A six-year-old longing to keep a unicorn(独角兽) in her backyard figured she’d get the hard part out of the way first.

Last November, Madeline wrote a letter to the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control with a straightforward request. “Dear LA County, I would like your agreement if I can have a unicorn in my backyard if I can find one. Please send me a letter in response.”

Director Mayeda replied two weeks later. The department does in fact license(许可) unicorns, she said, under certain conditions. Those include polishing the unicorn’s horn at least once a month with a soft cloth, feeding it watermelon at least once a week, and giving it regular access to sunlight, moonbeams and rainbows. And, because unicorns are indeed very rare to find, Mayeda is also giving Madeline a toy unicorn to keep her company during her search, as a symbol of appreciation.

“It is always rewarding to hear from young people who thoughtfully consider the requirements of providing a loving home for animals,” Mayeda wrote in the letter. “I like your sense of responsible pet ownership to seek permission in advance to keep a unicorn in Los Angeles County.”

Mayeda told the Washington Post that this is the first time the department has received a request for a license for a unicorn. They were impressed with the first-grader for wanting to ask permission in the first place, and doing her research to work out how to go about that She and her colleagues deal with a lot of “life and death” issues on the job, whether that’s a case of animal abuse or animal hurting people or making decisions about having to put down dangerous or sick animals. So Madeline’s letter has considerably brightened their spirits, and she is due to visit the department this week to discuss her unicorn license application. Safe to say, she’s sure to have a magical surprise.

Scientists have successfully used satellite cameras to count animals in complex geographical environments, taking environmentalists an important step forward in monitoring populations of endangered species.

For this research, the satellite Worldview 3 used high-quality pictures to monitor African elephants moving through forests and grasslands. The automated(自动化) system detected animals with the same accuracy as humans are able to achieve. The new surveying technique, created by Dr. Olga Isupova at the University of Bath in the UK with some other scientists, allows vast areas of land to be scanned in a matter of minutes, offering a much-needed alternative to human observers counting individual animals from low-flying airplanes. As it sweeps across the land, a satellite can collect over 5,000 km2 of pictures every few minutes, avoiding double counting. Where necessary, the process can be repeated the next day.

The population of African elephants has nose-dived over the past century, mainly due to hunting illegally and habitat (栖息地) ruin. With only 40,000-50,000 elephants left in the wild, the species is classified as endangered.

“Accurate monitoring is essential if we’re to save the species,” said Dr. Isupove. “We need to know where the animals are and how many there are.” Satellite monitoring avoids disturbing animals during date collection and ensures humans are not hurt in the counting process. It also makes it simpler to count animals moving from country to country, as satellites can orbit the planet without regard for border controls or conflict.

This study was not the first to use satellite pictures and algorithms(计数法) to monitor species, but it was the first to reliably monitor animals moving through a complex environment—that is, an environment that includes areas of open grassland, woodland and partial coverage. “This type of work has been done before with whales, but of course the ocean is all blue, so counting is a lot less challenging,” said Dr. Isupova. “As you can imagine, a complex environment makes it much harder to identify animals.”

The researchers believe their work shows the potential of technology to support environmentalists to protect biodiversity and to slow the progress of the sixth mass extinction(灭绝)—the ongoing extinction event caused by human activity.

Known as a “living fossil”, the Chinese sturgeon (中华鲟) is a very precious species. It is believed to have lived alongside the dinosaurs more than 140 million years ago. Although dinosaurs are long since gone, the Chinese sturgeon still exists. However, the species has been listed as “Critically Endangered” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species.

On May 14, Shanghai legislators (立法机构) passed a new law protecting the Chinese sturgeon, emphasizing “regional cooperation”, according to China Daily. “This is the first local legislation in the country to protect one endangered fish,” said Ding Wei, director of the legislative affairs committee of the Shanghai Municipal People’s Congress.

Taken effect on June 6, the regulation urges cooperation in law enforcement (实施), scientific research and rescue of the species between Shanghai and other provinces and regions in the Yangtze River basin, according to People’s Daily.

The need for collaborative efforts is due to the living habitat of the Chinese sturgeon. As an anadromous (溯河产卵的) species, it mainly lives in the Yangtze River and depends on the Vangtze estuary (河口) for migration.

The protection of the Chinese sturgeon is urgent. China began the artificial breeding and release of the fish in 1984. However, very few of the fanned fish have survived in the wild, the number of which is less than 1,000, according to a report by the Shanghai Observer.

Whether this species can be preserved depends on the natural population. “If the natural population is not well protected, the Chinese sturgeon is in danger of extinction.” Li Furong, vice chairperson of the Agricultural and Rural Affairs Committee of Shanghai Municipal People’s Congress, said in the report.

Since Jan 1 of this year, a 10-year fishing ban on key areas of the Yangtze River basin has been issued, covering 332 nature reserves, which includes Shanghai’s Chinese sturgeon nature reserve.