The Babbler 33 by BirdLife International

The Babbler Number 33 - March 2010

Giant Ibis Thaumatibis gigantea ÂŠJonathan C. Eames

Number 33 - March 2010

CONTENTS

Working together for birds and people

BirdLife International in Indochina is a subregional programme of the BirdLife Secretarial operating in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. It currently has two offices in the region: Vietnam Programme Office: N6/2+3, Lane 25. Lang Ha. Ba Dinh P.O. Box 89, 6 Dinh Le, Hanoi, Vietnam. Tel: +84 (0043 514890 Cambodia Programme Office: #61B, STreet 386, Sangkat Boeung Keng Kang III, Khan Chamkarmon Phnom Penh, Cambodia Tel/Fax: +85523 993 631 www.birdlifeindochina.org

• Comment • Features The biodiversity of Chu Yang Sin National Park, Dak Lak Province, Vietnam P.2 Identification, Planning and Management of forests of high conservation value:final consultancy report P.9 • Regional News • IBA News: Cambodia protects key grassland P.33 Threats to Kampong Trach IBA Cambodia P.34 Updated news on designation of Kampong Trach IBA P.36 • Rarest of the rare: Giant Ibis Thaumatibis gigantea P.37 • Project Updates: Rare Bird Club visited Cambodia P.39 CEPF - RIT update P.40 Census of Black-faced Spoonbill in January 2010 in Vietnam P.46 Enforcement ranger training in Chu Yang Sin National Park P.47 • Profile : Hugh Wright is Ibis crazy P.49 Mem Mai - Local hunter to local hero P.50 • Review: Herpetofauna of Vietnam P.52 • Publications: • Photo Spot: Indian Spotted Eagle Aquila hastata P.53 • Staff News • From the archives

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

e plunged into 2010 with a busy schedule of work. We completed the biodiversity report for our GEF funded Integrating Watershed and Biodiversity Management in Chu Yang Sin National Park project. In this issue we have a sneak preview of this important report, which is the first to ever document the biodiversity riches of this threatened Important Bird Area (IBA). The report will only be published in the second quarter of 2010. Ross Hughes was responsible for drafting and compiling this important document and I would like to congratulate him on a job very well done. Under the same project we held a two-week training course for Chu Yang Sin forest guards, which was designed and delivered by Freeland. I was personally delighted to see this going ahead after so much planning. Never was a training course so desperately needed and let us hope now that the guards can translate their newly acquired skills into better enforcement and improved conservation prospects for the national park.

of IBAs across the country during January. This was the first ever visit by the Rare Bird Club to our region and the first time that a country programme had ever acted as ground agent. Highlights included sightings of five Critically Endangered species including a Giant Ibis perched in a tree top for twenty minutes which permitted â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;scope views for all. I would like to thank all those who contributed to such a successful visit and particularly Ma Danik and Gilly Banks. BirdLife Chief Executive Marco Lambertini joined the Rare Bird Club trip on what was his first visit to our programme. During his visit Marco was able to visit four IBAs where we work and we hope this gave him an insight into our work.

There were also two exciting and important developments in Cambodia during the quarter: Firstly, the Royal Government approved the Prakas designating the Integrated Farming and Biodiversity Areas (IFBAs) under the law. This had been an objective under our Fondation Ensemble funded project, and was finally realized by our colleagues at In Cambodia we were privileged to the Wildlife Conservation Society host a visit by the Rare Bird Club Cambodia Program in collaboration whom we toured around a number with the Forestry Administration.

comment This will at last provide a firm basis for land-use and management planning at the IFBAs. Congratulations to Mark Gately and his team, especially Hong Chamnan, Robert van Zalinge and Tom Evans (get well soon please Tom!) During March I made an extended visit to Western Siem Pang, which was my first for two years. Accompanying me was photo journalist Nicolas Cornet, whose photographs illustrate this issue. Things are changing rapidly as a result of the new road connecting the district town with Stung Treng. There are many more signs of quickening pace of economic development that will doubtless have implications for the future of the IBA. During my visit it became clear that we have under estimated

Photo: Nicolas Cornet

the importance of the site for Giant Ibis and there is no reason to suppose that the density of the species at WSP is les than anywhere else in its range. I saw an astonishing 16 birds during my visit. This quarter two highly valued members of staff moved on: John Pilgrim and Noun Vanna. John has left his mark on our programme by establishing a strong and efficient regional implementation team for the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund project. Vanna, a project officer in our Phnom Penh office, worked on a number of projects during his time with us including the Darwin Ramsar project. We wish them both every future success.

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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The Biodiversity Of Chu Yang Sin

National Park, Dak Lak Province, Vietnam

hu Yang Sin National Park is one of the remaining jewels of Vietnam’s protected areas system but it faces escalating threats from infrastructure development, logging and hunting. The Park protects forests of enormous significance for biodiversity conservation and protection of the upper watersheds of the SrePok River, one of the largest tributaries of the Mekong River. The importance of these forests was recognized in the early 1990s and this eventually led to the upgrading of the Park from nature reserve to national park status in 2005. The same year, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), World Bank, BirdLife in Indochina and Dak Lak Peoples Committee agreed to implement the Integrated Watershed and Biodiversity Management (IWBM) project in order to strengthen the management of the Park within the context of the wider watershed. This report is funded by the IWBM project and brings

together the growing body of information on the biodiversity of the Park, and the challenges facing its conservation, based on the findings of surveys and studies that date back to 1993. The Park is located in the central highlands of Vietnam in Krông Bông and Lak Districts of Dak Lak Province. The Park covers 58,947 ha with elevations ranging from less than 600 m to 2,442 m elevation at the summit of Mount Chu Yang Sin. The Park is the largest protected area on the Da Lat Plateau, and together with adjacent forests including those protected by Bi Doup Nui Ba National Park, offers protection to the largest remaining block of contiguous forest in the central highlands. This includes an unbroken transition of forest from lowland evergreen to montane forest. 2

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010 The landscapes of these two districts have seen major changes since the end of the war in 1975. Commercial logging of these forests ended in 1994 when the nature reserve was established and there has also been a general movement of ethnic Ede and M’Nong people down from the slopes of the mountains to the valleys – supported in part my government policies, programs and changes to the Land Law. Since 1975 there has been large scale inmigration of Kinh Vietnamese into the area surronding the Park and in recent years, a large influx of H’mong people from northern provinces has placed a new set of pressures on the Park and surrounding land and natural resources. Outside what is now the Park, the forests of the landscape have become increasingly fragmented mostly through clearance for the expansion of agriculture (mostly commodity crops) and for road construction.

Vietnam Greenfinch Carduelis monguilloti © Le Manh Hung

Available evidence suggests that the forests of Chu Yang Sin are a centre of active speciation. Based on current knowledge, Chu Yang Sin is biologically the richest mountain in the Da Lat Plateau Endemic Bird Area. The wide altitudinal range, varied topography and past forest management practices give rise to a patchwork of different forest habitat types. The dominant vegetation type in the Park is broadleaved evergreen forest and the Park protects the largest block of this forest type on the Da Lat Plateau - covering over 38,000ha or 65% of the National Park. At elevations below 900 m, the Park protects lowland semi-evergreen forest, characterised by Lagerstroemia calyculata and Terminalia nigrovenulosa, and lowland evergreen forest, dominated by Hopea odorata, Dipterocarpus

Feature alatus and Dipterocarpus turbinatus. Sub montane and montane evergreen forest is widely distributed above 900 m, and dominated by members of the Fagaceae and Lauraceae. Montane evergreen forest is characterised by a higher proportion of gymnosperms, such as Pinus dalatensis, Pinus krempfii, Pinus kesiya var. langbianensis, Podocarpus imbricatus and Fokienia hodginsii. On mountain summits and ridge lines, elfin forest formations are distributed, dominated by Lyonia annamensis, Lyonia ovalifolia and the dwarf bamboo Arundinaria sp. Coniferous forest, dominated by Pinus kesiya, occupies more than 10,600 ha of the Park. The species grows in pure stands on well-drained exposed ridges and also grows as a secondary vegetation type in areas subject to periodic burning. A significant proportion of the Park supports bamboo forest, often colonizing areas formerly used for swidden farming and now regenerating slowly back to forest. The Gymnosperm flora of the Park is particularly rich in the Vietnamese context and the Park supports populations of one third of the total number of conifer species known to occur in Vietnam and eighteen species of Gymnosperms in total. The presence of large stands of Fokienia hodginsii, a globally-near threatened species that is restricted to South China, Laos and Vietnam, is a feature of particular conservation interest and also concern – the species is much sought-after for furniture making, house-building, ornaments and even for medicinal purposes and therefore commands high market prices in Vietnam. This demand is driving high levels of illegal logging of this species inside the Park. 3

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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Sixty five mammal species have been confirmed to occur in the Park. Twelve mammal species known to occur in the Park are considered globally Endangered, Near Threatened, Vulnerable or Data Deficient. These include Sunda Pangolin Manis javanica, Small-tooth Mole Euroscaptor parvidens, Black-shanked Douc Langur Pygathrix nigripes, Northern Pig- tailed Macaque Macaca leonine, Bear Macaque Macaca arctoides, Yellow-cheeked Crested Gibbon Nomascus gabriellae, Sun Bear Helarctos malayanus, Large Indian Civet Viverra zibetha, Owston’s Banded Civet Chrotogale owstoni, Asiatic Golden Cat Pardofelis temminckii, Sambar Rusa unicolor, Giant Muntjac Muntiacus vuquangensis, Gaur Bos gaurus and Chinese Serow Capricornis milneedwardsii. Surveys have started to assemble a baseline of knowledge of bat and small mammal populations, but further work is needed on these groups. A total of 250 bird species have now been recorded in the Park, including fifteen threatened and endemic species. The Park is the only site known to support all of the restricted range bird species which characterise this EBA. The Park is of particular importance for the two endangered species: Collared Laughingthrush Garrulax yersini and Grey-crowned Crocias Crocias langbianis; and is thought to constitute the global stronghold of the latter species and hold a significant population of the former. The Park also supports populations of all three species known to be confined to the Da Lat Plateau: Collared Laughingthrush Garrulax yersini , Grey-crowned Crocias Crocias langbianis and Vietnamese Greenfinch Carduelis monguilloti. The lower parts of the Park also support two of the three restricted-range species which characterise the South Vietnamese Lowlands EBA: Germain’s Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron germaini, and Grey-faced Tit-babbler Macronous kelleyi. Altitude is the most important factor determining species distributions - with measures of forest architecture (such as species richness and forest structure) having much less influence on species distributions than altitude. This gives rise to distinct bird communities at different altitude ranges within the Park.

Vietnamese Cutia Cutia legalleni ©Nguyen The Luyen

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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The Park supports impressive species richness of reptiles and amphibians. This is a consequence of the varied topography of the Park, its diverse hydrological network and different forest types which makes ideal conditions for rich taxonomic diversity of amphibians. A total of eighty species of amphibians and reptiles were discovered comprising thirty seven species of frog, one caecilian, twenty two lizards and twenty species of snake. No less than eight possible new species to science were discovered during the surveys in October 2007 and in April and May 2009, of which only two have so far been described formally. Only indicative information on the fish diversity of the Park is so far available and the composition of the Parkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fish diversity remains poorly understood. In total, eighty one fish species have been tentatively recorded based on the 2006 surveys and overall, the fish fauna appears typical for the upper Mekong River Basin: seventy four species of the total number are native to the Mekong River whilst others have been introduced from other regions of Vietnam but are now relatively common. Interestingly, the species composition of each river system sampled appears to be relatively distinct. Cyrtodactylus ziegleri ÂŠ Nikolai L. Orlov/ BirdLife international in Indochina

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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A total of 248 butterfly species were recorded, belonging to ten families. Two newly-described species, Stichophthalma uemurai and Aemona falcata were recorded during the survey. A total of nine species of four families were found in the Da Lat mountains for the first time. Some species recorded during the survey were not previously recorded for central Vietnam. For example, Flos apidanus was only known from southern Vietnam prior to surveys undertaken in 2006. Riverine vegetation was found to support the richest butterfly communities of the Park with nearly seventy percent of species were found in this habitat, compared with thirty three percent for bamboo forest, thirty two percent for evergreen forest, and ten percent in forest edge habitats. Butterfly species richness generally declined with altitude with greater diversity in butterfly communities at lower elevations.

Above: Vindola erota Right: Pieridae ÂŠ Nguyen The Luyen / BirdLife International in Indochina 6

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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The forests and biodiversity of the Park face a number of very real threats and the IWBM project found that populations of key species had deteriorated between 2005 and 2008. When the Park was first designated, the most pressing threats were probably posed by hunting and trapping by subsistence hunters and wood collectors inside what is now the Park and buffer zone forests; and selective logging of high value species such as Fokienia hodginsii. In recent years, the level of hunting and illegal logging activity within the Park have increased to very worrying levels, associated largely with spontaneous and rapid inmigration of Hâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;mong people into the buffer zone of the Park and driven by stronger market demand for wildlife and rare timber. However, it is now plans for the development of hydropower and roads that pose the major threat to the Park, through direct loss of forests and by â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;opening-upâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; pristine forest areas to higher levels of illegal logging, land clearance and hunting. The good news is that considerable progress has been made since the establishment of a management board in 1998, and especially since 2002 following the upgrading of the area to National Park status. Dak Lak Province Peoples Committee has provided substantial support for staffing and basic Park infrastructure, such as the construction of a new Park headquarters and several new guard stations. The Park has also benefited from strong leadership at the management board level. However, much still needs to be done to strengthen capacity and to maintain and expand conservation action at field level. The construction of roads and hydropower infrastructure inside the boundaries of the Park are clearly incompatible with its National Park status, and will degrade the regional and global contribution the Park makes to the protection and supply of environmental services such as watershed protection, biodiversity conservation and carbon storage. On economic grounds alone, the longer-term value of these services may well exceed the short-term benefits that roads and hydropower might bring. It is the role of local and national authorities to find a better balance between conservation and infrastructure development than has been the case so far.

The new patrolling road under construction . Nguyen Huu Mai Phuong/ Birdlife international in Indochina

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

The biodiversity of Chu Yang Sin National Park (cont’d.)

Endemics of Central Highlands Female Trimeresurus sp.

Central to the longer-term vision for the Park is an expansion of boundaries to include the adjacent forests currently under the management of a range of different management authorities, including the Lak Landscape Reserve, the Lak Forest Enterprise and the Krông Bông Forest Enterprise. The management authorities for these various forest management units currently lack the expertise, capacity and financial resources to implement appropriate management. Expansion therefore provides a golden opportunity to coordinate conservation management across a larger forest landscape and introduce improved incentives for local communities to participate in forest management, for example through community forest management, the expansion of existing co-management arrangements and development of community-based ecotourism. These approaches could help balance sustainable use with biodiversity conservation and the protection of environmental services such as watershed protection and carbon storage – both of which could generate significant future revenues for forest management. In the longer term, the financing of the Park, whether expanded or not, will require considerably more financial resources than have been made available so far. Equally important will be a stronger commitment from national and provincial decisionmakers to ensuring that the unique biodiversity and environmental values of the Park are not degraded further by a narrow, infrastructure-led vision for landscape development. Given the considerable improvements made in conservation management at the Park in recent years, coupled with strong

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local leadership and increasing awareness of the extraordinary biodiversity values of the Park, the future for the Park is promising. Major challenges remain and these can only be addressed if recent progress can be sustained and expanded into the future. This will require a long-term commitment by national, provincial and district authorities to enforce the law, to ensure that infrastructure development does not damage the Park’s ecosystems and to make available the funding needed for appropriate conservation work. Progress over the past few years shows that committed and targeted conservation efforts and financing can achieve tangible impacts. It is hoped that this document will excite and encourage further efforts to conserve the Park, its unique biodiversity and the environmental services it provides to millions of downstream water users. designated, the most pressing threats were probably posed by hunting and trapping by subsistence hunters and wood collectors inside what is now the Park and buffer zone forests; and selective logging of high value species such as Fokienia hodginsii. In recent years, the level of hunting and illegal logging activity within the Park have increased to very worrying levels, associated largely with spontaneous and rapid in-migration of H’mong people into the buffer zone of the Park and driven by stronger market demand for wildlife and rare timber. However, it is now plans for the development of hydropower and roads that pose the major threat to the Park, through direct loss of forests and by ‘opening-up’ pristine forest areas to higher levels of illegal logging, land clearance and hunting. 8

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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Identification, Planning and Management of Forests of High Conservation Value

his report details the results of a consultancy to identify, plan and manage forest of high conservation value in six Forest Management Units, namely, Bidoup Nui Ba National Park, Da Nhim Watershed Protection Forest, D’Ran Watershed Protection Forest, Don Duong Forest Company, Lam Vien Landscape Protection Area and Forest Seedling Joint Stock Company of Central Highland Region, located in Lam Dong Province, Vietnam. Together these Forest Management Units encompass the three Vietnamese Forest categories: Special-use Forest, Watershed Protection Forest and Production Forest. Forest of high conservation value was defined using a set of criteria developed through a participatory process involving over 40 stakeholders, including mem© Vietnam bers of the Net Project management Unit, management

staff of the six Forest Management Units and BirdLife technical staff. A number of different methods were used to evaluate forest compartments against these criteria, including literature review, GIS analysis and field survey. A desk study was conducted to identify forest of potential high value for biodiversity. The results of this desk study were ground-truthed through an extensive field survey. The field survey rapidly assessed the distribution of a number of indicator species, in order to determine if forest compartments met the criteria for forest of high conservation value. The field surveys validated the results of the desk analysis. The field survey highlighted the importance of the

project area for globally threatened Gymnosperms. Gymnosperm indicator species were found in all forest compartments surveyed. Particularly noteworthy was the discovery of more mature individuals of Taxus wallichiana in D’Ran Watershed Protection Forest than were previously known, and the discovery of this species in Lam Vien Landscape Protection Area. Indicator species of mammal and bird were found in almost all forest compartments contianing suitable habitat for these species. The field survey discovered three new locations for Grey-crowned Crocias Crocias langbianis, a globally Endangered bird species previously known only in modern times from three locations. The new locations in Da Nhim Watershed Protection Forest, D’Ran Watershed Protection Forest and Don Duong Forest Company greatly extend 9

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010 Citation: Mahood, S. P., Le Trong Trai, Tran Van Hung and Le Anh Hung (2009) Identification planning and management of forests of high conservation value: final consultancy report. BirdLife International Vietnam Programmes, Hanoi, Vietnam.

the known range of the species. At one site in Don Duong Forest Company, a herd of the globally Endangered Banteng Bos javanicus were recorded, this species is now almost extinct in Vietnam, so this record is also of high significance. Zoning plans for each Forest Management Unit were created following the criteria for forest of high conservation value. Functional zones were delimited and their distribution and areas of overlap are discussed. Based on these zoning maps, management interventions were designed for each of the Forest Management Units. These management interventions follow multiple-use principles, are compatible with the stated management objectives of Forest Management Units and permissible under the laws and regulations of Vietnam. It is recommended that these management interventions are implemented in each of the Forest Management Units for which they apply. Bidoup Nui Ba National Park The zoning plan is characterized by the following: • Large areas of forest of high value for biodiversity;

Lam Dong forest scenery © Jonathan C. Eames

Feature Da Nhim Watershed Protection Forest The zoning plan is characterized by the following: • Significant areas of high value for biodiversity; • Large areas of forest with high protection value; • High potential for obtaining payment for environmental services; • Potential for exploitation of non-timber forest products; • Areas of broadleaved evergreen forest which protect water sources for local communities. D’Ran Watershed Protection Forest The zoning plan is characterized by the following: • Small, but significant areas of high value for biodiversity; • Large areas of forest with high protection value; • High potential for obtaining payment for environmental services; • Potential for exploitation of non-timber forest products

• High potential for identifying areas of high landscape • Large areas of forest with importance to local communities value; • High levels of overlap between zones with little • Large areas of forest which protect a watershed; conflict of interests. • High potential for obtaining payment for environmental services; • Limited potential for exploitation of non-timber Don Duong Forest Company forest products.

The zoning plan is characterized by the following: 10

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010 • Large area of forest of high value for biodiversity; • Large areas of forest with high protection value;

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• High potential for obtaining payment for environmental services;

• Potential for obtaining payment for environmental • High potential for exploitation of non-timber forest products; services; • Potential for exploitation of non-timber forest products; Management measures recommended for FMUs • Large areas of forest with importance to local com- are: munities;

• High levels of overlap between zones.

Based on the FHCV zoning plan, a number of mangement measures are recommended for each FMU (see Lam Vien Landscape Protection Area Table 1). These management measures must be conThe zoning plan is characterized by the following: sistent with management objectives of each FMU, and follow current laws and regulations of Vietnam. A total • Small area of forest of high value for biodiversity; of 14 management measures are recommended for six • Large areas of forest of high landscape value; FMUs in the project area and it is grouped into three • Small area of forest with high value for protecting groups which is based on forest significances. dams and reservoirs; • High potential for obtaining payment for environmental services; • Potential for exploitation of non-timber forest products; Small areas of forest between Bidoup Nui Ba National Park and Da Nhim Watershed Protection Forest are used for growing horseradish, used to make wasabi. If this venture is successful, will it cause further forest clearance in the project area? Credit: Jonathan C. Eames

Forest Seedling Joint Stock Company of Central Highland Region The zoning plan is characterized by the following: • No significant areas forest of high value for biodiversity; • Large areas of forest of high landscape value;

Management measures are grouped into three groups as follows: Group 1: management measures for forest protection and conservation which include forest protection, conservation, forest inventory, forest researches, fire prevention and control, and prevention of pest and diseases

Group 2: management measures for forest develop• Small area of forest with high value for protecting ment which include establishment of green corridor, forest restoration, expansion of planted forests. dams and reservoirs; 11

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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Group 1. management measures for protection and conservation of forests 1

Strictly protect broadleaved evergreen forest;

Strictly prohibit illegal timber exploitation

Strictly prohibit hunting and trapping and snaring of wildlife, especially of globally threatened birds and mammals

Protect forests of high landscape value

Regulate research programmes

Proposed protection area for unique Bangten group

Conduct additional field survey to extend habitat in broadleaved forest for Grey-crowned Crocias (altitude 900-1,500 m)

Forest Seedling Joint Stock Company of Central Highland Region

Lam Vien Landscape Protection

Don Duong Forest Company

Dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Ran Watershed Protection Forest

Da Nhim Watershed Protection Forest

Management measures

Bidoup Nui Ba National Park

Management measures recommended for six FMUs in Lam Dong Province

Group 3: management measures for forest utilization which include timber exploitation, harvest of NTFP, forest lease for eco-tourism, application of PES and REDD. Note: Grey cells indicated that proposed management measures should be applied for FMUs

Group 2. management measures for forest development 8

Expand area of broadleaved evergreen forests to create green corridor which connect patches of broadleaved evergreen forests

Transform forest categories in some compartments Group 3. management measures for forest utilization

Regulate sustainable forest exploitation

Apply PES and, REDD

Develop sustainable exploitation of non-timber forest products

Forest lease for eco-tourism

Produce forest seeds and seedlings

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Quang Nam cuts dam plans

REGIONAL NEWS

ebuary 22, 2010 - Provincial authorities of Quang Nam have reviewed and slashed a number of hydropower projects in the province after the media carried reports warning these would have great adverse impacts on the environment. Nguyen Hong Van, director of Quang Nam Department of Industry and Trade, said on Friday that the department had worked with the departments of Agriculture and Rural Development, Natural Resources and Environment and the Forestry Division to conduct inspections and review some of the 60 hydro-power projects planned on the upper section of Vu Gia-Thu Bon River. Van said after the inspection, the provincial authorities had decided to slash eight “infeasible” projects from the province’s investment list. These include the 3.2 MW Tra Linh 1 Project invested by Construction JSC No 699 in Na Tra My District; the 2MW Trok River Project by Hoang Quoc Construction, Trading and Service Co in Bac Tra My District; the 3MW Pa Dong Project by Nhan Luat Energy Co in Nam Giang District; and the 2MW Dak Se 2 Project by Quang Nam Infrastructure Development Co. Four of five hydropower projects in Tien Phuoc District had been rejected or revoked, Van said. In addition, the province was considering revoking the licences of 12 other projects which may cause flooding in areas under cultivation and would affect vast areas of watersheds. Van said investors had to scale down these projects so that they would not affect the watersheds and residents’ arable land or have their licences revoked.

A hydropower dam in central highlands, Vietnam © Zenith Phuong

---------Source: http://english.vietnamnet.vn/tech/201002/Quang-Nam-cuts-damplans-895466/ 13

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Vietnam implements project to save one of the world’s rarest mammals, the shy Saola

REGIONAL NEWS

ebruary 24, 2010 - Vietnam’s central province of Thua ThienHue has approved a project to save the enigmatic Saola. Listed as Critically Endangered, the Saola Pseudoryx nghetinhensis is so rare and secretive that it was only discovered in 1992. It is considered by many to be one of the world’s rarest mammals. The project, funded by the Darwin Initiative, Cambridge University, and WWF, will be largely carried out by forest rangers during the next 33 months in Bach Ma National Park and a Saola preservation zone. The project includes research, raising public awareness, and managing the protected areas to help the Saola’s survival. “The animal’s prominent white facial markings and long tapering horns lend it a singular beauty, and its reclusive habits in the wet forests of the Annamites an air of mystery,” said Barney Long, of the IUCN Asian Wild Cattle Specialist Group, last September at an emergency meeting to save the species. “Saola have rarely been seen or photographed, and have proved difficult to keep alive in captivity…Its wild population may number only in the dozens, certainly not more than a few hundred.” The Saola’s range extends along the Annamite Mountains in both Vietnam and Laos. The Saola is threatened by poaching, hunting with dogs, and loss of habitat largely exacerbated by road construction.

-----Source: http://news.mongabay.com/2010/0224-hance_soala.html

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Human - elephant conflict in Ha Tinh Hundreds of households in Huong Dien and Huong Quang communes in the central province of Ha Tinh have raised their concerns over wild elephants who have left nearby Vu Quang National Park to forage for food

arch 11, 2010 - According to local authorities, the communes stand on the boundary of the park and wild elephants have sometimes been known to enter into residential areas looking for food such as corn, bananas and sugarcane. “The wild elephants usually appear at the midnight. They have crushed motorbikes, pulled up electricity pylons, damaged crops and even threatened people’s safety,” said chairman of Huong Dien Commune’s People’s Committee Tran Viet Ha. “People’s lives are being destroyed,” Ha said.

REGIONAL NEWS

Dao Duy Phien, the Vu Quang National Park’s director, said the herd of elephants were found living in the park 30 years ago, but they’ve recently become dangerous due to a shortage of male elephants, especially during breeding season between January and April. Phien said most of local residents used methods such as lighting fires or creating noise to drive the elephants away. According to animal experts, the elephants were not dangerous, but they could attack people if they wanted to enlarge territory, as their living environment had been seriously encroached upon by human activity.

Chairman of the commune Ha said the methods Phan Dinh Ha, a resident in Kieu Village in used to scare the elephants would be no longer Huong Dien Commune, said it had taken the effective as the elephants had become familiar elephants only a short time to turn fruit orchards with them. However, new scare-tactics involving into what resembled a storm-hit area. Another explosives would require time and effort to train villager, Phan Thi Loan, said a herd of elephants people to use them properly without harming the had destroyed her garden several months ago. elephants. “My husband was away from home, so I could do nothing, I just took my little child and ran away. My garden was totally destroyed,” Loan said.

Source:

http://english.vietnamnet.vn/tech/201003/Wildelephants-terrorise-Ha-Tinh-898268/ © Photo:Jonathan C. Eames

“The authorities have proposed to district-level authorities to use explosives to frighten the animals. We have also warned people not to go out late at night to avoid them,” Ha said.

Statistics from the commune showed that there were five cases of wild elephant attacks on Ha said the district authority has supplied food residents while they were driving motorbikes in for 15 households who had 2 hectares of crops the commune last year and five motorbikes had destroyed by elephants some months ago. been completely destroyed. There were several cases of elephants destroying, but no casualties so far had been reported. 15

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

REGIONAL NEWS

Sarus Crane numbers down in Kien Giang

arch 13, 2010 - The last count of Sarus Cranes Grus antigone in Kien Giang in late February 2010 showed that the number of rare birds reduced sharply, even in the peak season.

Kien Luong district, the major place for cranes, recorded no Sarus cranes during the census. Meanwhile, Giang Thanh, a new site recorded 28 Sarus Cranes a reduction of over 100 compared to early February and equivalent to 13 percent of the 2009 count.

The Kien Giang Department of Science and Technology promised that zooligists and area government officials have made great efforts to maintain and attract more cranes by restoring pastures. Yet the rising impact of industrial and agricultural production, especially in Kien Luong province, has reduced the number of birds.

------Source: http://english.vietnamnet.vn/tech/201003/Kien- ÂŠ Photo:Jonathan C. Eames Giang-Less-redheaded-cranes-arrive-898587/

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

REGIONAL NEWS

anuary 19, 2010 - Hong Kong-based Animals Asia Foundation said on Monday the A Taiwanese businessman who owned the bears moved them to cargo bears were being driven to the group’s Moon Bear Rescue Center near Hanoi after being containers two months ago after authorities warned him about the concrete discovered in 12-meter cargo containers in Binh Duong province near southern Ho Chi “cells’’ in which he had kept them for several years, Animals Asia said. Minh City. Bear bile is extracted with needles in a process which activists say endangers “The containers were divided into six to seven compartments with one bear per compartment. the bears. This is the first time we’ve seen bears kept under these conditions,’’ Animals Asia Vietnam director, Tuan Bendixsen, said in a statement. In traditional Chinese medicine it is prescribed as a health tonic, an antiinflammatory, a cure for liver and heart ailments and an aphrodisiac. It is even The group said the central and provincial Forest Protection Departments asked for its help found as an additive in shampoo, toothpaste and soft drinks. a few weeks ago after authorities decided to close down the bear farm for not meeting regulations. Bile farming has been illegal in Vietnam for years but farmers were allowed to keep the bears they already had, and in 2005 thousands were given microchips in an effort to monitor the population. The bears were confined to tiny cages and illegally milked of their bile. Photo via Hoang Dinh Nam / AFP Bendixsen said staff at the Binh Duong farm told him two of the rescued bears did not have microchips. Asiatic black bears, also known as moon bears, are under threat of extinction, Animals Asia says. -----Source: http://www.thanhniennews.com/society/?catid=3&newsid=54775

Bears rescued from bile trade in Vietnam An animal welfare group in Vietnam has rescued 19 bears that were living in cramped containers on an illegal bile farm, the group says. 17

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Rare orchid species discovered in Quang Tri

arch 11, 2010 - Le Van Quy, Vice-Chief of Quang Tri Provincial Forest Protection Department explained that a group of departmental researchers saw this rare orchird during a field trip. This species of orchird is listed in Vietnam’s and the world’s red books. The flower often grows at heights of over 900 meters. In Quang Tri province, the orchid was discovered at an altitude of between 1,000 to 1,700 meters on Voi Mep Mountain in Bac Huong Hoa Nature Reserve. Quang Tri is the third province where this rare orchid has been discovered, alongwith Thua Thien – Hue and Lam Dong.

As poachers and hunters continue to kill gibbons, conservation groups are working hard to rescue and protect the existing population. Source:

http://english.vietnamnet.vn/tech/201003/Rareorchid-species-discovered-in-Quang-Tri-898196/

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Reducing urban demand for wild animals in Vietnam: examining the potential of wildlife farming as a conservation too Vietnam is an established thoroughfare for illegal trade in wildlife and growing urban prosperity is believed to be increasing domestic demand for wild animal products and for wild meat in particular. While the debate about the potential for wildlife farming to reduce incentives to hunt and trade continues, the ﬁndings of this study (based on data collected through semistructured interviews with the central Hanoi population) demonstrate that farming is not an effective tool in reducing demand for illegal wildlife products and may in fact stimulate greater demand for wild-caught products. In this context, conservation policy should seek to prevent listed species being farmed for consumption as wild meat; to reduce consumer demand for wild meat through marketing campaigns developed by social marketing experts and based on an in-depth understanding of the drivers of consumer demand garnered using appropriate social science research methods; and to continue strengthening regulation and enforcement actions preventing illegal trade in wild species. -----Source: Drury, R. Reducing urban demand for wild animals in Vietnam: examining the potential of wildlife farming as a conservation tool Conservation Letters 2 (2009) 263–270.

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Nearly 100 kgs ivory seized in Vietnam

Regional news

arch 23, 2010 - Vietnamese police have seized about 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of ivory near the border with China, a newspaper reported on Sunday. Traffic police made the discovery after stopping a car early Friday morning, said Tuoi Tre newspaper, which did not say if any arrests were made. The police declined to comment when contacted by AFP. State-linked media reported last year that Vietnamese police had seized hundreds of kilograms of ivory. Much of it was tusks illegally imported from Kenya.

File photo of an elephant at the Tsavo West National Park in southern Kenya. There is a booming black market in African ivory linked to Asian crime syndicates. (AFP/ File/Roberto Schmidt)

There is a booming black market in African ivory linked to Asian crime syndicates, experts and delegates said last week at a meeting in Doha of the UN-backed Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

stock illegally with recently-produced items, wildlife activists have said. Separately, security staff at southern Ho Chi Minh Cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tan Son Nhat airport on Saturday confiscated 33 live pangolins, Tuoi Tre reported. The pangolins, also known as scaly anteaters, had been sold to customers in the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s north at a price of one million dong (53 dollars) per kilogram, Tuoi Tre reported. Demand for pangolin meat, with its supposedly medicinal and aphrodisiac qualities, is widespread in China and Vietnam. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) list pangolins as endangered. --------

Source: http://www.intellasia.net/news/articles/society/111289938.shtml

Communist Vietnam banned the ivory trade in 1992 but shops can still sell stocks dating from before the ban. This allows some to re19

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Tiger farming does not help conservation An investigation into tiger farming has found that the practice does not help the conservation of tiger populations in Vietnam.

Tiger cubs at a private farm in Binh Duong Province. An investigation has found that the farms provide little help to ensure the species survive in the wild. © Photo: Vietnam Net

arch 22, 2010 - Tiger farms, where the endangered species are kept in captivity and their carcasses and body parts later sold at lucrative prices, were the focus of a year-long investigation by law enforcement agencies and local non-government organisation Education for Nature-Viet Nam (ENV). There are 101 captive tigers in Viet Nam, 84 of them kept at one of seven registered private establishments while 17 are at State zoos and rescue centres. The country’s wild tiger population is thought to be as low as 30 individuals. ENV’s Wildlife Trade Programme coordinator Nguyen Thi Van Anh said people who operated tiger farms had often claimed that the farms helped in efforts to protect the endangered animal. “These claims are contradicted by the results of our investigation,” she said. “At least one tiger farm owner is directly involved in supplying tigers to the illegal wildlife trade. Police officers have seized 10 illegal tiger carcasses since 2005.” Van Anh said there were signs, such as wear on tiger paw pads, that the tigers were from tiger farms. “The results of the investigation showed

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that illegal activities could be based on irregularities in tiger birth and death records at some farms,” she said. “For example, at one farm, 24 tiger deaths were documented since 2006. “However, only 10 of these deaths were accompanied by papers showing that the remains had been incinerated. “In addition, following the discovery of tigers at six private establishments in 2007, owners were fined and allowed to keep their tigers, though in nearly all cases, owners could not provide documentation showing that the tigers they possessed were of legal origin, as required by the law.” The investigation showed that irregularities in tiger farmers’ reports to provincial authorities and generally ineffective monitoring of farms opened the possibility that these farmers, many of them obtained their original tigers illegally, continued to engage in illegal trade of tigers. Le Viet Dung, deputy head of Dong Nai Province’s Forest Management Department, said management of these farms was difficult as owners did not keep adequate documentation on the number of animals they kept and relevant authorities did not have enough staff to make regular checks. 20

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Tiger farming does not help conservation (cont’d.)

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According to ENV, enforcement is not supported by effective prosecution and punishment that would deter further violations. Out of 27 arrests for illegal tiger trading that involved seizure of tigers and tiger parts, only four individuals were imprisoned, with sentences ranging from 16 to 24 months. Records showed that most tiger traders arrested received suspended sentences (12 individuals) or probation (nine individuals). In two cases involving tigers seized from homes, the offenders received no punishment. Nguyen Ba Bo, a lawyer from the Hanoi Bar Association, said there were sufficient legal provisions to ensure appropriate and effective punishment for offenders. The new amended criminal code that takes effect next January allows for imprisonment of up to seven years and maximum fines of VND 500 million (US$26,300) for selling, trading or possession of fully protected species such as tigers. However, enforcement of these laws is another issue. Van Anh said immediate action should be taken to stop the development of tiger farms in Vietnam and assess the importance of each farm in terms of its benefits to conservation. “Keeping tigers for non-commercial purposes requires stringent measures to be put in place that assure compliance with the law,” she said.

------Source:

http://english.vietnamnet.vn/tech/201003/Tiger-farming-fails-ecocause-900136/

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Vietnam’s ecosystems were seriously threatened by the widespread consumption of wild meat and trafficking of wildlife, experts said at a recent conference.

ebuary 24, 2010 - Urgent action was needed on several fronts to prevent this destruction of the nation’s wildlife and their habitat, they said. They called for strengthened, more effective public awareness campaigns against hunting and trafficking in wild animals and for the inclusion of this subject in the school curriculum, especially in rural areas.

Vietnam: Illegal bush-meat wildlife trafficking at alarming levels An Asiatic Golden Cat Pardofelis temminckii. caught by poachers in Chu Yang Sin National Park - Photo: BirdLife International in Indochina

Tom Osbon of the Vietnam-based Wildlife Management Office stressed the need to legalise multi-sectoral co-operation in preventing, discovering and punishing forest violations in order to protect wild animals effectively. “It is also very important to establish special inspectors in localities which record a high number of violations,” he added. Dr Scott Roberton, head of Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), said that hunting wild animals for meat and trafficking

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had been happening in many countries, especially developing ones. In Vietnam, hunting and trade in wild animals had been alarming, he said. A WCS study conducted at 200 restaurants in the central region found they consumed nearly 2 million wild animals per year. Among them, deer and wild pig accounted for around 70 per cent of the consumed meat, followed by turtle, snake, fox and porcupine. The study estimated the demand of wild animal consumption nationwide at nearly 4,500 tonnes per year. The Forest Protection Department discovered 1,042 violations of wild animal protection laws last year, a decrease of 400 cases over 2008, the conference heard. Dr Nguyen Viet Dung, deputy head of the Centre for People and Nature Reconciliation, said that the real number was much higher.Roberton added that Viet nam was also an important link

in the international wild animal trafficking chain. Last year, authorities found more than six tonnes of elephant tusks trafficked from Africa to Hai Phong City. And, in 2008, more than 20 tonnes of pangolins and their scales were seized in Vietnam as they were being trafficked from Indonesia to China. The Mong Cai Border Gate was one of places where wild animal trafficking is frequent. Over the last two years, authorities have discovered 57 cases of trafficking in wild animals involving more than 7,612 individuals including monkeys and Tibetan bears and elephant tusks.

------Source:

http://english.vietnamnet.vn/ tech/201003/Illegal-bushmeatwildlife-trafficking-at-alarminglevels-900130/eco-cause-900136/

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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May be no tigers left in Asia by next Year of Tiger

igers on the Brink: Facing up to the Challenge in the Greater Mekong, states that tiger populations in the Greater Mekong – an area that includes Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam – have plummeted from an estimated 1,200 during the last Year of the Tiger in 1998 to about 350 today. Major decline since the last Year of the Tiger This decline is reflected in the global wild tiger population, which is at an all time low of 3,200 - down from an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 during the last Year of the Tiger. The report states that increasing demand for tiger body parts used in traditional Chinese medicine and habitat fragmentation from unsustainable regional infrastructure development have driven the decline of the region’s Indochinese tiger population. Tigers on the Brink, was released leaders meet for the first Asian Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation in Hua Hin, Thailand.

Tigers at the tipping point “Decisive action must be taken to ensure this iconic sub-species does not reach the point of no return,” said Nick Cox, Coordinator of the WWF Greater Mekong Tiger Programme. “There is a potential for tiger populations in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia to become locally extinct by the next Year of the Tiger in 2022, if we don’t step up actions to protect them.” Indochinese tigers historically were found in abundance across the Greater Mekong region. Today, there are no more than 30 individual tigers per country in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. The remaining populations are predominantly found in the Kayah Karen Tenasserim mountain border between Thailand and Myanmar.

Tiger numbers have fallen by more than 70 percent in slightly more than a decade in the Greater Mekong, with the region’s five countries containing only 350 tigers, according to a new WWF report. Photo: Malaysiainfocus.com 23

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

regional news

May be no tigers left in Asia by next Year of Tiger

Source: http://english.vietnamnet.vn/tech/201002/May-be-no-tigersleft-in-Asia-by-next-Year-of-Tiger-892660/

There is still time to reverse the decline

However, despite these negative trends experts believe there is still time to save

are bold and coordinated efforts across

to double the numbers of wild tigers by

this September, to be hosted by Russia’s

that can protect existing tigers, tiger prey

desh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India,

chaired by the World Bank’s President

the region and of an unprecedented scale and their habitat,” said Cox.

the Greater Mekong’s tigers. The region contains the largest combined tiger habi-

tat in the world. This includes forest landscapes spanning 540,000km2, roughly the size of France, are priority areas for current tiger conservation efforts.

“This region has huge potential to in-

crease tiger numbers, but only if there

WWF Give A Hand To Wildlife postcard

WWF calls on governments to double number of wild tigers by 2022

At the meeting, WWF is calling on min-

isters of the 13 tiger range countries meeting in Hua Hin to step up efforts

2022. Tiger range states include BanglaIndonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and coRobert Zoellick.

“There is an unprecedented opportunity to galvanise political will and action to

The first Asian Ministerial Conference

turn the tide on wild tiger numbers,” said

27-30 of January, is part of a global po-

Tiger Initiative. “But to do this, we must

ture. These efforts will culminate in a

poaching, and secure the tiger’s habi-

on Tiger Conservation, which runs from

Mike Baltzer, Leader of WWF’s Global

litical process to secure the tiger’s fu-

stop the trade in tiger parts, rampant

Tiger Summit in Vladivostok, Russia,

tats.”

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

regional news

Cambodia: Going Home – Two Rare Vultures Return to the Wild Forestry Administration, Ministry of Environment, Wildlife Alliance and BirdLife teams preparing for the release of the vultures. Photo: Nicolas Cornet

wo very lucky vultures went home to northern Cambodia on Tuesday. Febuary 16, 2010.

The Cambodian Vulture Conservation Project (CVCP), a partnership of Cambodian government ministries and international non-governmental organizations, successfully released two Critically Endangered vultures back to their range in northeastern Cambodia after two weeks of rehabilitation at the Phnom Tamao Zoo and Wildlife Rescue Center, operated by the Forestry Administration of the Royal Government of Cambodia in partnership with Wildlife Alliance. The vultures took flight rapidly after they were released and were soon circling high above the team that had returned them to the release site. On 1st March, CVCP Manager and Ministry of Envi-

ronment staff member Pech Bunnat received a report of a number of dead vultures in Western Siem Pang (Stung Treng Province), an Important Bird Area in Cambodia, after consuming a poisoned dog. Two surviving birds were also found—one white-rumped vulture Gyps bengalensis and one slender-billed vulture Gyps tenuirostris. The well-coordinated response of the CVCP partners ensured the rapid transport of the surviving birds to the Phnom Tamao Zoo and Wildlife Rescue Center. Upon arrival, the weak birds were immediately treated by the Wildlife Alliance team and over the two-week course of recovery, the birds were fed daily and carefully monitored. On 15th March, the Wildlife Rapid Rescue Team, implemented by the Forestry Administration and assisted by Wildlife Alliance, transported the birds back to Western Siem Pang. The Wildlife Conservation Society, the Angkor Centre for Conservation of Biodiversity and BirdLife International in Indochina also supported the birds’ rehabilitation.

Mr. Nhek Ratanapich, Director of Phnom Tamao Zoo and Wildlife Rescue Center, was supportive of reintroducing the rehabilitated birds to the wild, demonstrating the Cambodian government’s increasing interest in conservation and the positive direction in which wildlife policy is developing. I am very pleased to see that the birds have recovered well after their care at Phnom Tamao. The small, but increasing population of vultures in Cambodia will benefit from their return to the wild,” says CVCP Manager Pech Bunnat. The population collapse of vultures in Asia in the mid1990’s—largely due to the use of the drug diclofenac in cattle—created an urgent global need for solutions to this conservation crisis. Cambodia is one of the few countries where populations of Critically Endangered vultures have increased, thanks to the efforts of the Cambodian Vulture Conservation Project. Formed in 2004, 25

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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Cambodia: Going Home – Two Rare Vultures Return to the Wild (cont’d.) the CVCP manages a successful, integrated program of research, monitoring, education and interventions (where necessary) to ensure the continued existence and growth of vulture populations in Cambodia. Numbers counted across Cambodia’s Northern and Eastern Plains in 2009 are now over 260, up from 166 only five years before. “Successful inter-agency collaboration saved these vultures,” says Jonathan Eames, Programme Manager for BirdLife in Indochina. “The global populations of these two species are now so low that every individual counts and putting these two birds back into the wild is very important as the population here in Cambodia is so low.”

BirdLife staff trying to save the vulture Photo: Nicolas Cornet

”Staff at Phnom Tamao Zoo should be congratulated on the successful rehabilitation and release of these birds, as should the Ministry of Environment and Forestry Administration field staff who reacted quickly to the first reports of a poisoning incident,” added Mark Gately, Director of the WCS Cambodia Program. “In future, it will be vital to expand education activities in ru-

ral communities, so that people are aware of the dangers posed by certain poisons to these very rare bird species.” Led by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), the Cambodia Vulture Conservation Project was established in 2004 as a coalition of Government agencies and NGOs, including Birdlife International in Indochina, the Angkor Centre for Conservation of Biodiversity (ACCB), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), the Ministry of Environment (MoE), and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF). Support for these efforts is provided by the Global Environmental Facility (GEF)/United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), WWF-US and the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF). The Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund is a joint initiative of l’Agence Française de Développement, Conservation International, the Global Environment Facility, the Government of Japan, the MacArthur Foundation and the World Bank. A fundamental goal is to ensure civil society is engaged in biodiversity conservation. 26

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Vulture poisoning incident at Western Siem Pang Other dead in the poisoning Jonathan C. vultures Eames reports Photo: Jonathan C. Eames

incidence

n Monday 1 March local vulture and Whiteshouldered Ibis project staff member Mem Mai came across a number of dead and dying vultures at the body of a dead dog, whilst on patrol in Western Siem Pang (WSP). Mai called co-worker Lourn Bun Paeng and together they recovered the bodies of one Slender-billed Vulture Gyps teniurostris, one Redheaded Vulture Sacrogyps calvus and five White-rumped Vultures Gyps bengalensis. They also caught two live but poisoned vultures, a Slenderbilled and a White-rumped. The following day Paeng together with local Forestry Administration Officer Sok Sidha and found another dead White-rumped Vulture nearby (which they burnt). They removed all dead and dying vultures to the BirdLife office in WSP where they were housed overnight. After obtaining written authorization from the Forestry Administration, facilitated by WCS, on Tuesday 2 March BirdLife Project Assistant Net Norint and Sok Sida transported the vultures by taxi from WSP to the BirdLife office in Phnom Penh. Here the dead birds were examined and photographed and then transferred to the WCS office where

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they were handed over to the Field Vet staff for necropsy. The two living vultures, who had both survived the journey well, were given water via syringe, and then taken to Phnom Thmao Zoo by Birdlife vehicle, where they were handed-over to staff of the Forestry Administration (FA) and Wildlife Alliance. The vultures were fed and watered and maintained under observation until the Wildlife Alliance and mobile wildlife enforcement unit transported them back to the BirdLife office at WSP. Before release they were colour-ringed and wing-tagged. The two vultures were released on Tuesday 16 March on the airstrip at WSP. Both birds flew off strongly and landed in a tree some 300 m away to preen and exercise their wings. A buffalo had been placed at the nearby vulture restaurant but it is not known if the vultures fed there.

that people sometimes sprinkle termite poison on boiled rice placed on the ground, to kill ants which are a nuisance when people are sitting for long periods in the forest. It was also reported that crows had stolen his lunch so he had placed poison out, which had later been eaten by a dog, which had died, and the vultures had then fed upon the dog. It is also possible that he intentionally set-out to poison wildlife by placing poison around the trapeang which was later eaten by the dog. Believing perhaps that whilst he was being paid to guard the nest he could earn some extra cash from hunting. He would then have either sold the bush meat in the local market (which is unusual at WSP) or consumed it himself, which seems more probable. This is sadly a common practice and the second vulture poisoning at WSP in little over a year. Poisons are cheaply and widely available in Cambodian towns The man accused of the incident was and cities and their control is currently in fact a nest guard on the ongoing impossible. In order to try and White-shouldered Ibis conservation reduce the number of such incidents project at WSP. He claimed his dog in the future, an advocacy campaign had been poisoned in the town and stressing the potentially lethal died later in the forest. It was reported dangers people face that consume that this man was known to have meat obtained in this way, seems far previously carried poison with him on more likely to resonate amongst the excursions into the forest. It is known local population. 27

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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Myanmar: Illegal wildlife trade flourishing on China border

A monitor lizard foot on sale at Mong La market in Shan State, on the China-Myanmar border. Pic: Supplied, TRAFFIC

YANMAR’S porous border with China is allowing free and uninhibited trade in illegal wildlife products, according to a report released by a prominent NGO on March 16.

making surveillance a difficult problem in sparsely populated areas,” professor Xu Hongfa, director of TRAFFIC’s program in China, said in a prepared statement released on the group’s website.

The border is so unregulated that vendors in Myanmar offer Chinese customers a door-to-door delivery service for products like tiger bone wine, says TRAFFIC, an NGO that monitors trade in illegal wildlife.

Priscilla Jiao, TRAFFIC’s East Asian communications officer, told The Myanmar Times that both Myanmar and China could be doing more.

“Both authorities should step up efforts in cross-border Its report, entitled “State of Wildlife Trade in China cooperation in cracking down on illegal trade. There 2008”, is the third in an annual series on emerging are a number of small paths without checkpoints on trends in China’s wildlife trade. It found that the over- the border and it’s difficult to inspect cross-border exploitation of wildlife had affected many species and transportation from Myanmar,” Priscilla Jiao said in an wasFile continuing illegal trade West in China. emailed response on March 17. photo of to anstimulate elephant at the Tsavo National Park in southern Kenya. There is a booming black market in African ivory linked to Asian crime syndicates. (AFP/ “China’s border areas have long been considered a “Also public awareness should be raised by setting up File/Roberto S hotbed for illegal trade, with remote locations often information boards on routes to deter law-breakers,” chmi dt)

Ms Jiao added. TRAFFIC released its report to coincide with the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) where 175 countries have gathered in Doha to discuss ways to stop illicit wildlife trade. This year – the Year of the Tiger – governments will be voting on measures that, if properly enforced, could end the illegal trade in tigers for good. Last month a prominent wildlife NGO, WWF, said that in the past 12 years the regional tiger population in Southeast Asia had plummeted by 70 percent. -----Source: http://www.mmtimes.com/2010/news/515/ n51508.html 28

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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3S Rivers Protection Network reports:

Dams on Sesan River polluting water and poisoning downstream communities.

atanakiri Province, Cambodia - A new report has linked upstream hydropower reservoirs tohigh levels of toxic algae and bacteria found in the Sesan River, which exceed World HealthOrganisation (WHO) limits for safe drinking water. Adverse environmental and social impacts caused by hydroelectric damming of the Sesan River are reflected in a report released by STRIVER; a research strategy for improved water resource management jointly coordinated by the Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research (BIOFORSK) and the Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA). The report illustrates how detrimental dams on the Sesan River in Vietnam have been to the quality of water in the Sesan River and the health problems faced by communities living downstream in Ratanakiri province, Cambodia. These research findings are especially relevant given proposals are in place to construct 5 dams on the Sesan River and its tributaries in Cambodia, including the large 400MW Sesan II dam in Stung Treng, which is anticipated to resettle over 5,000 people, inundate more than 33,000 ha of land, and have large scale impacts on fisheries and the livelihoods of both upstream and downstream communities. The 2009 STRIVER technical brief entitled â&#x20AC;&#x153;A limnological study of the Sesan River in Cambodia in the dry season: focus on toxic cyanobacteria and coliform bacteriaâ&#x20AC;? is based 29

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010 on scientific research carried out by Anna Madeleine Tiodolf, Norwegian University of Life Sciences with field assistance provided by the 3S Rivers Protection Network (3SPN). The report presents the results of a water quality study conducted during the dry season over a two-week period in March 2008 in which water samples were taken in two different locations along the Sesan River in Ratanakiri province; Andong Meas, 30 kilometres downstream of the Vietnamese border, and Vuen Sai, 130 kilometres downstream of the Vietnamese border.

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feeding livestock and according to a report prepared by the Fisheries Office in 2000 entitled “A study of the downstream impacts of the Yali Falls dam in the Sesan River Basin in Ratanakiri Province, Cambodia.” The 2000 report stated that 952 people had died along the Sesan River, with large numbers of domestic animals, as a result of diseases believed by local communities to be directly associated with the Yali Falls dam. A 2007 Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report on the Sesan River similarly identified toxic algae as the likely reason for villagers’ illnesses. The EIA report prepared by the Norwegian Institute for Water Research and Nordic hydropower consultants, SWECO Grøner, confirmed that there are strains of toxin-producing cyanobacteria present in the Yali Dam Reservoir, and that water quality in the Sesan River has “seriously deteriorated since the construction of the Yali Power Plant” with the cyanobacteria producing “exactly the same symptoms” as reported by Cambodians downstream.

The study confirmed the occurrence of cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins in the Sesan River mainstream, however no cyanobacteria were detected in the water samples taken in three different tributaries, indicating the polluted water to originate from a more stagnant mainstream source such as an upstream hydropower reservoir. The water is not suitable for human consumption Research by Tiodolf found concentrations of toxic algae (cyanotoxin) and presence of the indicator species E.coli, coliform bacteria, in the Sesan Mr. Meach Mean, Coordinator of the 3S Rivers River exceed World Health Organisation (WHO) limits Protection Network which works with communities for safe drinking water. along the Sesan River in Ratanakiri, indicates that this study confirms what villagers have been reporting for Cyanotoxins are cancerous to the liver after longer years. “The research by STRIVER clearly demonstrates periods of exposure, while excessive levels of E.coli the disastrous ecological and social effects large dams concentration are commonly associated with many can have on rivers and the associated health problems health problems and present an increased risk to for downstream communities. We hope this report will communities through the spreading of waterborne help initiate remedy for the communities who have disease. been waiting for mitigation and compensation from the Results are consistent with the gastric disorders past and present impacts of Vietnam’s dams”. and skin problems experienced by Sesan River communities since the construction of the Yali Falls dam. Approximately 28,000 people rely on the Sesan River for their drinking water, fishing, bathing, and

Construction on Vietnam’s Yali Falls dam began in 1993 by the Electricity of Vietnam on the Sesan River and is located approximately 70-80 km from the border of Cambodia. Since its construction and operation in

2001, villagers living downstream have experienced large-scale social, economic, and environmental impacts. Despite complaints and requests from communities for mitigation no solution has been forthcoming. Mr. Say Duen, from Koh Peah Commune, in Vuan Sai district confirmed that health problems started approximately 5 to 10 years ago. “When we use the river water to cook, or to wash, we sometimes get a skin rash or diarrhea, and children who swim and drink the water get sick, especially during the dry season. I hope that this Delacour’s message will be received by the government Langur Trachypithecus delacouri and dam © builders and they use their responsibility to Jonathan C. Eames find a solution for our people.” 30

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

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Time for Gulf Arab states to invest in Bengal Florican conservation in Cambodia

he plight of the Bengal Florican in Cambodia could be eased if the Gulf Arab states that have invested so heavily in dry season rice cultivation in the Tonle Sap floodplain were prepared to accept responsibility for their environmentally detrimental actions and invest in the Integrated Conservation and Biodiversity Areas. Bengal Florican Houbaropsis bengalensis is a Critically Endangered bustard inhabiting alluvial grasslands in India, Nepal and Cambodia. The global population is estimated at fewer than 1,500 individuals, most of which breed on seasonally flooded grasslands surrounding the Tonle Sap Lake, Cambodia. The estimated Tonle Sap Lake floodplain population of Bengal Floricans may be less than 300 adult males, representing a 30% decline since 2005 (BirdLife International 2009, Grey et al. 2009). The Tonle Sap grasslands are maintained by a traditional agricultural ecology linked to the flood and retreat of the Tonle Sap Lake waters. This system has existed since the great Khmer Empire of Ankorian times and is in harmony with nature and the system upon which the rural poor depend for their livelihoods. However, Tonle Sap grasslands are rapidly being lost due to intensification of irrigated dry season rice

cultivation, principally for export, in many cases to Gulf Arab States. Dry season rice cultivation causes landlessness, replaces a traditional agricultural ecology and does not contribute to food security or livelihoods. The Asian Development Bank’s Cambodia country manager called the food security situation in Cambodia “an unprecedented emergency” WWW.Atimes.com 26 September 2008. Many Gulf States, including Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates which import between 60-90% of basic foodstuffs, are investing in rice production in Cambodia, for export to their home countries (WWW.Atimes.com 26 September 2008). In 2008 Qatar officially declared its intention to invest in Cambodia’s agricultural sector, including US $ 200 million in rice farmland in Svay Rieng province where the Bengal Florican is already extinct Mekong Times 8 May 2008. In 2008 reports were received of a Kuwaiti proposal to develop 10,700 ha of dry season rice within and around Veal Srangai Integrated Farming and Biodiversity Area (IFBA). This company also proposed an area of 50,000 ha of dry season rice within and around IFBAs in Kampong Svay, Stoung, districts, Kampong Thom province and in Chikreng district, Siem Reap Province. The current status of these proposals is unknown (Forestry Administration

February 2010). The head of the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), warned in August 2009 that a new kind of “neo-colonialism” could emerge from land deals where poor Southeast Asian countries [like Cambodia] produce food for export to rich Gulf States at the expense of their own underfed people . (HalalFocus.com 30 July 2009).

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

REGIONAL NEWS

The Cambodian governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s recently brokered an opaque deal with Kuwait for farmland in Kampong Thom province, which holds the largest numbers of Bengal Floricans, has farmers concerned that their eviction may be part and parcel of the deal, according to rights activists.

ÂŠ Photo: Jonathan C. Eames Activists and food-security experts have expressed concerns about the lack of transparency surrounding deals between Southeast Asian governments and their Gulf area suitors. Details of land areas, locations, lengths of leases and amounts invested have been scant in government statements, and news reports on the deals often present contradictory information. That, they venture, could open the way for abuse and corruption HalalFocus.com 30 July 2009. Numerous reports have detailed heavy-handed expropriation in Cambodia and the press regularly carries stories of land scandals involving politicians, businessmen and high-ranking army and police officers. Land-grabbing in Cambodian rural areas is rampant, human-rights groups allege, despite a land law that limits economic concessions to less than 10,000 hectares (HalalFocus.com 30 July 2009). LICADHO, a Cambodia-based rights group, estimated in a May report that over 250,000 people in 13 provinces had been adversely affected by land-grabbing and forced evictions since 2003 (HalalFocus.com 30 July 2009).

BirdLife, Wildlife Conservation Society and our government and NGO partners have established almost 350 km2 of Tonle Sap grasslands as protected areas (known as Integrated Farming and Biodiversity Conservation Areas [IFBAs]), set aside for biodiversity and local livelihoods. On going conservation activities supported by BirdLife in these areas include participatory land-use zoning, patrols reporting new rice developments to government officials, awareness-raising and incentiveled nest protection schemes. BirdLife through the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund is also supporting a PhD student from the University of East Anglia conduct research to learn more about the population of Bengal Floricans and their movements outside the breeding season when the Tonle Sap grasslands are in flood. The results will guide and inform future management. Bustards figure as the major quarry species of Gulf Arab falconers. The decline of the Houbara Bustard Chlamydotis undulata has lead to significant conservation efforts in several Gulf Arab States, and the launch of conservation plans to re-introduce this species and conserve its habitat. The current plight of the Bengal Florican and the increasing interest in converting its habitat offers a clear example of a common interest and the potential for a shared cause. Jonathan C Eames Programme Manager Birdlife International in Indochina 32

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

ig birds got a big boost in Cambodia, where a new protected area will safeguard six of the largest remaining tracts of lowland grassland in Southeast Asia. The wildlife-rich sites, located in and around the Tonle Sap floodplain, are a refuge for the rare Bengal florican and other globally threatened birds. In addition, the grasslands provide a fishing, grazing, and deep-water rice farming resource for local communities. “Recognizing the importance of these sites as part of Cambodia’s unique natural heritage shows the national government’s great commitment to the conservation of some of the country’s valued landscapes,” said WCS President Steven Sanderson. The six sites include one in Siem Reap province and five in Kampong Thom province, comprising a total of 76,996 acres of habitat. Provincial conservation orders had offered some protection to these areas but largescale commercial rice production made them vulnerable to land-clearing and dam-building activities. With these new designations, staff from Cambodia’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries are empowered to prevent such destructive land-use practices. Among the species benefiting from the designations is the endangered Bengal florican. Fewer than 1,300 of these large, ground-nesting birds remain in the world. More than half of them live in Cambodia. Traditional, low-intensity agricultural practices, such as seasonal burning, plowing, planting, and harvesting, help support the needs of the florican in the wild. Il-

IBA NEWS

legal commercial rice farming, however, destroys its habitat, forcing floricans into ever-shrinking areas. The new declaration represents the strongest step Cambodia has taken to date to protect the habitat of this and other species living in the protected areas – including Sarus cranes, storks, ibises, and rare eagles. WCS worked in collaboration with Cambodia’s Forestry and Fisheries Administrations, local governments, and community stakeholders to strengthen the areas’ management of natural resource. The protected area designations resulted from this endeavor. As part of that effort, WCS sourced funds and provided technical advice and management support. Other partners involved in this effort include the Centre d’Etude et de Développement Agricole Cambodgien (CEDAC), the Sam Veasna Center (SVC), BirdLife International in Indochina and the Angkor Center for Conservation of Biodiversity (ACCB), and the University of East Anglia.

The collaborative project has been supported by grants from: Fondation Ensemble; the IUCN Netherlands Ecosystem Grants Program; the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Wildlife Without Borders – Critically Endangered Animal Conservation Fund; the UNDP/GEFfunded Tonle Sap Conservation Project; WCS Trustee Ms. Eleanor Briggs; the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, administered through BirdLife International in Indochina and which is a joint initiative of l’Agence Française de Développement; Conservation International; the Global Environment Facility; the Government of Japan; the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation; and the World Bank. ----Source: http://www.wcs.org/new-and-noteworthy/cambodia-saves-key-grasslands.aspx

Cambodia Protects Key Grasslands

Photo: Nicolas Cornet

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

IBA NEWS

Threats to Kampong Trach IBA in Kampong Trach District, Kampot Province, Cambodia

Above: bird traps and drainage channel at Kampong Trach ÂŠ Photo: LCG and Jonathan C. Eames (right)

ampong Trach Important Bird Area (IBA) is a seasonally inundated wetland and dominantly covered by Chinese Water Chestnut Eleocharis dulcis (the common food item for Sarus Cranes at the site) and scattered Melaleuca scrubs. The site is located in the southern part of Cambodia in Kampong Trach district of Kampot province, exists influential tide from Hatien Sea in Vietnam and is home to an annual dry season nonbreeding population of Sarus Cranes. Due to the site being regarded as an international importance, the Forestry Administration (FA) in collaboration with BirdLife International Cambodia Programme has submitted a formal request to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) for establishing a Sarus Crane conservation reserve with an area 212 ha, comprising two main Sarus Crane feeding sites such as Koh Treak (UTM: 0448497-1158321) and Veal Daem Snay (UTM: 0449558-1156200). Koh Anse (UTM: 04479081154095) is another Sarus Crane feeding site but was already sold to a company. The area is small and surrounded by many villages and people. Therefore, it is inevitable to have threats occurring within the site including burning of vegetation, poaching of wildlife, use of illegal fishing gear, land encroachment (for the purpose of aquacultural farming, agricultural expansion, land speculation and ownership), unsustainable resource exploitation, human disturbance (fishing, vegetation and fuel wood collection, domestic buffalo tending and motor boat traversing once in a while). 34

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

IBA NEWS

Threats to Kampong Trach IBA in Kampong Trach District, Kampot Province, Cambodia (contâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d.)

Awareness raising activity conducted with school children and a signboard planted at the site. Credit: Hang Phoeung and Kim Hout

Through the project implementation since 2004 until 2009, some threats which are purely illegal destructive and unsustainable activities, had been found. Those threats were prevented and stopped including 8 cases of bird trapping, 7 cases of land encroachment, one case of vegetation burning. Although the site is not legally established by the Royal Government of Cambodia all illegal activities were enforced under the following relevant legislation such as Forestry Law in 2002, Fisheries Law in 2006 and Land Law in 2003. Regarding human disturbances, Local Conservation Group (LCG) members had only educated and advised them not to come close to feeding and roosting locations of Sarus Cranes because sub-decree is not yet approved to limit the local peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s livelihood activities at the site In addition to law enforcement, many education and awareness raising activities on wildlife conservation and protection had been conducted by LCG members and BirdLife counterpart staff in the communal meetings, festivals and schools in relevant communes and through signboards, posters, T-shirts etc. Therefore, threats have now almost finished at the site. Seng Kim Hout CCK and MB project officer

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

IBA NEWS

Updated news on Designation of Kampong Trach IBA Seng Kim Hout reports The national inter-ministerial working group to solve land conflict issue in Kampong Trach IBA. ÂŠ Photo: Seng Kim Hout

ince 2004, BirdLife International Cambodia Programme in collaboration with the Forestry Administration (FA), has been working at Kampong Trach Important Bird Area (IBA) and carrying out a number of projects, including establishing a Local Conservation Group (LCG), implementing law enforcement, environmental awareness and bird survey and monitoring activities. Our shared goal is the establishment of a protected area. On 25 January 2010 a discussion meeting was held in the Kampot provincial office between the representatives of FA, Agricultural Department of the Office of the Council of Ministers with His Excellency Khoy Khun Huor, Kampot provincial governor. The meeting focused on the installation of the boundary demarcation posts undertaken by Kampot Provincial Department of Environment in Kampong Trach IBA without the participation and cooperation of FA who have been working at the site since 2004 and who proposed the site for sub-decree in 2007.In response, His Excellency the Kampot provincial governor said that he ordered the Provincial Department of

Land Management, Urban Planning, Construction and Cadastral to systematically register land title to keep that site for a Sarus Crane conservation reserve and installed maker posts to stop further land conflict issue. He also added that regarding the suggestions from FA, there was no problem in case the Royal Government of Cambodia identifies any institution to manage the site and he would support to change terms used on the concrete posts and follow the governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s decision. For the case of non-cooperation with FA in implementing the installation of the boundary demarcation posts at the site he would ask His Excellency Heng Vantha, Kampot provincial deputy governor, who led this work for further clarification. On 04 March 2010 a meeting was held in the Office of the Council of Ministers to discuss the draft sub-decree to establish Kampong Trach IBA as a Sarus Crane reserve. The meeting was co-chaired by His Excellency Pich Chhun, deputy of the Council of Jurists of the

Royal Government of Cambodia and Her Excellency Ly Vouch Leng, deputy of Economic, Social and Cultural Observation Unit and attended by 17 participants representing MAFF; the Council of Jurists; Economic, Social and Cultural Observation Unit; and Agricultural Department of Office of the Council of Ministers. As a result, the draft sub-decree was completed discussed and some small changes and adjustments in the whole document were made during the meeting. However, the meeting had requested FA to search for a response of the Prime Minister to a letter of the Senior Minister, Minister of LMUPC dated on 05 May 2009 regarding the study result of land conflict issue with 11 families living in Boeung Sala Khang Tboung commune. FA has already undertaken some steps following a request from the meeting by working with some relevant people within LMUPC. When the request is completed an inter-ministerial meeting will be held in the Office of the Council of Ministers to further discuss on the formation of Kampong Trach IBA before submitting to the session of Ministers. 36

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

he global conservation importance of Western Siem Pang in Cambodia as one of only a very few sites conserving populations of five Critically Endangered bird species is becoming more widely known although it is best known to support the world’s largest population of the White-shouldered Ibis Pseudibis davidsoni. However, its importance for another ibis - the Giant – is only now becoming better understood. Recently a BirdLife survey team recorded an astonishing 16 Giant Ibis over ten days during a rapid survey of the western sector of the site. As a rule during such a time period, one would expect to encounter one or two birds. This is good news for the Giant Ibis, the national bird of Cambodia, whose global population estimate is believed to be as low as 200 individuals.

International in Indochina. The global range of the Giant Ibis has shrunk and it now only occurs in southern Laos and northern Cambodia. The destruction of dry dipterocarp forest and the associated wetlands in Thailand and Vietnam during the 20th Century, lead to its extinction in those countries. The same processes continue in Cambodia and the dry forest ecosystem and its wealth of wildlife may be now only seen at remote sites in Preh Vihear, Stung Treng and Mondulkiri

“At the height of the dry season one would expect a greater encounter rate as Giant Ibis along with other wildlife become concentrated at seasonal wetlands (trapeangs) in the forest and grasslands, but to record so many birds in such a short period from such a small area suggests the population at Western Siem Pang is much larger than we previously thought.” said Jonathan C. Eames, Programme Manager for BirdLife

Western Siem Pang – Land of the Giants

rarest of the rare provinces. The forest edge retreats annually, however in the face of clearances for new concessions. “The Giant Ibis shuns people,” continued Eames, “it is a magnificent and enigmatic bird that with its evocative call, will only be saved from global extinction when more people recognize that the economic values of the dry dipterocarp forests of Cambodia extend beyond cassava plantations and poorly conceived bio fuel projects.” © Jonathan C. Eames

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

rarest of the rare

Giant Ibis Thaumatibis gigantea Photos by Jonathan C. Eames

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

project updates

Rare Bird Club Trip visit to Cambodia

ate January saw the first ever Rare Bird Club trip to Cambodia. The very full itinerary took in the central Mekongh at Kratchie, Western Siem Pang, Prek Toal and Chikreng. We hope to repeat this successful trip in 2011.

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

CEPF-RIT Updates

Project updates The Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (www.cepf.net) is a joint initiative of l’Agence Française de Développement, Conservation International, the Global Environment Facility, the Government of Japan, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the World Bank. A fundamental goal is to ensure civil society is engaged in biodiversity conservation. CEPF began a $9.5 million five year investment plan in Indochina in July 2008, in partnershipwith BirdLife International, who provide the Regional Implementation Team (www. birdlifeindochina.org/cepf). As the RIT in Indochina, BirdLife International will: raise awareness of CEPF; solicit grant applications and assist organisations to make applications; review applications; give small grants and jointly make decisions with CEPF on large grants; and monitor and evaluate progress with the investment strategy.

hree more large and nine new small grants made in the region

In the first three months of 2010, three more large grants were made, bringing the total number of funded large projects to 17, and nine more small grants, bringing the total number of funded small projects to 33. So far, 49 of 181 applications made to CEPF in Indochina have been approved, with 22 grants to projects in Cambodia, 16 to Vietnam, two to Lao P.D.R., one to Thailand, and nine to projects working in more than one country. In total, about US $4.8 million of grants has now been contracted.

Three more large grants

Cat Ba Langur Trachypithecus poliocephalus Photo courtesy of the Seacology Foundation.

The first two newly funded large grants in this quarter aim to protect two Critically Endangered primates in Vietnam: Cat Ba Langur Trachypithecus poliocephalus and Grey-shanked Douc Pygathrix cinerea. Münster Zoo (www.allwetterzoo.de or http://www.catbalangur.org) received nearly US$ 58,000 to bolster conservation efforts for the Cat Ba Langur, one of the world’s rarest primates. Recent surveys have shown that there are less than 100 individuals remaining; only on Cat Ba Island, 130 km north-east of Hanoi. The project will work with the national park authorities to help ensure strict protection of the remaining population, reduce habitat fragmentation and destruction of natural forest in the buffer zones of Cat Ba National Park and Biosphere Reserve, strengthen capacity of governmental forest protection agencies and reduce population fragmentation through intensive management. 40

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

CEPF-RIT Updates

The World Wide Fund for Nature (www.panda.org/greatermekong) was granted over US$ 30,000 to attempt sustainable community-based conservation of the largest known population of Grey-shanked Douc in the world. This species is also endemic to Vietnam, known from only five provinces, and is considered one of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 25 most threatened primates. Focused actions will be taken for the core population of the species in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam, as a foundation for longer-term conservation interventions, including clarifying the distribution of the population, building capacity of local partners in survey and monitoring, assessing the feasibility of ecotourism as a sustainable financing mechanism, evaluating the effectiveness of village patrol teams, and raising awareness among local communities.

Project updates

Grey-shanked Douc Pygathrix cinerea. Photo: Tilo Nadler

The third large grant in this quarter was made to ElefantAsia (www.elefantasia.org), for over US$ 35,000. In the next two years, in order to secure and increase Asian Elephant Elephas maximus populations in Lao P.D.R, the project will develop a national registration scheme, and complete microchipping and registration for domesticated elephants in the country, in an attempt to reduce incentives for capture and trade of wild elephants. The project will also raise awareness and promote law enforcement against illegal capture and trade of elephants, and facilitate sharing of information on registration, killing, capture and trade of elephants with neighbouring countries and concerned organizations. 41

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Project updates Nine more small grants

CEPF-RIT Updates

Red-headed Vulture Sarcogyps calvus Photo: Jonathan C. Eames

In this quarter, five of nine small grants are in Cambodia, one in Vietnam and three working in more than one country. With a second vulture-focused project, the Wildlife Conservation Society (www. wcs.org) are attempting to increase sustainability in efforts to prevent the extinction, and restore population sizes, of the largest Indochinese populations of three Critically Endangered vulture species, in north and northeastern Cambodia: Red-headed Vulture Sarcogyps calvus, White-rumped Vulture Gyps bengalensis and Slender-billed Vulture G. tenuirostris. The populations of these species have declined by 95-99% in South Asia since the early 1990s. Major project activities will be increasing revenues from ecotourism to vulture conservation, diversifying the funding base for ‘vulture restaurants’, and raising awareness about harmful effects of misuse of poison. Also in Cambodia, the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (www.wwt.org.uk) will develop partnerships and joint-planning with two local organisations in Cambodia, Mlup Baitong and Chamroien Chiet Khmer, resulting in submission to CEPF of complementary project plans to establish long term sustain-

able management of Boeung Prek Lapouv and Kampong Trach. These key sites are two of the few remaining representatives of the lower Mekong floodplain wetlands, and hold priority non-breeding populations of Sarus Crane Grus antigone. Some large threatened mammals are also now receiving greater attention. The Wildlife Conservation Society is attempting to find signs of the survival of Kouprey Bos sauveli, one of the most enigmatic large mammals in Asia, and to improve knowledge of the population status of other wild cattle, through camera-trapping and surveys in remote tracts of grassland and open forest in Preah Vihear Protected Forest, Cambodia. If Kouprey persist anywhere, this site is thought to be one of the most likely locations. Closely link with the above project, Global Wildlife Conservation (www.globalwildlife.org) have been funded to analyse all survey reports, camera trap photos of cattle, and data from the range of Kouprey, especially in Cambodia, to assess whether overlooked traces of the species’ persistence exist and to identify places where survey effort has been insufficient for confidence that Kouprey no longer occur, in order to guide follow-up surveys. 42

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Project updates

CEPF-RIT Updates Another mythical mammal in the region, Saola Pseudoryx nghetinhensis, is the target of the project â&#x20AC;&#x153;Launching the Flagship: Collaborative Saola Conservationâ&#x20AC;? developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (www.iucn.org/lao), as a follow-up to a previous CEPF grant. In the coming months, the project plans to leverage financial and political support from companies, development agencies, government and civil society to turn the plans resulting from the first ever technical meeting of the IUCN Saola Working Group last year into a strong regional partnership for effective Saola conservation. Asian Elephant in Cambodia will benefit from a small grant given to Fauna & Flora International (www. fauna-flora.org), which is attempting to reduce conflict between human and elephants in Mondulkiri Province, north-east Cambodia, through an awareness raising programme. Information about elephant conservation and human-elephant conflict will be shared with local communities, ethnic groups, agrobusinesses and local government to enable them to mitigate the conflict with strategies including deterrents ranging from chilli ropes to watchtowers and fireworks. Two elephants photographed by a camera trap in Cambodia. Photo: J. Holden, FFI

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

project updates

CEPF-RIT Updates

Left: Green Peafowl Pavo muticus. Photo: Nguyen Tran Vy The World Pheasant Association (www.pheasant.org.uk) has been funded to conduct “Strategic planning to safeguard the Green Peafowl Pavo muticus” by identifying important areas for the species across its range and assessing the importance of populations, based on currently available information and expert opinion. Additional activities will include evaluating the likelihood of conservation success across the range, and developing a species conservation strategy aimed at preventing a further deterioration in the species’ status. The last two small grants in this quarter were made to the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) to help tackle wildlife trade and wildlife product consumption in Indochina. In the first project, WCS will work with selected Vietnamese companies to engage them in preventing staff from consuming protected threatened species. WCS hopes

to achieve this by raising awareness at multiple levels within the companies and helping companies integrate a ‘zero-consumption of protected wildlife’ policy within Human Resource and Finance procedures. The project also plans to obtain media coverage of results of these innovative actions as a model for other companies operating in the region. In their second project “Strengthening capacity for wildlife product identification in Indochina”, WCS will work closely with partners to adapt and translate, for Cambodia, Lao PDR and Thailand, a recently published English and Vietnamese language identification guide to commonly traded wildlife products, tailored for law enforcement officials. Building on the existing guide, they will also develop a web-based service for providing rapid species identification services to law enforcement agencies in Vietnam.

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Project updates

CEPF-RIT Updates Progress of Funded Projects From 1st to 6th February 2010, an environmental education training course was held in Hanoi for five staff of the Asian Turtle Program (ATP) of Cleveland Zoological Society (www.ClevelandZooSociety.org; or www.asianturtlenetwork.org). The ATP received a large CEPF grant to conserve threatened turtles across Indochina, of which this training was a part. The training was designed to focus on improving skills in developing, organizing and conducting community meetings and school programs to increase awareness and promote conservation of some of Vietnam’s rarest turtle species. Further information can be downloaded here. 3S Rivers Protection Network (www.3spn.cfsites.org), the first local civil society organisation in Cambodia to receive a CEPF small grant last year has released its first newsBelowJournalists discussing on tackling cross-border wildlife trade. Photo: Wildlife Conservaletter “Living Rivers” for August to November 2009. The newsletter contains updates tion Society from Srepok, Sesan and Sekong (3S) river communities in north-east Cambodia, including hydropower development issues, and other conservation and environmental news relevant to 3S villagers and the region as a whole. The full newsletter can be read here. Above: ATP trainees practising in a school program. Photo: Dang Minh Ha, ENV

Two elephants photographed by a camera trap in Cambodia. Photo: J. Holden, FFI

On 17 March 2010, the Wildlife Conservation Society gathered nearly 30 local and national journalists in Mong Cai Province, northern Vietnam to attend a training workshop on, and field investigations into, the illegal wildlife trade through the border crossing to China. Journalists were encouraged to raise their voices and to have a responsibility to the public and relevant authorities in the fight to stop wildlife trade in this area, as well as the rest of Vietnam. This workshop was a part of the CEPF-funded project “Building Awareness and Capacity to Reduce the Illegal Cross-Border Trade of Wildlife From Vietnam to China”. A full media release is available here. 45

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Project updates

Census of Black-faced Spoonbill January 2010 in Vietnam Country/ Region Vietnam

Red River Delta: Xuan Thuy National Park

11/01/10

Total Number 46*

Vietnam

Quang Ninh Province: Ha Nam Island**

09/10/10

Nguyen Duc Tu

Vietnam

Red River Delta: Thai Thuy IBA**

10/01/10

Nguyen Duc Tu

TOTAL:

Location

Date

Immature birds >5

Reported by Phan Van Truong (Xuan Thuy National Park)

Black faced Spoonbills Photo: Jonathan C. Eames Notes: * The counts were made on the unsuitable days in northern Vietnam (i.e. low tide entire the day). In Xuan Thuy National Park, the highest number counted was 54 birds (at least 11 juveniles) counted on 22 November 2009 (Nguyen Duc Tu pers. obs.) and 27 December 2009 (Phan Van Truong pers. obs.). ** All the counts during 9-10 January 2010 were made possible with support from BirdLife International Vietnam Programme.

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

project news

ENFORCEMENT RANGER â&#x20AC;&#x201C; BASIC TRAINING COURSE

in Chu Yang Sin National Park, Dak Lak Province, Vietnam

21 March to 3 April 2010

Left: Participants of the training course with BirdLife Staff Right Above: Trainees practising Raids Right Below: Introduction of First Aid Photos: Mai Phuong

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

project news

Left: A trainee receiving a prize for a night patrol activity Right Above: Trainees practising movements through different terrains Right Below: Certificates were given to all trainees

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Hugh Wright U is ibis crazy

nderstanding why a particular waterbird is so rare and what can be done to save it is what drives Hugh Wright, a PhD researcher from University of East Anglia, UK. Hugh has spent the last two and a half years focusing his studies on White-shouldered Ibis Pseudibis davisoni , a critically endangered bird of which little is known. A lot of sweat poured through three fieldwork seasons in the hot Cambodian dry season is producing results that conservationists can act on. White-shouldered Ibis once occurred across South-East Asia in a variety of open and wetland habitats and it was even considered a “common” bird in some places. Since the 1930s it experienced a severe decline and went almost unrecorded in the 1980s and 1990s. Thankfully, conservationists rediscovered populations in southern Laos, northern and eastern Cambodia and southern Vietnam and started raising questions about why this species had become so rare. In 2008, Hugh began a long-overdue research project to reveal this species’ requirements and began implementing conservation activities specifically targeting this species.

Photo: Nicolas Cornet

“I want to provide evidence for the most important aspects the species’ ecology

profile and the effectiveness of different conservation techniques”, explains Hugh, “the foraging and breeding ecology are particularly crucial factors that conservationists could enhance to benefit this species”. Hugh’s work involves a wide range of activities including monitoring population size, assessing feeding habitat quality and the role of domestic livestock, monitoring and protecting nests and camera trapping nest predators.

and high motivation. Working in the forest for many months continuously can be tough both physically and mentally. Hugh admits that before studying Whiteshouldered Ibis he had no tropical fieldwork experience and was a little nervous about starting. “I first came to Cambodia to do MSc research in 2008. I was lucky to be given the option of a PhD before I even started that work, but accepting it was a tricky decision - I’d never been to a developing country before or even The last year has been particularly re- a tropical environment so I didn’t know warding, as Hugh and his survey team what to expect. In retrospect though, takhave found record numbers of ibis and ing on the PhD was a great decision”. record numbers of nests. In July 2009, a coordinated roost count across north Hugh’s research goes further than species and east Cambodia found 310 birds. Im- ecology to explore the potential role that proved knowledge like this is helping local people can play to help conserve BirdLife International to make a more the ibis. “Studying the habitat dynamaccurate assessment of the species’ sta- ics within dry forest landscapes has retus. At Western Siem Pang IBA, where vealed that traditional land management Hugh undertakes the majority of his by local communities is relevant to the work, the team found over 20 nests this species’ survival”, says Hugh. “The exyear. This is further evidence that West- tensive grazing of wetlands and seasonal ern Siem Pang IBA is the most globally pools by cattle and buffalo, the routine important site for this rare species. Half burning of forest understorey and the of the nests were guarded by local people availability of abandoned rice fields are to learn whether nest protection is a fea- all important factors for creating suitable sible and effective conservation action ibis habitat”. Hugh expects that his PhD for improving breeding success. thesis will draw upon the theme of sustainable conservation that directly benStudying this species and its environ- efits from the activities of local people. ment in such detail requires dedication 49

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

profile

Hugh Wright

is ibis crazy Hugh and Mem Mai Photo: Nicolas Cornet Cambodia contains approximately 90% or more of the remaining Whiteshouldered Ibis population. Conserving this species will require coordinated action within and outside the existing Cambodian protected area network. The two largest known sub-populations in the country are in currently unprotected sites: Western Siem Pang IBA and the central section of the Mekong River. Hugh is working closely with BirdLife International, Wildlife Conservation Society, World Wide Fund for Nature and the Forestry Administration and Ministry of Environment of Cambodia to share the results of his work and make plans for implementing more effective conservation. Hugh Wright’s study has received funding from a range of donors including Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund; the Mohammed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund; Rufford Small Grants for Conservation; Oriental Bird Club; British Ornithologists’ Union; Angkor Centre for Conservation of Biodiversity, BirdLife International and the Natural Environment and Economic and Social Research Councils of the British government.

Mem T Mai Local hunter to local hero

Photo: Nicolas Cornet

he call of an Eld’s Deer resonates around the forest at 3am. The survey team are collapsed asleep in their hammocks after an exhausting hot day of nest finding. Mem Mai, however, leaps from his hammock with excitement, waking whoever else has the energy to go and take a look. His unstoppable enthusiasm and highly-trained senses compel him to find wildlife at any time of day and night. Mem Mai is a key member of Birdlife International in Indochina’s Local Conservation Group (LCG) at Western Siem Pang IBA, northern Cambodia. Now 39, Mai spent 13 years hunting wildlife in this dry dipterocarp forest to support his family. His tracking and trapping skills were so adept that his perfect mimicry of a young sambar deer even brought a tiger into his line of fire. Like other members of the native Khmer Kheh community, hunting was a part of his family’s survival. 50

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Mem Mai

Local hunter to local hero (cont’d.)

When BirdLife arrived in Western Siem Pang in 2003, Mai was offered an alternative livelihood as a LCG member. Overnight, Mai turned his proficient tracking skills and exceptional knowledge of the landscape to the monitoring and protection of wildlife. Since then he has been helping BirdLife to understand and conserve Western Siem Pang’s 5 critically endangered birds; two ibis and three vulture species. Wildlife censuses, patrolling, assisting police operations and raising local awareness are his key contributions now. Mai’s talents have made him an invaluable part of other project work, most recently the research into White-shouldered Ibis Pseudibis davisoni (undertaken by University of East Anglia in collaboration with BirdLife).Everyday in the breeding season he and the survey team go in search of Whiteshouldered Ibis to learn more about this species’ breeding and feeding ecology. Nesting success is a main theme of this study and requires weeks of dedicated nest finding. This season Mai has found 5 nests of this severely threatened bird, nearly a quarter of all nests found throughout Cambodia. Midday temperatures exceeding 40°C are no barrier to his dedication when he suspects a particular part of the forest contains a nest. Photo: Nicolas Cornet

profile Climbing skills more often used for harvesting coconuts have also come in useful for this work. Specially-constructed nest cameras are being installed to understand which predator species are taking White-shouldered Ibis eggs and chicks. Camera installations take place at night to minimise disturbance to the ibis and to prevent crows opportunistically removing the nest contents after installation. Mai and his colleagues bravely climb these 15-20m dipterocarp trees in the dark to install the first ever nest cameras deployed in Cambodia. Western Siem Pang IBA’s rich fauna now mean a lot more to Mai than just a livelihood. Spend any time with him in the forest and you can get a sense of his personal passion for finding, watching and understanding the wildlife in his home environment. When he comes across a Giant Ibis or a Red-headed Vulture (for the several-hundredth time) he can barely contain his excitement. This enthusiasm is infectious and inspires his colleagues, members of the local community and visitors. The Rare Bird Club visit to Western Siem Pang in January 2010 gave Mai the chance to show off his skills, including his fast-growing knowledge of English-language animal names. Mai’s family have also been at the receiving end of his animal interests. A Common Palm Civet and a Changeable Hawk Eagle have become household members following confiscations from illegal wildlife traders. The eagle was raised at his home and successfully rereleased; “I still miss the eagle” Mai says, despite it having devoured uncountable volumes of his chickens and shrieking pre-dawn, everyday, for three months. Mai trains his sons in various aspects of his work in the hope that they too will follow him into conservation; already they are assisting the ongoing White-shouldered Ibis research. BirdLife International in Indochina Cambodia Programme is now in a position to make significant progress for conservation in Western Siem Pang IBA. Mai, with his talents and exceptional knowledge, will be the backbone of BirdLife activities as it moves into a new era at this site. 51

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

review

Herpetofauna of Vietnam FRANKFURT CONTRIBUTIONS TO NATURAL HISTORY 33 Nguyen Van Sang, Ho Thu Cuc and Nguyen Quang Truong

lthough Vietnam has one of the richest herpetofaunas in the world, study of its amphibians and reptiles was long overshadowed by interest in India, China and the East Indies. This book remedies any documentary gap that may have existed. It provides a comprehensive checklist of species with Latin, English and Vietnamese names, followed by 200 pages of colour plates. The introduction describes the geography and ecology of the country and the history of Vietnamese herpetology. -----Source: http://www.nhbs.com/herpetofauna_of_vietnam_tefno_157162.html&tab_tag=desc

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

Photo Spot

Indian Spotted Eagle Aquila hastata

ndian Spotted Eagle Aquila hastata is a recently described species with a poorly known distribution. Its range in Cambodia is imperfectly known and it is not known whether the birds photographed in Cambodia may represent an undescribed taxon of the species. These two photographs were taken at Western Siem Pang on 6 March 2010.

Photos: Jonathan C. Eames

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

BirdingASIA 12 (2009): 58â&#x20AC;&#x201C;61

PUBLIcations

White-eared Night Heron Gorsachius magnificus in in Ba Be National Park, Vietnam JONATHAN C. EAMES & LE MANH HUNG

White-eared Night Heron Gorsachius magnificus ÂŠ Photo: Jonathan C. Eames

hite-eared Night Heron Gorsachius magnificus is a very poorly known, globally Endangered species, occurring mainly in southern China, with recent records from nine provinces, but with only two records prior to 2008 from Vietnam (BirdLife International 2001, 2009, Pilgrim et al. 2009). It is the most threatened and geographically restricted of all herons (Li et al. 2007). In 2008 targeted surveys by BirdLife International, in collaboration with Vietnam Birdwatching Club and the National Natural Museum, addressed the status and distribution of the species in four provinces in northern Vietnam, which resulted in observations from two sites in Bac Kan province, including Ba Be National Park. In 2009 the first breeding record of the species from Vietnam was made (Pilgrim et al. 2009) in Ba Be National Park and is documented here. -----------

In the same issue: John D. Pilgrim, Jonathan C. Eames and David Gandy

BirdingASIA 12 (2009): 53-55

The newly described Bare-faced Bulbul Pycnonotus hualon 54

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

publications

BirdLife International in Indochina - Cambodia Programme (2009) Operational management plan for Boeung Prek Lapouv management and convservation area for sarus crane and other birds 2009 - 2014. BirdLife International in Indochina - Cambodia Programme

Nuon Vanna and Melanie Mott (2009) Monitoring Protocol for Boeung Prek Lapouv management and conservation area for Sarus Crane and other Birds in Takeo Province and Kampong Trach Important Bird Area in Kampot Province Cambodia. BirdLife International in Indochina - Cambodia Programme

Hugh L. Wright, Bou Vorsak, Nigel J. Collar, Thomas N. E. Gray, Iain R. Lake, Sum Phearun, Hugo J. Rainey, Rours Vann, Sok Ko & Pa Ul M. Dolman (2009) Establishing a national monitoring programme for White-shouldered Ibis in Cambodia. Ibis The International Journal of Avian Science Sarus Crane Grus antigone ÂŠ Photo: Jonathan C. Eames 55

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

John Pilgrim

Staff news

ohn Pilgrim has been with BirdLife Indochina for four years, trying to build capacity in BirdLife staff and partners across Cambodia, southern China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam on a range of projects as diverse as development of a new Biodiversity Law, protected area management, Strategic Environmental Assessment of hydropower plans, and biodiversity monitoring. For most of the last two years, he has led the BirdLife Regional Implementation Team for the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, an important conservation grant-making mechanism for Indochina. John has greatly enjoyed his time in Indochina and will be staying in the region, but leaves BirdLife to spend more time on field research and conservation action, and to escape the Hanoi traffic!

Nuon Vanna

uon Vanna spent several years with BirdLife based at the Phnom Penh office. During his timie with BirdLife Vanna worked on a number of projects including the Asian Development Bankâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Biodivesrity Corridors Initiative and the Darwin-funded Ramsar project. Vanna made an important contribution to the monitoring protocol for Boeung Prek Lapouv.

ÂŠ Photo: Jonathan C. Eames

BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 33 - March 2010

from the archives

hese two astonishing photographs form part of a series, together with a lengthy article that appeared in the May 29 1905 issue of La Vie Illustree. They are taken at a Parsi temple in Bangkok. Until recently in India, dead Parsis were to be taken to the Towers of Silence where the corpses would quickly be eaten by the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vultures. The reason given for this practice is that earth, fire and water are all considered as sacred elements, which should not be defiled by the dead. Therefore, burial and cremation have always been prohibited in Parsi culture.