the presence of familiar monkeys attracts tourists to the area, creating a wildlife tourism economy, and the risks that familiarity could bring in terms of contact between tourists and monkeys (bites, exchange of pathogens, etc.) and the impact of feeding on the monkey population (overweight, density, etc.).

This visit provided us an invaluable opportunity to assess the situation on the ground, to evaluate the accessibility of monkey home range (steep slopes prevent full accessibility), to clarify the research questions that can be addressed on this basis and to detail the corresponding roadmap.

Participants (alphabetic order): 巴教授 (Patrick Giraudoux), 郭剑英(Guo JianYing)，郭玉红 (Guo YuHong), 李丽 (Li Li), 李前进 (Li QiangJing), 刘洪江(Liu HongJiang)，孙永兴 (Sun YongXing), 王璐 (Wang Lu)，guided by 张可俊 (Zhang KeJun) and 梁东 (Liang Dong).

A conference was finally organized by the French Consulate in Chengdu

November 2024: second field recognition at Mount Emei and distinguished professorship awards

From November 4 to 15, 2024, Drs. Eve Afonso, Frédéric Gimbert and Pr. Patrick Giraudoux embarked to China with Pr Li Li to conduct fieldwork on the ecology of Mt Emei Tibetan monkeys.

Fieldwork in Mount Emei: bridging conservation and tourism

Over two days, they explored the unique gradient of habituation among macaques, ranging from relatively wild groups to those highly dependent on tourist feeding. These observations were crucial in understanding how human activities, such as tourism and agriculture, shape macaque behavior and their ecosystems. They also noted significant environmental challenges, such as plastic pollution stemming from tourist litter. Macaques were regularly observed eating food directly from plastic packaging, raising concerns about potential health risks.

Collaborations with park rangers like Liang Dong and reserve managers such as Zhang KeJun were instrumental in this fieldwork. They provided invaluable insights into local ecosystems and logistical support for planned sampling phases. These efforts will help better understand pollution’s impact on wildlife and guide conservation strategies for the region.

Recognition as Distinguished Professors at Leshan Normal University

Dr Eve Afonso and Prof Patrick Giraudoux have received the title of Distinguished Professors from Leshan Normal University. This honor reflects the growing collaboration between LNU and University of Franche-Comté.

This recognition strengthens the foundation for the Sino-French laboratory, "Wildlife Management and Ecosystem Health", now settled in LNU and positions it as a pivotal center for research in Sichuan Province. Plans are underway to expand its impact through new partnerships, funding, and recruitment.

Sharing our vision at the French consulate in Chengdu

The Consulate General of France in Chengdu, Guillaume Delvallée, and the Scientific and academic attaché Samuel Liégeois, provided a platform to share our work with a broader audience in the context of the Franco-Chinese Environment Month. Dr. Eve Afonso delivered a conference presentation, “Human-Wildlife Interactions and the Socioeconomic Impacts of Ecological Changes,” outlining our team’s research efforts and future objectives. Dr Liu Peng 刘鹏 of the Haïnan Normal University, presented conservations issues of wild Asian Elephants in Yunnan and Haïnan primates

The event underscored the mutual benefits of cross-cultural academic partnerships and set the stage for a potential "One Health" symposium in 2025.

March 2025: Field (Mt Emei) and lab (Shanghai) visits

The aim of this mission (from March 22 to April 6) was to expand our knowledge of the Mt Emei field and evaluate laboratories in Shanghai for DNA and plastic analysis. Dr Eve Afonso and Dr Frédéric Gimbert, as well as Prs. Patrick Giraudoux and Li Li formed the core of the team, which was joined by Prof. Zhang Li for the fieldwork.

A team from Sichuan Radio and Television accompanied the researcher group during its stay in Leshan.

From March 30 to April 1, a number of top-notch Shanghai-based research facilities were visited, with the idea being to see what kind of analysis capacities might exist.

In Chengdu, on April 2, we also met the director of the Science and Technology department of the Sichuan Province joined by Samuel Liégeois, Conseiller Scientifique et Culturel of the French Consulate, and on April 4, Zou Xiao Gong (邹小工)’s team, who is in charge of publishing a book entitled All in the Same Boat on Patrick Giraudoux’s 30 years of research in China.

A conference was finally given on April 3 at the French consulate in Chengdu.

October 2025: WiMEH conference, mission to Mt Emei, Mu Chuan, Wawu shan and Chengdu

Multi-targets mission :

• Sino-French Conference One Health and Conservation, meeting the challenge 12-15 October, Leshan Normal University
• Field visits to :
  • Mt Emei
  • Mu Chuan
  • Wawu Shan
• Conference organized by the French Consulate, Chengdu
• Launching of the book "all in the same boat" at the 25 Tianfu book festival in Chengdu

A CGTN team accompanied us throughout the entire mission.

Mt Emei, 8-10 October
Third visit to Mt Emei. Participants : Eve Afonso, Simon Calla, Frédéric Gimbert, Patrick Giraudoux, Guo Yuhong, Kang HaoRan (康浩然), Li Li, Liang Dong. The aim was to complete the precedent surveys in areas not visited yet.

• October 8: farmland undergoing some monkey raids were visited in Emei Nan Shan (1880 m alt.)
• October 9-10: the trek stretched from Wu Xiang Gang (620 m alt.) to Lei Dong Ping (2380 m alt.), with an overnight stop at Yu Xiang Shi (1678 m alt.).

Mu Chuan, 11 October
Participants : Eve Afonso, Simon Calla, Frédéric Gimbert, Patrick Giraudoux, Kang HaoRan, Li Li.

We met later, on the 15th evening in Leshan, Chen ShenZhi (陈申芝) first secretary of Xinqiao village to discuss issues posed by monkey raids.

Wawu shan, 12 October

Participants : Eve Afonso, Simon Calla, Frédéric Gimbert, Patrick Giraudoux, Li Li, Ma ChaoHong (马朝洪).

Welcome at the Sichuan Publishing House, Chengdu, October 16
Participants : Eve Afonso, Frédéric Gimbert, Patrick Giraudoux, Li Li, Long YongChen, Hugo Sentenac, Zhang LiYuan and her team

Conference organized by the French Consulate, Chengdu, October 16

Participants : Eve Afonso, Frédéric Gimbert, Patrick Giraudoux, Li DiQiang, Li Li, Samuel Liégeois, Long YongChen, Hugo Sentenac, etc.
Welcome by Zhang LiYuan and her team

Launching of the book "all in the same boat" at the 25 Tianfu book festival in Chengdu; October 17

Participants: Eve Afonso, Chen XingWang, Frédéric Gimbert, Patrick Giraudoux, Li DiQiang, Li Li, Li TiaoYing, Samuel Liégeois, Long YongChen, Hugo Sentenac, Qi XinWei, Wen Hao, Xue Kang, Zhang LiYuan and her team, Zou XiaoGong (邹小工).

All in the same boat trailer