"Post-90s" wildlife photographer Chu Wenwen: Their real destination is nature.
Nature is selfless, and she shows everything to human beings unabashedly. On April 22nd, Chu Wenwen, a wildlife photographer born after 1990s, and Wang Yuheng, a water brother, visited Sisyphus Bookstore with their new book "Chu Tong: My Wild Animal Friends and I" and accepted an exclusive interview with a reporter from The Paper.
On April 22nd, Chu Wenwen (right), a wildlife photographer born after 1990s, and Wang Yuheng (left), a "water brother", visited Sisyphus Bookstore with their new book "Chu Tong: My Wildlife Friends and I". Photography Huang mingrui
"The real situation is even more cruel than in the movie."
Chu Wenwen, who was born in Altay, is 25 years old. Because of an animal protection scientist’s father, she was taken to the wild at the age of 2; At the age of 7, I began to pack my bags, climb mountains and mountains, cross rivers and wear forests; When I was in my teens, I went to the disaster relief with the team, carrying frozen wild animals all the way in the snow. While other children were busy reciting ancient poems, Chu Wenwen tried hard to remember the names of each plant on the plains of Karamay.
At the age of 7, my father gave Chu Wenwen her first camera and took her to take the first photo of wild animals, which was also an important page in the history of wildlife protection in China-the wild horse of Platts in 2001. From then on, Wenwen often walked in the wild with her camera. At the age of 23, she and her partner also set up the Pupil’s Beginning Nature Image Studio and developed it into Pupil’s Beginning Nature Conservation Association.
Chu Wenwen and the early Red Army. Photography: Zhang Qi
At the beginning of the pupil, the Nature Conservation Association has a fixed team of about 10 people. The team based in Altay includes rangers who monitor and rescue wild animals and professional video teams who shoot wild animals. "We are not only doing imaging now, but also doing nature education and endangered species protection."
"I have been telling my team an idea. Whether the film is good or not is not the most important thing. The bottom line and principle you have to respect is to ensure that the animal’s body and mind can’t be hurt. You have to keep it in a complete and normal state, so that what you shoot is a photographic work." Chu Wenwen told The Paper that there are too many pictures similar to "a bird standing on a straw" in the photography circle.
In the story of Wulin owl in Inner Mongolia, Chu Wenwen mentioned that some bird-patting grandfathers did whatever it took to get an ideal picture. Two of them got the GPS positioning point of Wulin owl’s nest privately and went straight to the owl’s nest without saying hello. They wanted to take pictures of a blackbird flying, so they tried their best to drive away a blackbird resting in its nest, and even threw branches, plastic bags and stones at it. One of the stones also hit the owl’s eyes, and finally the owl flew away with a moan.
What happened to this black owl later? At the beginning, Wenwen heard that a friend found it in a forest far away-although one eye had stopped bleeding, the broken wound was visible, and the eyeball could not be seen, and it was obviously blind.
"When shooting wild animals, you can’t force them to look like you want. You should give them more time and patience, waiting for them to show the most harmonious side in nature, not those things that attract people’s attention."
"These photos of Wenwen that everyone saw, for a moment, she may have stayed in water or even ice for more than ten days." At the event site, Wang Yuheng specifically mentioned Chu Wenwen’s father, the animal protection scientist Chu Hongjun. "Have you seen Hoh Xil? Many real situations are even more cruel than in movies. To protect a protected area, we must struggle with many aspects. Mr. Chu Hongjun is a particularly respectable person. "
Platts mustang. Wang Yuheng, a painter
"Any part that is peeled off is just blood-stained pain."
The stories behind those photos written by Chu Wenwen are warm-hearted and shocking. What she lets people see is not only the brilliance of nature, but also the scars left by nature after being hurt by human beings.
For example, because of eating "breath-holding pills" (a poison invented by a dog dealer in China) by mistake, the big wolf in Inner Mongolia fell in the snow ten centimeters thick, and his claws and toenails were covered with blood scabs. For example, because it is to be made into "chicken wine", Hainan brown-winged Jay can only struggle in the hunter’s bag.
It takes at least 30 such lovely minks to make a mink coat-a painful number.
The beginning of photography
White shoulder carving. The beginning of photography
Maybe someone will say, doesn’t that person always eat fish and meat? In response to this, Wen Wen responded: "In order to survive, human beings need enough food sources, so they are already raising animals. But domestic animals can already satisfy their food and clothing needs, so why should they consume wild animals? Domestic animals are far away from the native land and can multiply indefinitely, and their survival will not be endangered. Wild animals are different. "
At first, Wenwen felt that, what’s more, the "consumption" of wild animals by human beings is also dangerous. "Parasites on wild animals, except in the digestive tract, will also be under the skin, and then you can see the worms, but you can’t see the eggs, and it can’t be killed by high temperature. The so-called medicated wine and medicated diet have no scientific basis, but the idea of always playing wild animals is actually harmful to people’s health. "
As for some places, people believe that spike, wolf’s mustache and wolf’s skin can ward off evil spirits. At first, Wenwen thought it was nonsense.
"In fact, those are only a small part of the body. The real soul of the wolf has disappeared from the moment it died. How can these two bones protect you?" Chu Wenwen said, "once any wild animal loses its integrity, then any part that is stripped off is just a pain covered with blood, which has no meaning."
Wolves. Wang Yuheng, a painter
"Humans and wild animals have the possibility of coexistence."
According to the latest data, there are 162 Mengxin beaver families in China, with an estimated population of 500. The above figures represent Mengxin beavers in Altay, Xinjiang, and even in China-less than the national treasure panda.
Chu Wenwen said that at present, the beaver population is stable, and more shrub willows are needed to further grow. In addition to beavers, cattle, sheep, camels and other domestic animals in the valley wetlands also eat shrub willows. So, is it possible for humans and wild animals to coexist?
Beaver is in the Ulungu River Valley, the only hometown in China. The beginning of photography
"I think there is." Chu Wenwen told reporters in The Paper that this is exactly what they are helping the local government to explore. Because the shrub willow is the main food for the beaver in Mengxin, their team wants to solve the food shortage problem of the beaver in Mengxin by replanting the shrub willow, so they have a "beaver canteen" public welfare project. Through the joint efforts of caring people, 50,000 shrubbery willows provided by the local forestry department were planted near about 10 beaver families in Mengxin to provide enough food for beavers.
"The place where we want to plant trees is the pasture of herders. Therefore, the project launched this year is that we will distribute saplings to herders, let herders plant them, and we will give subsidies. Herdsmen can choose to plant or choose not to plant. "
Chu Wenwen told The Paper that this subsidy involves two inspections. The first inspection was in autumn to see if the cattle and sheep raised by herders had eaten the trees planted in spring and summer. The second acceptance was when we went to plant trees in the following spring. "If you can guarantee that the tree is still there these two times, I will send you all the subsidies."
"This is tantamount to giving herders a choice-choosing to plant this tree will not let cattle and sheep go in to eat, and the subsidies they get are enough for herders to buy grass for cattle and sheep to eat. Or herders don’t want this subsidy and let their own cattle and sheep eat it. In short, there are many ways to guide positively. "
For another example, at the beginning of this year, Wenwen and her team will do a nature education project, and they will also take many children to the wild and really participate in wildlife protection. "In this process, we will let them eat and live in herders’ homes, which will also increase the income of herders and let them know that wild animals can bring them real benefits in this place. Because sometimes herders are not wrong, after all, they have lived in this place for generations, and most people can still communicate, which is very kind. "
Chu Wenwen said: "You let them get something, and they are willing to pay. It is more reliable to let him spontaneously have the awareness of protecting wild animals through this method. "
That’s how beavers build dams. The beginning of photography
"You don’t know if the next person who comes into contact with it has good intentions."
When it comes to the coexistence of human beings and wild animals, many people will think of the animated film "How to Train Your Dragon"-Vikings live with dragons, and people can provide food, accommodation and even companionship for dragons.
"But this is not the case." Chu Wenwen said that for wild animals, the real destination is nature. "What you think is’ good for it’ is not really good for it."
"In my eyes, the animals in zoos and wildlife parks are already domestic animals, because they can never go back (to nature)." Chu Wenwen told The Paper that under normal circumstances, they don’t want wild animals to contact people. "Because you don’t know whether the next person who comes into contact with it has good intentions."
But there are always some "abnormal situations", such as what should I do if I meet an injured wild animal? Chu Wenwen said: "Wild animals are injured, so don’t raise them yourself, but hand them over to the right institutions. For wild animals, reproduction and survival are the most important, rather than staying with their parents all the time. Even if you do get it back, the fetters will have adverse effects. Therefore, we will avoid too much contact with them during the rescue process. "
In Altay, Chu Wenwen is known as the "chairman of the Wildlife Disabled Persons’ Federation" because she has saved many "orphans of nature", such as the white-shouldered sculpture with broken wings because of bumping into the barbed wire fence of herders, the flamingo without half a flipper and the jerboa with amputated limbs. Chu Wenwen said with emotion: "The best hope to save them is to let them eventually return to nature."
At the event site, a student reader asked, "What can college students do for wildlife protection?" Wang Yuheng responded that everyone can actually do it. At present, there are also good protection organizations, but it is a bit mixed. "Many students don’t lack knowledge, what they lack is judgment. Sometimes our kindness will be taken advantage of. The most terrible thing is that once they are found to be used, some people may never want to do good again. "
Wang Yuheng donated all the royalties of "First Pupil" to "Beaver Canteen". At the scene, readers also asked questions about stray cats and dogs. Wang Hao responded: "For stray cats and dogs, I personally suggest not to feed them. Either take it home or send it back to the professional center after sterilization. If you want to choose an animal, it’s like choosing an object. Throughout his life. " Photography Huang mingrui
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