Hoh Xil Nature Reserve The Hoh Xil is a natural geographic region spanning parts of Qinghai Province, northern Tibet Autonomous Region, and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, covering approximately 235,000 square kilometers. Dominated by the Hoh Xil Mountains, the area includes geographic units such as the Eastern Hoh Xil Basin, Western Hoh Xil Basin (Yamdrok Basin), and Kumulake Basin, with an average elevation of over 4,500 meters. The southern boundary of the Tibet section extends to the line between Mount Prag Pong and Mount Tso Moriri. On July 7, 2017, at the 41st World Heritage Conference held in Kraków, Poland, the Qinghai Hoh Xil was unanimously approved by the World Heritage Committee to be included in the World Heritage List, becoming China's 51st World Heritage site and the first natural heritage site on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, covering an area of 37,400 square kilometers with a buffer zone of 22,900 square kilometers.
The Hoh Xil region is divided into the Qinghai Hoh Xil National Nature Reserve, the Three Rivers Source Nature Reserve, the Tibet Qiangtang Nature Reserve, the Xinjiang Altun Mountains Nature Reserve, and the Northern Kunlun Nature Reserve. Within Qinghai, the reserves are further divided into eastern and western sections by the Qinghai-Tibet Highway. This area preserves high-altitude ecosystems, glacial meltwater lakes, and the migration routes of Tibetan antelopes. It is home to over 230 species of wildlife, including Tibetan antelopes, wild yaks, Tibetan asses, and Tibetan gazelles, with the Tibetan antelope population recovering from fewer than 20,000 to over 70,000 individuals. There are approximately 202 species of higher plants, belonging to 30 families and 102 genera. The vegetation is primarily composed of dwarf herbaceous and cushion plants, with very few woody plants, such as prostrate juniper and cushion-like Ephedra. Among the over 200 plant species, those endemic to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and those distributed across the high mountains of Central Asia, the Western Himalayas, and the Eastern Pamirs dominate the floristic composition, along with the numerous mountain ranges within the reserve, such as parts of the Kunlun Mountains.
The following regions prohibit unauthorized entry into nature reserves: Qinghai, Tibet, and Xinjiang. Along the Qinghai-Tibet Highway, migratory corridors for Tibetan antelopes have been established, and a vehicle yielding system is in place.
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