With its unique fluffy orange mane, azure face, and thick fur covering its hands and feet, the endangered Chinese golden monkey is unlikely to be mistaken for other animals.

These rare and charming monkeys are endemic to the cold mountainous regions of central China. Recently, they have joined the country's famous giant pandas as "fluffy envoys," sent to European zoos—coordinated by the same government-supervised institution that manages panda exchanges, with a ten-year loan period. This institution also oversees official panda exchanges.

Like "panda diplomacy," some observers are encouraged by new opportunities for scientific research and conservation cooperation, while others express concerns about the welfare of animal envoys transported globally.

In April this year, three golden monkeys arrived at the Beauval Zoo in Saint-Aignan, France, following an agreement signed between the two countries to commemorate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the People's Republic of China and France.

In May, another three golden monkeys arrived at the Pairi Daiza Zoo in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. On the day the monkeys arrived, the zoo distributed small flags of Belgium and China to visitors.

After a month of quarantine, these two groups of monkeys made their first public appearance. According to both zoos, they are currently in good health and adapting to the new climate outside Asia.

At Pairi Daiza, the enclosure of Liu Yun, Lu Lu, and Juan Juan includes a traditional Chinese pavilion with red pillars and gray tiled roofs, where the monkeys spend most of their time jumping between wooden poles and rope ladders and climbing onto the roof. "There is a cultural awareness in this diplomacy," said John Fress, a spokesperson for Pairi Daiza.

Anais Moreau, the communication director at Beauval Zoo, expressed hope for long-term scientific exchanges between the zoo and Chinese authorities.

Moreau said the zoo is negotiating with China to launch joint research and conservation projects, "similar to those already implemented for other emblematic species such as giant pandas."

Elena Songster, an environmental historian at Saint Mary's College in California, stated that both giant pandas and golden monkeys are endangered species endemic to China, and only the central government can approve their relocation abroad.

Although both species are considered national treasures, only the golden monkey has deep roots in Chinese art and culture, appearing in countless paintings and playing roles in classical literary works, including the 16th-century novel "Journey to the West," where the mischievous Sun Wukong appears. Susan Brownell, a Chinese history professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, said that over the past few decades, when giant pandas rolled, scratched, and tumbled onto the world stage, they quickly became symbols of modern China—partly because of their own "cute cuteness" and clever diplomatic image.

The initial soft power representatives of post-war China were a pair of giant pandas—Pingping and Qiqi—who were sent to the Soviet Union in 1957 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the October Revolution.

In 1972, after the historic visit of U.S. President Richard Nixon to Beijing, a pair of giant pandas was sent to the United States for the first time.

In 1984, China began changing from gifting pandas to leasing them. Under strong protests from animal rights activists, China ended the short-term lease practice and started implementing long-term leases usually lasting about ten years. In this arrangement through the China Wildlife Conservation Association, part of the annual fees paid by overseas zoos to China must be used for habitat protection or scientific research beneficial to the species. However, measures that benefit a species may not necessarily be beneficial to individual animals.

Jeff Sebo, a researcher at New York University on environmental and bioethics, said that transporting animals long distances and sending their offspring back to China according to agreements could cause great stress to the animals.

"He said, 'Animal health and welfare issues are not just for geopolitical or strategic purposes.'"

Within China, golden monkeys now live in a region in central and southwestern China, including parts of Sichuan, Shaanxi, Gansu, and Hubei provinces.

Professor Yang Jingyuan from Shennongjia National Park in Hubei Province said that conservation efforts since the 1980s have helped triple the golden monkey population in the area, which now numbers around 1,600. It remains unclear how to evaluate the diplomatic achievements of these furry envoys. However, James Carter, a Chinese history professor at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia, believes, "I think pandas are a very useful entry point. They provide people with an opportunity to develop positive thoughts about China—they are cute and don't do bad things."

The golden monkeys currently in zoos in France and Belgium are the only ones outside Asia so far. "The Chinese golden monkey has not yet become an iconic species globally," Brownell said, "but it may have the potential to do so in the future."

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7565104654963458600/

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