Mating season for Tibetan antelopes at Altun Mountains National Nature Reserve

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This aerial photo taken on Dec. 22, 2023 shows a male Tibetan antelope making mating calls at female ones in the Altun Mountains National Nature Reserve of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Winter is the mating season for Tibetan antelopes living at the Altun Mountains National Nature Reserve. The mating season is the only time of year when male antelopes are seen together with the female ones.

Nestled deep in the eastern Kunlun Mountains, the Altun Mountains National Nature Reserve boasts a distinctive plateau desert ecosystem. With the average altitude reaching around 4,500 meters, the reserve covers a total area of about 45,000 square kilometers. Widely recognized as a "plateau gene bank," the reserve is an important habitat for about 65,000 Tibetan antelopes on the freezing and oxygen-deprived plateau. (Xinhua/Li Xiang)