Neither tree nor tall shrub grows on the bleak uplands of Tibet. As far as the eye can see are barren plains and rumpled hills covered with herbage so scant it leaves only the vaguest impression. No shelter exists from freezing winds or the sun´s glare. Yet in this desolation, at an elevation averaging 16,000 feet, there once lived great wild herds that rivaled those on the plains of North America. "For many miles in every direction there were thousands of antelope in large herds," wrote one traveler in 1900. "There was a tremendous lot of wildlife in this region, which is in effect a sort of sanctuary undisturbed by man. Herds of yaks, wild asses, and gazelles were all quite easy to get near," wrote another only 45 years ago.
Such herds are now almost gone. In recent decades, roads, mining camps, and herdsmen with livestock have penetrated even remote parts of the vast plateau. Hunters have .eliminated or reduced the numbers pf wild "animals over huge tracts. A herd of Tibetan antelope, the horns of males piercing the sky like lances, is now a rare, sight. To determine the current status of this wildlife and develop conservation strategies, Wildlife Conservation International and the China Wildlife Conservation Association began a five-year cooperative project in early 1985.
On October 17, 1985, the most severe blizzard in 30 years covered the uplands with a foot of snow. Wind and sun usually clear away snow in this high-altitude desert. This time, however, temperatures dropped to an unseasonable 30 to 40 F below zero and the snow remained. Tibetan antelope and other herbivores had to paw through a deep frozen blanket, rubing their legs raw, to find scant forage. Soon wildlife and livestock were starving.
To check on the well-being of herdsmen marooned in snowbound camps, my Chinese coworkers and I joined a rescue team of Tibetans and soldiers from the People´s Liberation Army. On a tractor-pulled wagon we slowly traveled cross-country for several hundred miles, sometimes breaking through the ice of shallow saline lakes.