Yunnan has recently announced to establish nine observation and research stations in the province. The research disciplines are concerning forest ecosystem, lake ecosystem, agricultural environment and soil, plateau wild rice, deep plateau lake, savannas, etc. 

The three field stations affiliated to Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) are listed on the nine observation and research stations of Yunnan Province. They are Xishuangbanan Tropical Forest Ecosystem Research Station, Ailaoshan Subtropical Forest Ecosystem Research Station, and Yuanjiang Hot and Dry Valley Observation Station. 

The Xishuangbanna and Ailaoshan ecosystem stations of XTBG have been previously included in the Chinese Ecosystem Research Network (CERN) (CERN is an ecosystem research network with field stations throughout China covering the fields of agriculture, forest, grassland, lake and marine ecosystems.). The Yuanjiang Hot and Dry Valley Observation Station is listed as a provincial observation station for the first time. 

ABOUT 

As a national innovative scientific and technological facility that integrates monitoring, research and demonstrations, the Chinese Ecosystem Research Network (CERN) has become one of the largest networks in the world that consists of 40 field stations, 5 sub-centers and 1 synthesis center, covering almost all typical ecosystems in China: cropland, forest, grassland, desert, marshes, lakes, bays and urban ecosystem. Its unique features are the emphasis on understanding long-term structure and function, patterns and processes of ecosystems, combination of the inter-site comprehensive research or cross-site comparison research and the voluntary site-based exploration, and the data sharing both for domestic institutions and international networks at different levels. 

Yuanjiang Hot and Dry Valley Observation Station 

Xishuangbanan Tropical Forest Ecosystem Research Station 

Ailaoshan Subtropical Forest Ecosystem Research Station