The pasture spans 2.16 million hectares on the eastern end of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau. About a third of the pasture is harassed by rodents including rats, marmots and moles.

“A rodent can dig a hole 100 cm in diameter within 20 minutes. Very soon, large pieces of the pasture will become replaced by their mounds and the damage is often unrepairable,” said Yang Linping, a forestry official in Gannan's Maqu county.

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In addition to rodent-hunting hawks, authorities have also encouraged local residents to take up their traditional weapons, bows and arrows, to fight rats. Yang Baijia, 41, leads a team of 15 archers in Maqu County. “Each of us can kill at least 50 rodents a day.”

“The archers have also created a trap which they put in tunnels near new rodent mounds. When the rats run by and touch the device, arrows are shot out in all directions.”