Workers in protective suits spread bait around areas where signs of active plateau pika colonies have been found in Shiqu county, Southwest China’s Sichuan province. Over the past few decades, the excessive use of bait to eradicate the pikas has led to a significant decline in their natural predators, leading to an even greater increase in their population and causing further degradation of grasslands in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

A doctoral student at Sichuan University conducts behavioral research by recording and monitoring the species in their natural habitat. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

A plateau pika emerges from its burrow. As a native of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, these mammals can live in areas from 3,200 to 5,200 meters above sea level. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

Uninhabited plateau pika burrows dot the landscape of the deteriorated grasslands. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

Two griffon vultures search for food on the plateau in Shiqu county. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

A Tibetan fox scans the grasslands. The campaign to eradicate plateau pikas using poisoned bait over the past few decades has disrupted the ecological balance and led to further grassland degradation by killing a significant number of their natural predators, including Tibetan foxes and wolves. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

A herd of yaks roam around desert-like black soil plains near a village in Shiqu county. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

Yaks graze on grass while a wall of sand and dust rises in the distance. Overgrazing can contribute to the degradation of grasslands, creating a favorable habitat for plateau pikas. However, the proliferation of plateau pikas can further accelerate the grassland desertification. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

A yak industrial park in Shiqu county. The park combines traditional grazing and modern intensive farming practices to ensure the sustainability of the grassland. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

A mother takes her daughter to dig silverweed on the grassland, which is an important source of income for local herders. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

A group of children play with a dog on the grassland. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

A village chief in Shiqu county looks across the vast grassland. The land was previously artificially regressed, but has since turned into a black soil plain due degradation. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

Luo Rigai, a former employee of the Natural Resources Bureau in Darlag county, gazes at the grassland that locals planted in 2002. To control the black soil plains and facilitate ecological restoration, the local area initiated artificial grassland planting two decades ago. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin

The grass that was planted in Darlag County 20 years ago has almost completely disappeared. Photo: Ding Gang/Caixin