On September 15th, the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme established the new Kon Ha Nung Biosphere Reserve in Vietnam. 413,512 hectares in size, the reserve includes Kon Ka Kinh National Park and Kon Chu Rang Nature Reserve.
Forest conservation in the Highlands of Central Vietnam
The mountain range in central Vietnam contains the largest contiguous forest in the country, an island in an otherwise densely populated and agriculture-dominated country.
Within the forests of Kon Ka Kinh lives the largest population of grey-shanked douc langurs. This primate species are endemic to this region and Critically Endangered according to the red list of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The area also is home to the Northern yellow-cheeked crested gibbon, which is listed as endangered.
Since 1991, FZS has been supporting the protection of endangered monkey species and their habitats in Vietnam. The first few years of work focused on the Cuc Phuong National Park and the Van Long Nature Reserve in the north of the country and later expanded to the Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park. Since 2010 the FZS engagement exclusively covers the mountainous region in central Vietnam.
The government is keen to preserve these remaining havens for the diverse and in some cases unique fauna and flora by setting up conservation areas. Illegal tree-felling, poaching, and the steady expansion of cultivated land, however, respect no boundaries.
Today, we support the administration of Kon Ka Kinh National Park (420 km²) and the nearby Kon Chu Rang Nature Reserve (159 km²) in controlling and managing their protected areas. These are still connected to other unprotected forests and together form a total forest block of 1,200 km².
Additionally, as of 2021, we also support the management board of the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve that encompasses Kon Ka Kinh and Kon Chu Rang by sharing our knowledge and expertise in conserving wildlife and forests and by helping create the 10-year management plan.
Together with our partners Stiftung Artenschutz, GreenViet, and Fauna & Flora International, we are collecting biological data on the mountain forest region and advising the government on the development of a land protection plan aimed at preserving the entire contiguous forest area.
- Support protected area administrations manage Kon Ka Kinh National Park and Kon Chu Rang Nature Reserve
- Offer environmental education activities to local communities
- Conduct grey-shanked douc langur and northern yellow-cheeked crested gibbon censuses
- Undertake field, consulting, and planning work to improve conservation of unprotected forest areas in the region
- Training biology students in nature and wildlife conservation
Kon Ka Kinh and Kon Chu Rang
FZS expands field activities to Kon Chu Rang Nature Reserve 2021.
The second grey-shanked douc langur census in Kon Ka Kinh National Park takes place, showing positive results in comparison to 2010 data – the start of the project.
FZS conducts an initial inventory of yellow-cheeked crested gibbon occurrence in Kon Chu Rang Nature Reserve.
FZS expands conservation activities to include the endangered northern yellow-cheeked crested gibbons thanks to funding from Stiftung Artenschutz and its partner zoos.
FZS supports the establishment of Vietnamese NGO GreenViet, which aims to protect the unique forest ecosystem with endangered species in the central highlands region.
FZS establishes an annual practical training course for 25 biology and environmental science students, with the University of Danang and the Kon Ka Kinh Park Management.
The first grey-shanked douc langur census in Kon Ka Kinh National Park takes place.
Start of the Kon Ka Kinh National Park project.
The Endangered Primate Rescue Center, for the first time, releases Hatinh langurs into Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park.
FZS establishes the Endangered Primate Rescue Centre (EPRC) which is handed over to Leipzig zoo in 2013.
FZS initiates a project in Cúc Phương National Park (CPNP) to assess the status of the Delacour’s langur.