Changbaishan Forest Reserve

The Changbaishan Forest Reserve in Heilongjiang's Yabuli region protects a section of the vast temperate mixed forest biome of the Greater Khingan Mountains, one of Northeast Asia's last large intact forest systems. The reserve encompasses primary and secondary stands of Korean pine, Manchurian fir, and Jezo spruce alongside birch forests, wetland corridors, and river valleys. It serves as core habitat for the critically endangered Amur leopard and Siberian (Amur) tiger, as well as Manchurian (red-crowned) cranes along migration corridors. The forest reserve adjoins the Yabuli skiing area, providing a buffer zone of wild nature alongside the developed ski facilities. Ranger-led wildlife tracking excursions are offered from the resort base in winter, when tiger paw prints and deer tracks in the snow make wildlife sign most visible. The reserve is part of the broader Changbai Mountain ecosystem that spans the Sino-Korean border and encompasses Tianchi caldera lake at the volcano's summit.