Elliot's Pheasant, which is under first–class State protection in China, is spotted in Siming Mountain, Haishu district, Ningbo. [Photo/zj.zjol.com.cn]

Elliot's Pheasant, which is under first–class State protection in China, was recently spotted in Siming Mountain in Ningbo's Haishu district.

Images of eight of these birds were captured by infrared cameras in a biodiversity survey in the mountain.

This is first time that the rare birds have been spotted in the city's wild.

Elliot's Pheasant, which is native to China, is listed on the red list of near-threatened species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Their appearance in a small group in Siming Mountain indicates that there is a certain population of such pheasants in the mountain, said Cui Peng, an ornithologist at the Nanjing Institute of Environmental Sciences, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

Siming Mountain has rich biological resources and is home to species like the Isoetes sinensis and hooded crane that are under State protection.

A biodiversity survey on Siming Mountain was launched by Ningbo in May and is currently in full swing.         

The city has also started the construction of a biodiversity experience base in Longguan township where Siming Mountain is located. The base is the largest of its kind in Zhejiang.                     

Ningbo is home to 2,183 species of plants and 546 species of terrestrial vertebrates. Fifty-one species of wild plants and 79 species of wild animals from the city have been put under State key protection.