LANZHOU -- An adult snow leopard, a species on the country's top protection list, has been rescued by rangers and police after it inadvertently strayed into an abandoned storage room in the Qilian Mountain National Park, Northwest China's Gansu province.

Zhao Zhiliang, a member of staff at the park's conservation station, received a call from local herders last Thursday saying they had found a snow leopard.

When Zhao and the police arrived at the scene, they first dispersed the nearby crowds and then confirmed the health of the snow leopard.

"The snow leopard was alert. It kept lying in the room and did not come out, probably because it was sacred of the crowd outside," said Zhao.

After two hours of waiting, Zhao and the police decided to break the window of the storage room. The snow leopard eventually managed to jump out of the window after several attempts and returned to nature.

Recent years have seen the expansion of the geographical distribution and population of these rare animals thanks to the improving ecological environment, said Liao Kongtai, director of the park administration, adding that it was the first time they had rescued an adult snow leopard at short range.

"With more wild animals rescued in recent years, efforts to strengthen the public's awareness of environmental and animal protection are paying off," Liao said.

Snow leopards are under China's highest national-level protection and are listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The geographical distribution and population of this rare leopard are among the key indicators used to evaluate the health of the local ecosystem and biodiversity.