Chu Wenwen is famous as the "Beaver(河狸)Princess".Six years ago, she finished studying in Beijing Forestry University and went back to Xinjiang. It was then that Mengxin beavers became a part of her life.
The Mengxin beaver is an animal in danger in China. They are only found along the Ulungur River in Xinjiang. When Chu went there, she was shocked by what she saw. "Many beavers die from fighting for a place to live. Willow shrubs(灌木柳)are their most important food, but they were missing in the area," she said. " I decided to do something."
In 2018, Chu started the "beaver canteen" program and made a plan to plant willow shrubs for the beavers. To raise money, she posted videos on the Internet, showing how beavers build dams(水坝)and how she saved wild animals. Through her hard work, about 400,000 willow shrubs were planted with the money from Internet users.
With the help of Chu's team, the number of beaver nests has increased from 162 to 190 over the past four years. Chu said, "We will continue to encourage more people to take part in nature conservation".
Now, she is working on a new program called the "beaver ark". It's a hospital for wild animals which get ill or wounded(受伤).She also runs a "beaver guardian"program. It trains local people to patrol(巡逻)along the river.
