The Babbler 22 and 23

BirdLife International in Indochina

The Babbler BirdLife International in Indochina

September 2007 Number 22 & 23

Welcome Jonathan C. Eames Features Last Chance for the Javan Rhinoceros in Vietnam Effects of Sea-level Rise on Critical natural Habitats in Vietnam Regional news Important Bird Area News Rarest of the rare Project updates Cambodia activities Vietnam activities Myanmar activities Publications Book reviews Staff news From the Archives BirdLife International in Indochina www.birdlifeindochina.org

Cambodia Programme Office #25B Street 294, PO Box 2686 Tonle Basac, Phnom Penh, Cambodia Tel: + 85523993631 Email: BirdLife@online.com.kh Vietnam Programme Office #4/209, Doi Can, Hanoi, Vietnam Tel: + 84 4 722 3864 / Fax: + 84 4 722 3835 Email: birdlife@birdlife.netnam.vn

Welcome to the latest issue The Babbler. This is the largest issue we have yet produced and covers the period April to September 2007. We hope that at more than 40 pages this combined bumper issue makes-up for us not keeping you updated of our work recently. This issue contains two lengthy feature articles in which we report on the slide towards extinction of the endemic sub-species of the Javan Rhinoceros Rhinoceros sundaicus annamiticus and the threat to Vietnam’s Critical Habitat’s from sea-level rise by John Pilgrim.

One very good piece of news finally arrived in the second half of September: The Council of Ministers of the Government of Cambodia has now approved the BirdLife/Forestry Administration proposal to establish Beoung Prek Lapouv Sarus Crane Sanctuary in Takeo Province. We hope that by the time you read this the Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen will have signed the decree formerly establishing the reserve. We are very proud of this achievement as it marks the first protected area we have been successful in achieving formal legal status for in Cambodia.

Congratulations to Seng Kim Hout and all who worked to achieve this.

We are now faced with working towards it long term conservation in the context of the threat from rising sea level that John Pilgrim describes in his article.

The second and third quarters of 2007 saw us conclude two projects including our first Darwin Initiative funded project in Myanmar and a BirdLife/DGIS/TMF funded project in western Siem Pang, Cambodia.

We also completed the first six months of our Fondation Ensemble funded project in the Ton Le Sap grasslands, which aims to conserve the Bengal Florican. In addition our current MacArthur Foundation funded project celebrated its first birthday. As a departure from the norm, we have therefore included lengthy articles on the implementation of these important projects.

Jonathan C. Eames Programme Manager BirdLife International in Indochina

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Features Last chance for the Javan Rhinoceros in Vietnam In Vietnam the endemic Javan Rhinoceros Rhinoceros sundaicus annamiticus now only survives as a declining, possibly nonviable single population, suffering continued loss and fragmentation of its remaining habitat and increased levels of disturbance. Conservation actions for the species have failed to lead to an increase in population size and although there have been no documented losses to hunters there have been no recent positive conservation outcomes either. The statutory bodies charged with its conservation have failed to sustain the conservation effort and show no inclination to provide the rhino and its habitat the level of support required to guarantee its long-term survival. With this course of inaction the Javan Rhino will become extinct in Vietnam. This is a certainty. Government does not have to act alone or be the primary lead agency in the last attempt to save the rhino. The Javan Rhino needs a champion who will work for its conservation. Support should be sought from broader civil society including the private sector in Vietnam which now has the awareness and resources to bring to the task and whose involvement has so far been lacking.

Did he or didn’t he find fresh tacks of a female Javan Rhinoceros with young just after Tet 2007? Photo: J C Eames

On 27th April Cat Tien National Park hosted a workshop on the Javan Rhinoceros in Vietnam. The key-note presentation entitled Updating the Javan Rhino conservation strategy of Cat Tien National Park was from Gert Polet, one time chief technical advisor for WWFs projects in Cat Tien and now playing a species role for WWF based in the Netherlands.

Only three or four Javan Rhinos now remain Two recent fecal DNA analyses undertaken to determine the rhino population, estimate variously that six or seven animals (Columbia University) and at least four (Queen’s University, Canada) remain. Analysis of footprint cast data by Bui Huu Manh puts the number at one or two. The nine camera trap photographs taken between 11 May 1999 and 21 December 2005, which are notoriously difficult to interpret, probably show no more than two rhinos. The author’s conclusion is that the current population of Javan Rhinoceros in Cat Tien National Park stands at three or four individuals. The sex structure of this population is even less certain: Fecal analysis has shown that males and females are both present. A recent camera trap photograph clearly depicts a female. The age structure is also unclear with the last known birth of a rhino calf recorded in 1995. That individual is now sexually mature and could be expected to live another 30 years (Rhinos may live up to 40 years). There has been no evidence of reproduction since 1999. We know from studies undertaken on the Sumatran Rhinoceros Dicerorhinus sumatrensis that in the absence of breeding, lethal pathologies may develop in the reproductive organs. Thus in conclusion, there could be 1-7, and more probably 3-4 rhinos, one of which is a female but her reproductive status is unknown. For certain there has been no demonstrable recruitment into the population for eight years.

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Cat Loc is a failed protected area Although the Javan Rhinoceros features as the logo of Cat Tien National Park and although the workshop was held at the park headquarters in Dong Nai Province, Vietnam’s last surviving rhinos are in the Cat Loc sector of the park across the Dong Nai River in Lam Dong Province. This protected area covering some 35,000 ha was originally established to conserve the rhino population. Since its establishment ethnic Vietnamese have moved into the park and, joining the S’teing and Chau Ma people already residing there, have continued to clear forest for cashew plantations. The fields of one A hill too far: View across Cat Loc Nature Reserve, 28 April village now almost bisect the protected area. It 2007. Photo: J C Eames is widely believed, including by Gert Polet, that the rhinos are now confined to no more than a 5,000 ha enclave within the park, which is an area capable of supporting no more than ten rhinos. This consists or sub-optimal habitat, comprising dense bamboo and rattan on steep slopes, and where the animals are subjected to disturbance from ever increasing motorbike traffic into and between the cashew plantations and nearby villages. We learnt too that since the end of the WWF project there has been little patrolling in Cat Loc and no systematic collation of further data to monitor the rhino population.

Devil and the deep blue sea It seems quite clear that, without a sustained and focused conservation strategy, the Javan Rhinoceros in Vietnam is doomed to extinction. In his presentation Gert outlined two options: 1. Continue and improve the current policy of patrolling, speed-up village re-settlement outside the protected area and increase public awareness raising; or 2. move the rhinos south of the river to a large, fenced semi-natural enclosure and then over time, release them into Cat Tien National Park. The first option fits with existing experience, represents a low-cost option and has the added benefit of conserving Cat Loc, which is important for other wildlife (it is an Important Bird Area) too like the Orange-necked Partridge Arborophila davidi. However, there is a high risk of extinction with this option because it does nothing to improve the rhinos’ reproductive capacity.

The alternative option perhaps offers the best chance of conserving the rhinos because there is better habitat (lowland grasslands and wetlands) in the Cat Tien sector of the park and better security. This option is not, however, without great risk. Experience from elsewhere has shown that fatalities can arise amongst rhinos during capture and transport. Whilst in southern Africa darting and moving rhinos has been reduced to a routine operation, it requires high levels of skill and expertise, all of which Vietnam lacks. The terrain in Cat Loc could not be worse for such an undertaking. It is not the open bush-veldt of South Africa but hilly and covered in dense secondary forest. Helicopters would be essential and maneuvering a large transport helicopter into a prepared clearing in Cat Loc would be a hazardous undertaking. Once in a sling under a chopper it would be only a short and simple journey across the river to deposit the rhino into an enclosure in the Cat Tien sector. But there would need to be a semi-natural enclosure constructed where rhinos could re-adjust and recover. Such an enclosure would be costly to build and maintain. Finally there would be no certainty that the rhinos would breed. If they are no longer breeding Cat Loc, why should they breed in strange and foreign surroundings elsewhere?

Another option was tabled, not by Gert but by Nico Van Streen (who was sadly unable to attend the meeting), who suggested a collaboration with the Indonesian Government to re-stock Cat Tien with Javan Rhinos from Ujong Kulon in Java. The Javan Rhinos in Ujon Kulon are a different sub-species, and there is evidence that they are in decline and setting up such an endeavour would take much time and political maneuvering. Furthermore, it makes more sense from a conservation perspective to establish a second Javan Rhinoceros population with Indonesian surplus stock within the species former range in Indonesia before considering the Vietnamese option, such as at Way Kambas.

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Is there anybody out there?

Both of these options require continued intensive patrolling, data collection and elimination of disturbance, which would be reduced with re-settlement of villages and closing roads in Cat Loc. No consensus was reached for either of the longer term options at the workshop. Why was this? Although the workshop was a valuable forum for discussion and debate, the group was too large and perhaps too diverse and lacked key stakeholders, such as concerned Vietnamese citizens and the private sector. Whilst the meeting was adeptly chaired by a vice-Minister from MARD, and graced by the presence of the Chairman of Dong Nai People’s Committee, clearly indicating high-level political support in certain key quarters, there was no high level representation from Lam Dong People’s Committee. Lam Dong People’s Committee clearly sent the message to the meeting that they are not interested in the conservation of Javan Rhinoceros or Cat Loc. The statutory bodies charged with the conservation of the Javan Rhino in Vietnam have been apparently successful in preventing further poaching but have so far failed, and show little inclination, to provide the rhino and its habitat the level of support required to save it from extinction. If the current course of inaction is pursued the Javan Rhino will become extinct in Vietnam. It is only a matter of time, perhaps another 20 years. It will be hard to say quite when because they are such long-lived animals. Although many of the people charged with making decisions about the rhinos’ future now will not be around in 20 years, there still seems to be a prevailing Local schoolteachers pose with a poster prepared for the first collective desire for inaction. This can only be ever WWF Javan Rhinoceros workshop in Vietnam held on interpreted as a refusal to accept responsibility 17 February 1994. Photo: J C Eames or as a lack of concern. Conservationists are not being realistic if they think the government takes seriously or even cares that it is failing to take action under Vietnam’s national laws or within the framework of its international obligations such a under the Convention on Biological Diversity. I really doubt any amount of lobbying can prick their collective conscience and shame them into action.

Perhaps there is but one slender hope remaining: Elsewhere small, seemingly doomed rhino populations have recovered dramatically with the support and stewardship of committed individuals and alliances broader than just government institutions. In Natal, South Africa the Southern White Rhinoceros Ceratotherium simum simum was brought back from the brink of extinction through the combined efforts of committed individuals including Frederick Vaughan Kirby and Ian Player, together with the Natal Parks Board. Although the Government of Vietnam has the statutory responsibility to ensure the conservation of the Javan Rhino, it is not obliged to implement the policy itself, providing there are others willing to do so. In the current climate it seems unlikely that the government will be prepared to provide the leadership and resources to ensure the long-term conservation of the Javan Rhino. If it is to survive in Vietnam the Javan Rhino needs a champion who will work tirelessly for its conservation and philanthropists who will support the process. In resurgent Vietnam with a new elite flush with the rewards of economic growth potential supporters are out there but will need careful coaxing if they are to be involved in saving the Javan Rhino.

In February 1994 I held the first Javan Rhino workshop in Vietnam, under the banner, Cat Loc, last home of the Javan Rhino in Vietnam! We know its last home; we’ve just held the last workshop, now it really is the last chance for the Javan Rhinoceros in Vietnam.

Jonathan C Eames Programme Manager BirdLife International in Indochina

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Effects of sea level rise on critical natural habitats in Vietnam In a recent World Bank study modeling negative impacts of climate change-induced sea level rise1, Vietnam was predicted to be one of the two worst affected developing countries worldwide. Severe impacts were predicted on human population, agricultural land, and Gross Domestic Product, with a large proportion of Vietnam’s most productive land predicted to be inundated. However, the study provided little insight into initial impacts of sea level rise on biodiversity, let alone knock-on effects from increased pressure for agricultural land or living space.

Assessing impacts of sea level rise on Vietnam’s remaining natural habitats is critically important, not just to guide biodiversity conservation, but also because poor people are disproportionately dependent on these natural resources.

The scenarios presented in the World Bank study are cited as one of the key reasons that a conference to address climate change adaptation and biodiversity conservation issues in Vietnam was jointly organised by German Technical Cooperation, GTZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit), and the German Development Service, DED (Deutscher Entwicklungsdienst), on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), in cooperation with the Vietnamese Ministry for Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE) and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) as well as other national and international partners. Like the World Bank analysis, this study does not address impacts on biodiversity from climate change effects other than sea level rise, and does not assess knock-on effects of sea level rise. However, this study does provide an initial analysis of impacts on biodiversity of sea level rise, by modelling the same scenarios and using official World Bank definitions of biodiversity.

The World Bank defines ‘natural habitats’ as “land and water areas where the ecosystems' biological communities are formed largely by native plant and animal species, and human activity has not essentially modified the area's primary ecological functions”2. Further, ‘Critical Natural Habitats’ are defined as “(i) existing protected areas and areas officially proposed by governments as protected areas... and sites that maintain conditions vital for the viability of these protected areas... or (ii) sites identified on supplementary lists... Such sites may include... sites that are critical for rare, vulnerable, migratory, or endangered species.”3 For the purposes of this study, Critical Natural Habitats thus comprise existing and proposed protected areas and areas supporting important populations of threatened (‘endangered’), restricted-range, or congregatory species.

Although knowledge of freshwater biodiversity in Vietnam is fragmentary, enough data exist to identify and map existing and proposed terrestrial protected areas4, and terrestrial areas supporting important populations of threatened, restricted-range, or congregatory species, whether as Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs)5 or Important Bird Areas (IBAs; a subset of KBAs) 6. Overall, in these terms, Vietnam has Critical Natural Habitats at 286 sites, comprising 139 proposed or existing protected areas, 40 KBAs that are unprotected, and 107 areas that are both KBAs and protected areas (Figure 1).

By modeling the same range of sea level rise scenarios as in the World Bank study against maps of these Critical Natural Habitats (Figure 2), and identifying sites at which there may be a more or less continuous inundation of salt water from the sea, it is predicted that a 1m sea level rise may impact 78 (27% of) Critical Natural Habitats to some degree, comprising 46 (33% of) Protected Areas, 9 (23% of) KBAs, and 23 (21% of) areas that are both

Dasgupta, S., Laplante, B., Meisner, C., Wheeler, D. and Yan, J. (2007) The Impact of Sea Level Rise on Developing Countries: A Comparative Analysis. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 4136, February 2007. World Bank, Washington, DC. 2 World Bank Operational Policy 4.04 3 World Bank Operational Policy 4.04 1

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Tordoff, A. W., Tran Quoc Bao, Nguyen Duc Tu and Le Manh Hung (Eds.) (2004) Sourcebook of existing and proposed protected areas in Vietnam. Second edition. BirdLife International in Indochina and the Forest Protection Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Hanoi.

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Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (in prep.) Ecosystem Profile: Indochina Region of the Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspot.

6

Tordoff, A. W. (Ed.) (2002) Directory of Important Bird Areas in Vietnam. BirdLife International in Indochina and the Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources, Hanoi.

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protected areas and KBAs (Table 1). Likewise, a 5m sea level rise may impact 87 (30% of) Critical Natural Habitats to some degree, comprising 52 (37% of) Protected Areas, 10 (25% of) KBAs, and 25 (23% of) areas that are both protected areas and KBAs. The magnitude of these potential impacts is striking – a quarter to a third of all Critical Natural Habitats in Vietnam may be impacted by sea level rise alone under climate change scenarios that are widely accepted as realistic. These areas include a large proportion of Vietnam’s existing and proposed protected areas, since they are concentrated on islands and coastal areas. It is even more remarkable that a relatively small (1m) rise in sea level will impact almost as many Critical Natural Habitats – and almost as much area within sites – as a large rise in sea level (5m). Clearly Vietnam’s biodiversity is facing a crisis from sea level rise, even under the most conservative climate change scenarios. It is not only coastal provinces and land managers that should be concerned – in the south, the effects of just a 1m sea level rise stretch into areas of the Mekong Delta right through Vietnam and into Cambodia, over 180km inland, and in the north, extensive limestone aquifers will ensure that effects of salination spread widely, even to areas far inland such as Van Long Nature Reserve in Ninh Binh Province.

There are no easy solutions to climate change or sea level rise. However, many countries have already recognized the problems and are starting to not only prevent the situation getting any worse, through ambitious targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but also mitigate impacts. Vietnam has huge potential to reduce its own national greenhouse gas emissions through conservation of its remaining forest (tropical deforestation globally accounts for around 20% of all greenhouse gas emissions), embracing renewable power (particularly wind, solar, and tidal technologies that do not have the same detrimental environmental effects as hydropower dams), and forming a rational policy on transport that emphasizes – contra current plans – a shift towards the use of more sustainable transport (particularly buses and rail) and away from large single-passenger vehicles. Such efforts may seem trivial, but it is worth noting that the transport sector often accounts for more than a quarter of, and remains the fastest growing source of, greenhouse gas emissions in industrialized countries.

For Critical Natural Habitats that are already facing impacts from sea level rise, Vietnam faces very difficult choices. Firstly, these sites could be ignored, or ‘given up’, and their biodiversity and ecosystem services abandoned. Given the scale of pending problems, this may – sadly – be the most efficient solution for sites that are not irreplaceable, i.e. the species and ecosystems that they contain are found in other places that can be conserved.

Secondly, the government could put its faith in a sea defence strategy and simply build up sea walls to protect sea level rise. Unfortunately, such solutions have been proven unrealistically expensive in many countries. Finally, there is perhaps the most pragmatic option of continuing to conserve irreplaceable Critical Natural Habitats in the short-term, while trying to find long-term solutions. For example, while sea defence was the prevailing policy in the United Kingdom for many years, official government policy now includes ‘managed retreat’ or ‘coastal realignment’, whereby coastal land under threat is now slowly released to the sea and natural salt marshes – rather than sea walls – actively regenerated in order to create new habitats and to buffer farmland from the sea.

Habitat recreation is difficult and expensive, but few choices may remain in the long-term unless Vietnam is willing to watch its natural resources and heritage be washed away.

Given the concentration of sea level rise impacts in the low-lying Mekong and Red River Deltas, many of the Critical Natural Habitats that are predicted to be impacted are understandably wetlands. Freshwater areas in particular (as they will be most affected by salination from sea level rise) and wetlands in general, are a scarce but essential resource for not only biodiversity, but also for the ecosystem services they provide to humans, such as drinking water, sanitation, fish for food, and irrigation for rice fields. As always, poor people are most reliant on the natural environment and these basic ecosystem services for their livelihoods. Impacts on biodiversity, and the ecosystem services it provides, thus urgently need to be considered in plans to mitigate climate change, not only by the government and environmental organizations, but also by development organizations.

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Figure 2: Sea level rise predicted for Vietnam

Figure 1: Critical Natural Habitats in Vietnam

(dark blue=1m, light blue=5m)

John Pilgrim Conservation Advisor BirdLife International in Indochina

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Regional news The news stories in this section are often written by and sourced from the international print media.

They may be downloaded from the Internet. These news stories are usually not written by BirdLife International staff. We include such reports in this section to highlight important conservation news that will be of interest to readers. Whilst we try to ensure the accuracy of stories whenever possible, BirdLife International is not responsible for their content and the opinions expressed are not necessarily those of BirdLife.

Ed.

Large-antlered Muntjac photographed in Laos The Large-antlered Muntjac Muntiacus vuquangensis has been photographed for the first time in the wild. The Wildlife Conservation Society said the deer, previously known only from specimens collected by hunters and a few fleeting glimpses by biologists, stands approximately 25-30 inches and weighs up to 110 pounds. Its namesake antlers are significantly larger than other muntjac species found in Indochina.

Large-antlered Muntjac Muntiacus vuquangensis Copyright 2007 Nam Theun 2 Watershed Management and Protection Authority.

The photographs were taken using camera traps set in Laos' Nakai Nam Theun National Protected Area along the Laos-Vietnam border. The cameras were set by a team from the Nam Theun Watershed Management and Protection Authority, a new institution established by the Laos government to manage the more than 1,500 square miles of protected area. "We are very excited about these photos," said Sangthong Southammakoth, executive director of the watershed authority. "They show the global significance of the Nakai-Nam Theun National Protected Area, and reinforce the importance of our work." © Copyright 2007 by Intellasia.com

Genes reveal Rock Rat’s African roots A rock rat discovered in Laos in 1998 has turned out to be a "fossil species" - the sole survivor of a family thought to have disappeared 11 million years ago.

The little rodent has the face of a mouse and the furry tail of a squirrel was discovered by biologists in markets in Laos 1998. In 2005, researchers at the Natural History Museum in London, UK, suggested that the rodent marked the discovery of a whole new mammalian family and was a relative of guinea pigs, African mole rats and porcupines.

But six months later, other researchers disputed this, suggesting that the Laotian rock rat was not part of a new family but a very old one: the Diatomyidae,

Laotian rock rat Laonastes aenigmamus. Pass the barbeque sauce? Photo: Uthai Treesucon

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which was thought to have gone extinct 11 million years ago. However, that work was based solely on fossil data and so was controversial, according to Dorothee Huchon at Tel Aviv University in Israel.

Huchon set about resolving the issue by studying the family tree of the Laotian rock rat, Laonastes aenigmamus, using seven genes. The team compared the genes in the rock rat to those in all major taxonomic groups of living rodents in order to build up a picture of where it fit in the evolutionary tree. "The data we got is really, really strong," she says. "We can rule out that Laonastes is most closely related to guinea pigs." Huchon says her study strongly supports the theory that Laonastes is the only known survivor of the Diatomyidae family. The team was also able to estimate that the Diatomyidae diverged from their closest living relatives, gundis (see picture, right), 44 million years ago.

Journal reference: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (DOI:10.1073/pnas.0701289104) New Scientist.com 23 April 2007

Bengal Florican first to benefit from world's largest bird conservation programme The Bengal Florican, one of the world’s most threatened birds, will be first to benefit from a new conservation approach that aims to save all 189 of the world’s Critically Endangered birds from extinction. With less than 1,000 individual birds remaining, Bengal Florican had been given just five years before disappearing forever from its stronghold, the floodplain of the Tonle Sap lake in Cambodia. The florican will benefit from the groundbreaking new ‘BirdLife Species Champions’ approach; whereby ‘Champions’ are being sought for Critically Endangered birds, to fund identified conservation programmes that will pull each species back from the brink of extinction.

The ‘Species Champion’ for Bengal Florican will be the British Birdwatching Fair 2007, contributing toward conservation works being undertaken by ‘Species Guardians’ working in Cambodia. Three other Critically Endangered birds will also benefit: Belding’s Yellowthroat (Mexico), Djibouti Francolin (Djibouti), Restinga Antwren (Brazil). Since being re-discovered in Cambodia in 1999, Bengal Florican numbers have plummeted due to unregulated land conversion for intensive agriculture.

The BirdLife Species Champions funding will contribute toward the government-approved ‘Integrated Farming and Biodiversity Areas’ programme in Cambodia, encouraging communities to favour ‘low-impact’ traditional farming techniques over intensive non-sustainable dry-season rice production. “It is a fantastic privilege that Birdfair can act as Species Champion for the Bengal Florican,” said Martin Davies, co-organiser of the British Birdwatching Fair. "Visitors to the fair can take heart in knowing that their contributions will directly help the survival prospects of birds that otherwise would certainly disappear from the planet forever.”

“Critically Endangered birds can be saved from extinction through this innovative approach,” said Dr Mike Rands, Chief Executive of BirdLife International, on the BirdLife Species Champion initiative. “We know the priority conservation actions needed for each species – what we need now is the support of companies, organisations or even individuals –Species Champions.” he added. “This is an enormous challenge, but one we are fully committed to achieving in our efforts to save the world’s birds from extinction.”

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The BirdLife Species Champion initiative will be launched officially at this year's British Birdwatching Fair at Rutland Water (August 19-21), co-organised by the RSPB (BirdLife in the UK) and the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.

BirdLife International news release 16 August 2007

Does the description and naming of new species require collection of specimens?

Recent description of several new species, such as the Bugun Liocichla Liocichla bugonorum7, from photographs, DNA or feathers has spurred much debate as to whether an exception should be made to the standard practice of specimen collection for taxa believed to be too rare and threatened to allow collection of even a single specimen.

A very thorough recent review assesses the rules of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, and the arguments for and against the role of specimen collection in the naming of new taxa (not only species, but subspecies, families, and so on)8.

No rules oblige taxonomists to deposit voucher specimens when they describe a new species, because there is no ‘code of taxonomy’. However, as soon as a name is given to a new species, a voucher is necessary in order to provide an objective standard for the allocation of names to taxa. These vouchers have another important incidental taxonomic function, by providing material references for the characters described by taxonomists. The need to reference vouchers was brought into the fourth edition of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, in 1999, for description of any taxa after that year. However, a degree of ambiguity currently exists in the wording of relevant articles, allowing interpretation that a taxon can be named from indirect evidence (such as a photograph), if never captured, or that a taxon can be described from a live specimen that is later released.

Conversely, the code for botanical nomenclature explicitly allows the use of illustrations as vouchers.

After reviewing the arguments for and against the role of specimen collection in the naming of new taxa, although slanted towards their personal perspective as taxonomists, the reviewers provide sensible and pragmatic recommendations. In general, they recommend removing the current ambiguity about specimen collection in the text of the Code, to ensure that it is clear that this is – in almost all cases – a requirement.

However, they recommend an exception for the rare cases where: species are threatened with extinction but might still survive if a single specimen is not collected; species which are currently impossible to collect or to conserve; or species that are now extinct (but for which available illustrations or descriptions allow the proper description and naming of a new taxon). The propose that such an exception could take the form of submission of a manuscript for publication in the Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature, the official journal of the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature, followed by a vote of the Commission to validate the new nomen.

John Pilgrim Conservation Advisor BirdLife International in Indochina

Chinese firms to build Myanmar hydropower plant on Salween River The Myanmar Government has signed a memorandum of understanding with two Chinese firms to build a hydropower plant on the Salween River in north-east Myanmar, according to newspaper reports. The deal to

Athreya, R. (2006) A new species of Liocichla (Aves: Timaliidae) from Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary, Arunachal Pradesh, India. Indian Birds 2 (4): 82-94.

8 Dubois, A. and Némésio, A. (2007) Does nomenclatural availability of nomina of new species or subspecies require the deposition of vouchers in collections? Zootaxa 1409: 1-22.

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build the 2,400 megawatt Upper Salween Hydropower project was signed on Thursday between the government and China’s Farsighted Investment Group Co Ltd and Gold Water Resources Co Ltd, The New Light of Myanmar reported on Saturday. Minister for Electric Power No-1, Col Zaw Min, and Zheng Yuewen, vice president of All China Federation of Industry and Commerce of the People’s Republic of China, attended the MoU signing ceremony in the capital of Naypidaw.

The hydropower plant in northern Shan State will be jointly built by the government’s Hydropower Implementation Department and Chinese Farsighted Investment Group, the government newspaper said. The paper provided few details on the deal. Myanmar has signed several contracts with neighbouring China and Thailand over the last year to build hydropower plants. The plan to place dams on the Salween, South-East Asia’s longest free-flowing river, has drawn protests from environmental groups who say it will damage the region’s delicate ecosystem and encourage more human rights violations in the military-ruled country.

Sai Sai, a spokesperson of The Shan Sapawa Environmental Organization (Sapawa), said that at the Ta Sang dam site on the Salween, now under construction, the government forcibly relocated residents of Kengkham and Kenglom villages and villagers suffered abuse from the increased military presence, which tripled from 10 battalions to 30 battalions. “These areas are regarded as conflict zones where Burmese and ethnic troops operate, and the dam projects bring more suffering to local people,” Sai Sai told The Irrawaddy on Monday. “When Burmese troops arrive at villages, they ask villagers about rebel movements and no matter if they answer or not, they face abuse—at least a punch.”

Early this month, construction began on the 7,110-megawatt Ta Sang hydroelectric power plant on the Salween in northeastern Shan State amid strong criticism from environmentalists. The Ta Sang project includes a concrete dam 2,848 feet (868 meters) long and 746 feet (227 meters) high—the largest of several planned dams—in a joint venture between the government and Thai power producer MDX Group. The dam is scheduled to be completed within 15 years.

Most of the electricity generated from the Ta Sang hydropower plant will be sold to Thailand, while Burma will be supplied with an unspecified amount of free power.

Khun Sam The Irrawaddy 9 April 2007

Bird flu follows commercial trade not wild bird migration routes Wild birds have been widely used as a scapegoat for the global spread of avian influenza by the industries and authorities that are, in reality, most responsible for its spread. The mass media has, for the benefit of their sales and profile, also been tempted to predict dramatic and terrifying, if entirely false, visions of hordes of migratory birds spreading deadly diseases across the world. In reality, there is compelling evidence that avian influenza, has been dispersed widely due to human commercial activities, primarily the farming, marketing, and global trading of poultry. A recent review examines and summarises this evidence9.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus, subtype H5N1, was first detected in poultry in late 1996 in southeast China, where it originated. The virus subsequently dispersed throughout most of Asia, and also to Africa and Europe. Periodic outbreaks are still occurring in this region, causing human deaths primarily among those who spend a lot of time closely associated with poultry. Wild birds, particularly waterfowl, undoubtedly contribute to the persistence and local spread of avian influenza in the wild. However, analysis of the recent spread of the virus in Asia shows that it has not followed wild bird migration routes, but the major road and rail routes used for commercial trade. Despite extensive surveys, highly pathogenic subtypes of avian influenza have rarely been detected in wild birds, other than those found in close proximity to poultry.

Gauthier-Clerc, M., Lebarbenchon, C. and Thomas, F. (2007) Recent expansion of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1: a critical review. Ibis 149 (2): 202-214.

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High densities of birds and increased stress factors are particularly favourable for the maintenance and transmission of viruses, in particular highly pathogenic influenza. Thus, the review thus concludes that commercial trade be much more carefully regulated, and that poultry be kept in lower density, free-range conditions with good veterinary monitoring. The role of capture and storage in markets of wild birds, and the frequent ‘religious’ release of some such birds, was not examined by the review, but highly pathogenic influenza has often been detected in wild bird markets throughout the region (including in recent months in Vietnam and Hong Kong). This is likely to be due to the same high densities and increased stress factors that spread viruses in commercial poultry. If countries in Asia are serious about controlling the spread of avian influenza, they will need to take much greater efforts to control all bird trade (both of poultry and wild birds).

John Pilgrim Conservation Advisor BirdLife International in Indochina

Gold miners arrested in Kachin State, Myanmar Burmese authorities arrested hundreds of gold miners and mine operators near Indawgyi Lake, o-ne of the Southeast Asia’s biggest and oldest lakes, in Kachin State early this month for conducting unauthorized operations, according to local sources. The arrest of more than 300 staff, operators and local mining authorities followed complaints by local farmers that mining had devastated their lands. Authorities from Burma’s Northern Command in coordination with a special investigation team from the capital Naypyidaw made the arrests in early July. “[The miners] had no legal permission to operate gold mines in the area, and troops from Northern Command arrested them,” Than Thin Aung, an official from the Hopin Township Police Station, told The Irrawaddy o-n Thursday. “In Mai Naung, businessmen and miners were called to a meeting, but authorities later arrested them and took them in trucks to Mohnyin and Hopin,” said a local resident who lives near Indawgyi Lake and who witnessed the trucks removing the prisoners.

“Many people have been arrested, so we are detaining them in prisons in Mohnyin and Hopin,” the police official said. The illegal miners were operating in upstream areas above local farms around Indawgyi Lake. Farmers complained that the streams had been blocked or diverted by mud produced from the gold mines.

Environmentalists insist that Indawgyi Lake faces threats from pollution, unsustainable fishing methods, and the hunting of water birds and large mammals and the increasing number of mines close to the lake. “Sand from the mines that was carried downstream was destroying farmlands,” said another area resident. “Farmers now face water shortages from the stream diversion, and paddy fields are drying out.” Farmers had previously complained to local authorities, who made no effort to intervene. Subsequent appeals made directly to authorities in Naypyidaw ultimately led to the arrests.

Khun Sam The Irrawaddy 26 July 2007

Pollution caused by mining for gold, gems and other materials was identified as a threat to the catchments of the Irrawaddy and Chindawin Rivers in the BirdLife report Myanmar: Investment Opportunities for Biodiversity Conservation. There is no doubt that Indawgyi Lake faces threats from mining, over fishing, introduction of invasive species, (including fish), disturbance and encroachment of human settlement along its shoreline. The borders of the current wildlife sanctuary are not realistic and the management authority is severely under resourced. The lake urgently needs a management plan, which zones the entire wetland for multi-purpose use and includes a re-drawn wildlife sanctuary boundary that realistically reflects conservation need, and the ability of the wildlife sanctuary to manage the site.

Ed.

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New gecko species described from Vietnamese national park Zoologists announced Monday the discovery of a new gecko species in Vietnam's Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park. Dr. Thomas Ziegler from Germany's Cologne Zoo said the scales and pores on the skin of the new species, named the Phong Nha-Ke Bang bent-toed gecko Cyrtodactylus phongnhakebangensis, were different from those on known species. Further analysis of its genetic characters showed that it was found nowhere else. The discovery was made by experts from the zoo, Vietnam's Centre for Natural Resources and Environmental Studies, Hanoi National University, and other agencies. Situated some 50km northwest of Quang Binh province's Dong Hoi town, the park was recognized as a world natural heritage site by UNESCO in 2003.

Translated by Tuong Nhi Sai Gon Giai Phong 5 June 2007

Vietnamese poachers hunting for sharks caught off Palawan Personnel of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) arrested 10 Vietnamese fishermen who were caught poaching within the Philippine waters off an island in Balabac, Palawan, aboard a large fishing vessel over the weekend. Malcolm Sarmiento, BFAR director, said the Vietnamese poachers were on board a 200-ton fishing vessel when they were chanced upon by the BFAR personnel aboard patrol boat MCS 3002 while fishing off Mangsee Island at around 6 a.m. on Saturday. “The BFAR patrol boat was on a mission. Our personnel were on a routine inspection when they saw the large Vietnamese boat poaching in the area. The Vietnamese fishermen were really caught in the act,” Sarmiento said in a mobile phone interview. Together with elements of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), Sarmiento said the BFAR personnel immediately told the foreign poachers to stop what they were doing and boarded their fishing vessel for inspection.

During inspection, the BFAR and PCG team were “surprised” to discover several slaughtered sharks and manta rays inside several boxes, Sarmiento said. “The sharks and the manta rays were already cut into pieces. The poachers were apparently after the shark fins,” he said. He said the Vietnamese poachers were using “long line” fishing gears, which proved that they were after sharks, tuna, manta rays and other large pelagic sea animals.

Sarmiento said they had yet to account for the actual number of slaughtered sea animals as they had yet to finish the inspection of the boat. He said the Vietnamese poachers immediately underwent medical check up and were brought to a jail shortly after they arrived in Puerto Princesa at around 11 a.m. Sunday. Their boat, on the other hand, is now docked at the Puerto Princesa port under the custody of BFAR. He said the foreign fishermen had been charged with illegal poaching in Philippine waters.

Marine News 2 April 2007

Laos dam project slammed by environmental group A hydroelectric dam mega project under construction in Laos is causing sickness and disruption in local communities and risks becoming a “polluted cesspool,” an environmental group said o-n Wednesday. The California-based International Rivers Network made the claim as the World Bank opened a three-day meeting to consider the US $1.45 billion Nam Theun 2 hydropower project. "Illegal logging is increasing, environmental controls are substandard, and the reservoir threatens to become a polluted cesspool," said the group's Lao program director Shannon Lawrence in an interview.

"Electricité de France, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank need to get serious if they want to avoid another dam disaster in Southeast Asia," she said, referring to the main construction company and two of its principal funders. The World Bank meeting is being held near the site of the dam, about 250 km (150 miles) east of the Lao capital, Vientiane. The dam is expected to start operating in December 2009. Lawrence charged that companies building the dam have been repeatedly accused of environmental violations, leading to polluted water The Babbler 22/23 – September 2007 – 13 –

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and health problems for nearby villagers. The project has endangered the biologically diverse Nakai-Nam Theun Protected Area by allowing illegal logging and gold mining to go unchecked, she said. Villagers forced from their homes to make way for the project had not received the financial compensation they had been promised, she added.

The World Bank acknowledged concerns over the project remain, including compensation for confiscated land, delays in building permanent housing for relocated villagers and as well as erosion and drainage problems o-n some road projects. But it said in a statement that the 1,070 megawatt hydropower project is making "satisfactory progress." The World Bank projects the dam will generate $1.8 billion in revenues by 2034, and says much of that will go to improve living standards and protect the area's biodiversity.

Almost all the electricity from the dam will be sold to Thailand and project supporters say it will release 15 to 20 times less greenhouse gases than a gas-fired power plant producing the same amount of energy. Among the most contentious issues is the relocation of villages in the path of the 450-square kilometre reservoir o-n the Nakai Plateau. The World Bank says 742 of the 1,216 affected households have already moved to their permanent resettlement sites, and are benefiting from schools, roads, food handouts and work projects. But the Lawrence said the project is leaving people without jobs. "The big problem in all these areas is replacing lost livelihoods— ensuring that before you've taken away people's traditional sources of food and income you've worked with villagers to develop and implement alternative livelihood programs that are likely to prove sustainable," Lawrence said. She said jobs programs for relocated villagers and the 120,000 farmers and fishermen impacted further downstream are either "behind schedule or coming undone."

Michael Casey/AP Writer/Bangkok The Irrawaddy June 27, 2007

Largest population of Grey-shanked Douc Langur found in Vietnam A team of scientists from WWF and Conservation International (CI) has discovered the world's largest known population of greyshanked doucs Pygathrix cinerea, increasing chances that the endangered monkey can be saved from extinction. The greyshanked douc is one of the world's 25 most endangered primates and has only been recorded in the five central Vietnamese provinces of Quang Nam, Kon Tum, Quang Ngai, Binh Dinh, and Gia Lai. Fewer than 1,000 individuals are believed to still exist, and until now, only one other population with more than 100 animals was known.

A grey-shanked douc is seen at the Primate Rescue Centre in Cuc Phuong National REUTERS/ Tilo Nadler / Cuc Phuong Primate Rescue Centre/WWF Handout

Recent surveys in Que Phuoc Commune in Quang Nam Province recorded at least 116 animals (the number of individuals observed), with an estimated population of over 180 individuals. To date, only a small part of the area has been surveyed, meaning significantly more doucs may live in the adjacent forest. "To put it into a human perspective, this discovery is like finding a new country with over one billion people in it," said Ben Rawson, a Regional Wildlife Biologist for CI's Indo-Burma Programme. "We now have a much greater opportunity to overcome the very serious threats faced by this species and prevent its disappearance from our planet."

Grey-shanked doucs, first described in 1997. A WWF survey team first discovered the new douc population in August 2005 while studying the region for possible establishment of a new protected area. Two recent joint surveys in adjacent areas involving scientists

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from WWF's Greater Mekong Programme and Conservation International's Indo-Burma Office revealed the significance of the find.

The doucs are located in the proposed "Central Quang Nam Species and Habitat Conservation Area", which the Quang Nam Forest Protection Department (FPD) hopes will receive full legal protection by the Provincial People's Committee. Establishment of this protected area will protect the globally important population of greyshanked doucs, along with a herd of elephants that live in the lowland forests to the south. Currently, the area is threatened by illegal logging and hunting, as well as the construction of a new road that would bisect the forest. A new management plan developed by Que Son FPD with WWF support that aims to protect the douc and elephant populations long into the future awaits final approval and financial support form the Provincial People's Committee.

This story has been adapted and edited from a news release issued by Conservation International.

Ed.

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Important Bird Areas News Hydropower development in Chu Yang Sin National Park Work is now nearing completion of a hydro-electric project in Chu Yang Sin National Park. The XX MGW plant has been built along the southern boundary of the national park in a special enclave that was technically excised from the national park. The photograph below, taken in July 2007 clearly shows that the reservoir inundation zone has been cleared of forest. From the structure of forest immediately beyond the inundation zone it appears the cleared forest may have been secondary. The dam obstructs the flow of one of the national parks rivers’, which will have negative impacts on freshwater biodiversity, including species like Blyth’s Kingfisher Alcedo hercules. The photographs on the accompanying page reveal a view of the dam and the aquaduct built to carry water from the dam to the turbines. The access road system and associated infrastructure appears has had a significant negative environmental impact and appears greater in scale than would be expected for such a small hydro-electric scheme.

Jonathan C Eames Programme Manager BirdLife International in Indochina

View of the reservoir inundation zone, July 2006. Photo: J C Eames

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Above: View of the dam from within the inundation zone. Photo: J C Eames

Conduit carrying water to the turbines. Photo: J C Eames

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Tam Dao National Park: On the road to nowhere Tam Dao National Park (Tuyen Quang Province) is one of the most well-known and well studied IBAs in Vietnam, containing a number of biome-restricted bird species that, due to habitat loss, are known from few other sites in Vietnam, as well as a number of other rare species such as the Vulnerable Tam Dao Salamander Paramesotriton deloustali. It is also valued by many people in north Vietnam, particularly the population of Hanoi, who often retreat on summer weekends to the cool, clean air that the park provides. Unfortunately, this very attraction of the park is spurring poorly planned tourist developments that are likely to ultimately destroy the very aspects of the park which tourism value – the forests that maintain the cool and clean air.

Of particular concern is a new road to ‘Tam Dao 2’, the site of a poorly-conceived new tourist town. This road has cut directly through an area of the national park that was internationally renowned for its biodiversity – particularly birds such as the Short-tailed Parrotbill Paradoxornis davidianus, Coral-billed Scimitar-babbler Pomatorhinus ferruginosus, and Grey Laughingthrush Garrulax maesi. The road has not only directly destroyed habitat where it has been cut through, but has also opened the forest around it to illegal hunting and overexploitation of forest products. Moreover, as the photos below from March 2007 show, it has been so poorly planned and constructed that few sections remain intact (photos 1 and 2), and massive landslides have destroyed large areas of important national park forest either side of the road (photo 3). This situation can only worsen significantly with the oncoming wet season. It is to be hoped that this dramatic demonstration of just how bad an idea the new road is will spur provincial and district decision-makers, and park managers, to abandon these poorly thought out tourist developments while there is still time to save the majority of the national park.

John Pilgrim Conservation Advisor BirdLife International in Indochina

Above right: Landslide completely blocking the new road, with remaining forest in the background.

Above: . Landslides caused by the new road have caused widespread destruction of forest in the surrounding national park.

Right: Remnants of the beginning of the new road. All photos taken March 2007.

Photos: John Pilgrim

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Boeung Prek Lapouv Sarus Crane Conservation Area approved by Council of Ministers, Cambodia On 7 February 2007 the inter-ministerial meeting in the Council of Ministers discussed the proposal to establish the Boeung Prek Lapouv Sarus Crane Conservation Area. Several inaccurate and false claims were made during this discussion but as a result Mr. Men Phymean, Director of Wildlife Protection Office of the Forestry Administration was asked by the Chairman to lead a delegation to Takeo Province on 15 February 2007 to substantiate the various claims arising. The team confirmed what was already known to BirdLife and FA, since they found no houses or paddyfields within the proposed core zone and that the “illegal boundary demarcation posts” had been placed in June 2006 by the Takeo Fisheries Office to establish fishing lots. On 31 May 2007 the government committee appointed to evaluate the protected area proposal led by Mr. Sir Ra, Deputy Director of FA met with the Takeo provincial governor to discuss the proposal further. At this meeting the Takeo governor expressed his support but he suggested meeting again with the district governors and commune chiefs relevant to reach final agreement on the proposed size of the protected area.

On 07 June 2007 the government committee led by Mr. Sir Ra, Deputy Director of FA met with Takeo provincial governor, relevant district governors and commune chiefs, Takeo Provincial Agriculture Department and Land Management, Urbanization, Construction and Cadastral Department to discuss the protected area proposal. As a result, the proposed Sarus Crane Conservation Area is now reduced from 10,787 ha to 8,305 ha and the core zone from 1,694 ha to 919 ha.

On Friday 14 September the Council of Ministers announced plans to establish Boeung Prek Lapouv Sarus Crane Conservation Area. According to the statement issued to the media on Friday 14 September, the Council approved, during its meeting with Prime Minister Hun Sen, a sub-decree creating the protected area and placing it under the authority of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Further news is eagerly awaited.

Anlung Pring Sarus Crane Conservation Area, Cambodia Fieldwork and meetings were recently conducted with Kampot provincial authorities and relevant agencies to designated Kampong Trach IBA as a Sarus Crane Conservation Area. The proposal is strongly supported at the provincial level. On 25 May 2007 a meeting was held at the FA to discuss the draft Prakas (ministerial decree) for the proposed Anlung Pring Sarus Crane Conservation Area. Some changes were proposed including that to remove paddyfields from the proposed protected area. As result, the proposed Anlung Pring Sarus Crane Conservation Area is now reduced from 238 ha to 212 ha. FA will now forward the draft Prakas to the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries for consideration and approval. It is anticipated that the Prakas will be signed by the minister in 2007.

Seng Kim Hout Programme Officer BirdLife International Cambodia Programme/Wildlife Protection Office

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International Crane Foundation supports Beung Preak Lapouv and Kampong Trach IBAs, Cambodia As part of the Danida-funded project Community participation for conservation in Cambodia, these two IBAs were selected for priority action because of the flocks of Eastern Sarus Cranes Grus antigone sharpi that congregate there during the dry season (northern winter). Site Support Groups were therefore established by BirdLife/Wildlife Protection Office involving a range of local stakeholders to manage the sites more sustainably. The Danida project terminated after nearly four years in March 2007 presenting a funding issue since both these sites are subject of well advanced proposals to establish protected areas.

International Crane Foundation (ICF) have been able to provide a small bridging grant to enable conservation activities to continue at both sites for a number of further months. ICF funding has supported continued patrolling and law enforcement, education and awareness, and continued advocacy efforts in support of nominating the sites as formal protected areas.

BirdLife is continuing to seek donor support for work at these sites and hopes the collaboration with ICF will continue and expand in the future.

Bou Vorsak, Acting Programme Manager, BirdLife International Cambodia Programme

Sarus Cranes. Enjoy the view it could be rice fields soon. Photo: J C Eames

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Apparent hybridization of Milky and Painted Storks at Ang Trapaeng Thmor Sarus Crane Conservation Area, Cambodia During a visit to Ang Trapeang Thmor Sarus Crane Reserve on 31 March 2007 I was shown and then photographed an adult Milky Stork Mycteria cinerea at its nest. The nest was located in a large tree at the edge of a very small colony of Painted Storks Mycteria leucocephala. Although I did observe an unknown number of chicks in the nest I did not see the other bird of the pair. I was informed that the Milky Stork had mated with a Painted Stork and that the resulting young were hybrid offspring. Although there are no documented cases of wild hybridization amongst these two species (although it has been reported from Thailand) they have bred in captivity. In captive and free-flying zoo flocks, hybridization between Milky Stork and Painted Stork has been reported at Zoo Negara, Kuala Lumpur, and as potentially occurring at Singapore Zoo and Dusit Zoo, Bangkok.(http://www.wetlands.org/Malaysia/En/articemenu.aspx?id=311c6b2c-a18a-4b80-9ae2-70053aa2da79).

Milky Stork, has a restricted distribution in South-East Asia. Globally, the species has been listed as "Vulnerable" (BirdLife International 2004) with an estimated World Population of only 5,550 birds (Wetlands International 2002). Most of these birds are concentrated in Indonesia, with smaller populations in west Malaysia and Cambodia . It is listed as Vulnerable (A2c,d; A3c,d) because it is suspected to have declined by >30% over the last three generations and this is projected to continue on the basis of ongoing loss of coastal habitat and exploitation. Its population is estimated at 5,550 individuals. The majority are in Indonesia, with c.5,000 on Sumatra and c.400 in west Java. There are estimated Ang Trapaeng Thmor’s confused Milky Stork. Photo: J C Eames to be tiny numbers in Malaysia and Cambodia. Li et al (2006) found that the Malaysian population now numbered nine individuals, a decline of over 90% over the last 20 years. Given that most of the population occurs on Sumatra, it is trends there that largely determine the species’ status. Is there any other evidence relating to trends in Sumatra? In particular, could the population have declined by >50% over the last three generations, as this would qualify the species for Endangered status. Any information or relevant comments would be welcome.

Li, Z.W.D., Siti Hawa Yatim, Howes, J. and Rahmah Ilias. 2006. Status Overview and Recommendations for the Conservation of Milky Stork Mycteria cinerea in Malaysia: Final Report of the 2004/2006 Milky Stork Field Surveys in the Matang Mangrove Forest, Perak, Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur: Wetlands International and the Department of Wildlife and National Parks.

Jonathan C Eames Programme Manager BirdLife International in Indochina

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Rarest of the rare Eld’s Deer Cervus eldi siamensis Eld’s Deer Cervus eldi is now considered Vulnerable in the 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Of the three described sub-species the form occurring in Cambodia and Laos, and formerly in China, Thailand and Vietnam is known as Cervus eldi siamensis has undergone a major range collapse. Recent research on the karotype identity suggests however that at least from the karotypic perspective, no obvious differences exist between C. e. thamin and C. e. siamensis1.

Although generally shy and retiring and seldom encountered in Cambodia, a population has recently been discovered at Ang Trapaeng Thmor Sarus Crane Reserve that is easily observable during the dry season. During a visit on 30 and 31 March I observed up to 30 animals daily and took the photographs reproduced here. ___________________ 1

Theveonon, S. Claro, F, Bonnet, A., and Volobouev, V. 2000 Brief Communication. Karyotype identity of two subspecies of Eld's deer [Cervus eldi (Cervinae, Artiodactyla)] and its consequences for conservation. The Journal of Heredity: 91(5):402-405.

Two Eld’s deer studies. The group pose at left is very characteristic. To habitually run into the open and then stand and stare in the face of danger helps explain why this species is so easily hunted and now extirpated and so rare throughout much of its range. The stag at right was lame. Photos: J C Eames

Jonathan C Eames Programme Manager BirdLife International in Indochina

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Project updates Completing protected areas systems in priority landscapes in Cambodia and Vietnam This project funded by the John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation has been under implementation in Cambodia and Vietnam since May 2006. In this article we report on progress with project implementation since its inception. This project has as its goal to significantly enhance the ecological integrity and long-term conservation prospects of two priority landscapes in the Lower Mekong Region through the establishment and effective management of pivotal protected areas. The purpose of the project is to support and strengthen the mandated authorities at Lomphat (Mondulkiri and Ratanakiri provinces, Cambodia) and Bac Huong Hoa (Quang Tri province, Vietnam) to establish and manage representative protected areas that fill gaps in existing conservation coverage within priority landscapes and, thereby, contribute to their wider conservation.

The projects’ twin objectives are to establish Bac Huong Hoa as a nature reserve, and to strengthen conservation management at Bac Huong Hoa and Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary. During the first year of project implementation activities have focused on three of the projects’ seven outcomes. These have been to determine the biodiversity values and conservation needs of Bac Huong Hoa proposed Nature Reserve and to ensure they are understood and documented; To ensure that Bac Huong Hoa is gazetted as a nature reserve and a management board is established and; to increase the capacity of Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary and Bac Huong Hoa Nature Reserve staff to undertake conservation activities. Baseline biodiversity and wildlife hunting/trapping and trade surveys within Bac Huong Hoa Nature Reserve and its surrounding area were conducted in September 2006. The survey focused on wildlife exploitation, wildlife trade and transportation and wildlife trade networks. Fifty-three wildlife species were recorded in trade of which 17 species were listed in the IUCN Red List (2006) as Globally Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable and Near threatened, 27 species were listed in the Red Data Book of Vietnam (2000), 32 species were listed in CITES appendices and 36 species under Government Decree No 32/2006/ND-CP (2006)1. The survey recognized different types of exploitation such as hunting and trapping. The wildlife trapped and traded from Quang Tri forests were consumed both within the province and in the neighbouring provinces. One important and disturbing fact noted was that there was a large volume of transboundary wildlife trade between Laos and Vietnam via the national border in Quang Tri province, which made it very difficult to verify the origins of the wildlife traded. Traders often make use of this loophole to exploit wildlife from Quang Tri forests by stating that the traded goods were from Laos.

The proposal for the establishment of Bac Huong Hoa Nature Reserve was prepared by Quang Tri Forest Protection Department (FPD) with BirdLife technical assistance and appraisal by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD). MARD then authorized Quang Tri Provincial People Committee to conduct a detailed appraisal of the Investment Plan for the nature reserve. On 14th March 200710, Quang Tri Provincial People’s Committee issued Decision no. 479/QD-UBND approving the Investment Plan for Bac Huong Hoa Nature Reserve. This crucial step formerly gazettes the protected area. The establishment of the Nature Reserve Management Board is however still pending due to an on going restructuring of the FPD system involving the integration of provincial FPD into provincial DARD. In order to at least maintain the existing forest and biodiversity values of Bac Huong Hoa, Quang Tri FPD formed an interim Bac Huong Hoa NR management board, which comprises eight staff. The interim management board are currently working together with BirdLife to carry-out on-the-ground boundary delineation and demarcation.

A training-needs assessment for 30 rangers was conducted in Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary during the last quarter of 2006. It was found that 83 % of rangers participating did not finish primary school, 33 % had received some basic training but that only one ranger had some skills in wildlife identification and monitoring. Essential equipment was provided based on the budget available and the results of the needs assessment. In addition project staff secured

Dang Ngoc Can, Nguyen Thanh Van and Ngo Viet Huy (September, 2006) Evaluation of current wildlife hunting trapping and trade in Bac Huong Hoa Nature Reserve, Quang Tri province. Ha Noi: September, 2006

10

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equipment from other donors including Care for the Wild International who provided four digital cameras and WildAid - Thailand who provided support for repairing cameras traps. Eighteen concrete border posts for placement along a strategic length of the wildlife sanctuary border have been commissioned and are currently being installed. The project has provided training to rangers and other protected area staff during monthly site monitoring meetings. These trainings have covered topics including basic wildlife identification and monitoring. In collaboration with WildAid-Thailand, two rangers participated in a training course on bear monitoring in Bokor National Park. In the first semester of the second year of the project three training courses will be provided to rangers and park staff with support from external trainers. Courses will cover monitoring of key bird species with a focus on vultures, wildlife identification, and use and maintenance of conservation equipment.

Data relating to poaching in Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary was collected from relevant stakeholders at provincial and district level. A questionnaire about poaching was developed by BirdLife and rangers were provided with on-the-job training from project officers on interview techniques. About 220 people from 25 villages located both within and around the protected area were selected for survey. The report is under preparation. Currently there are five ranger teams consisting of 30 men who are assigned to conduct field patrolling on the regular basis. Each team conducts patrolling for 15 days per month. The most commonly reported illegal activities encountered are logging, encroachment, hunting, illegal fishing and collection of resinous tree oil. During report period rangers confiscated a large quantity of equipment and found illegal logging at six new locations. The rangers also provide awareness to law breakers and made non re-offense contracts with 26 poachers. A rapid response patrol team is currently being formed to deal with such infringements that are especially frequent in the south-west of the protected area. BirdLife in cooperation with the Department of Nature Conservation and Protection and Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary have developed and secured funding for two funding proposals during the reporting period.

These comprised a US $10,000 grant secured from WWF for the project “Strengthening and implementing conservation management at Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary”, and a larger project contract for US $ 45,000 from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) via WWF for the development of a conservation vision for the greater Lomphat area. Additionally, a larger project with PRCF entitled “ Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary Integrate Conservation Project, Phase I” with funding from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, with secured funding is currently under negotiation. In the first year of the implementation, the project faced several challenges.

The main issue in Vietnam was the slow process of establishment of Bac Huong Hoa Nature Reserve. This was as a result of policy changes to national forest classification and re-structuring of forest management at provincial level. In 2006, Government of Vietnam requested all provinces to review and revise the allocation of forest lands between three legally recognized forest categories of Protection Forest, Production Forest and Special-use Forest (which includes national parks and nature reserves) according to Decree number 119//2006/NĐ-CP dated 16th October 2006 and its inter-ministerial implementation guidelines number 22/2007/TTLT-BNN-BNV, dated 27th March 2007. Forest. According to the Vietnam Forest Development Strategy 2006-2020, the total area of national Special-use Forest should not exceed 2.16 million ha, whilst the further creation of new nature reserves is not sanctioned. The re-allocation forest categories in Quang Tri province was reviewed and approved by MARD only at the end of 2006. This process was therefore ongoing at the start of the project and substantially influenced the size and the level of stakeholder support received at that time. Additionally, the government directive on nonestablishment of new Special-use Forest made the designation of Bac Huong Hoa Nature Reserve much harder, slower and delayed the formation of the Management Board for Bac Huong Hoa Nature Reserve. In addition, following restructuring, the FPD no longer reports directly to the provincial people’s committee but now falls under the jurisdiction of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD). During this change-over communication became more difficult.

Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary continues to face a wide range of threats that continue to constrain project implementation. Since the project began these have included the low capacity of the staff to undertake routine management and patrolling. Thirty ill-equipped and poorly trained rangers cannot effectively patrol a protected area of this size. Inadequate protected area infrastructure, ranging from poorly constructed and maintained ranger stations to poor roads and bridges are another key factor. Amongst local communities surrounding the protected area there is as low level of awareness about the importance and indeed the existence of the wildlife sanctuary. Lack of support from local government officials has been another factor, most graphically illustrated by the attempt by the army earlier in 2007 to secure a land concession in the centre of the wildlife sanctuary and

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build a road through the it. Fortunately this plan was challenged by the wildlife sanctuary authorities, DNCP and BirdLife project staff, with the support of the minister and the project stopped.

Tran Van Hung, Community-Based Programme Officer, BirdLife International Vietnam Programme Sam Ouen, Project Manager, BirdLife International Cambodia Programme/DNCP/MoE Jonathan C Eames, Programme Manager, BirdLife International in Indochina

Conserving Bengal Floricans and improving rural livelihoods are the Tonle Sap, the world’s largest floodplain lake, Cambodia This Fondation Ensemble funded project is part of a broader initiative to conserve the seasonally inundated grasslands, their wildlife and traditional agricultural practices in the Ton Le Sap floodplain Cambodia. The overall project is a joint initiative of Birdlife International, the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Forestry Administration of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Cambodia. Additional project partners include Centre d’Etude et de Développement Agricole Cambodgien (CEDAC). The overall objective of the project is to maintain the biodiversity values and livelihood significance to local communities of the Tonle Sap inundated grasslands, through the establishment of Integrated Farming and Biodiversity Areas (IFBAs). In this article we report on the first seven months of project implementation from January to July 2007.

The CEDAC started their sub-contract named “Community based livelihood improvement project in/near by the IFBAs” in May 2007. This project will be implemented over an 18 month period, till end 2008. The project consists of two components, the first is a livelihood study, including a cost-benefit analysis of traditional use of grasslands, i.e. wet season (deepwater) and recession rice cultivation, vegetable cropping, plant collection, livestock grazing, and fisheries vs. dry-season rice cultivation. CEDAC conducted in-depth studies of the economic benefits local communities derive from grasslands in 8 villages near by IFBAs. Detailed information on the economic benefit from dry season rice cultivation was also obtained from several dam owners that have been growing rice in the floodplain for over a year. The draft report is currently being reviewed and finalized. The second component of this project, namely agricultural extension, will be discussed under point 5, below.

IFBA extension meetings were held throughout January-May in target communes relevant to the IFBAs and people were invited to attend from the villages, especially from those identified as major users. Extension activities involved explaining to communities about IFBAs and the Provincial Declaration (Deika) as well as other relevant laws, such as the Land, Forest and Fisheries laws. A large colour reference map of the IFBAs was given to District governors and Commune Council members that attended and copies of the Deika with an attached A4 map of the IFBAs were distributed to everyone. Discussion was encouraged and questions from the attendees were answered by the project team. The following table summarises the meetings held so far, which covered 14 communes, 61 villages and over 1235 people. The extension reached all communes and villages that are known to use the IFBAs. A questionnaire has been designed to evaluate the effectiveness of the coverage of extension work carried out so far, and assess what follow-up extension may be needed. It will be applied during quarter 3. The CEDAC team found good awareness of the IFBAs in the villages where they conducted livelihood surveys. Five IFBAs now exist in law under Provincial Declarations (deikas). The four in Kampong Thom province were declared in August 2006; the one in Siem Reap Province was declared shortly after the start of the FE funding, in January 2007. BirdLife, WCS and the Wildlife Protection Office continue to have a very close and effective working relationship and this has been extended to involve the key line agencies at provincial level (notably the Departments of Agriculture and of Fisheries, and local offices of the Forestry Administration).

In Siem Reap Province much progress has been made in the establishment of an IFBA commission and executive secretariat. All members of the commission and the executive secretariat have been formally approved, meetings have been held and several key decisions have been made. The structure and function of the executive secretariat has been formally approved. Signposts have been placed at all major access points into the IFBA. Most importantly, the commission successfully asserted its authority and stopped a major development project by a private investor that would have damaged a large part of the IFBA – a landmark decision and one that sets a precedent for other similar threats in this province. The decision was featured in a national Khmer-language newspaper article.

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Less progress has been made in Kampong Thom Province, where the scale of threats and political challenges are greater. Several dams, irrigation channels and tree plantations have been built, marked out or had contracts signed within the IFBAs since they were declared, and resolving this is now the focus for the efforts of the project team. Data on the extent and legality of existing land concessions/developments have been compiled and reported to the authorities. However, it has only been possible to convene the commission once, resulting in the formal approval for the placing of signposts at entry points. The project is looking at ways to resolve this, for example by suggesting that the deputy provincial governor chairs commission meetings when the governor is busy (as is done in Siem Reap). The project team has also submitted a report on the issues through government channels to the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. He has since ordered an investigation into dam construction throughout the floodplain of the Tonle Sap Lake, which includes the IFBA areas. Investigative visits have already been made. This is encouraging news for the IFBA project and will hopefully result in a clear policy statement that removes the root cause of the threats - illegal issuance of land concessions.

An official patrol team was established in Kampong Thom and has been active since February across all four IFBAs there. A team has just been approved for Siem Reap Province, and it is the hope that this team may also, with special letters of approval, be able to conduct patrols in Stoung IFBA, which is adjacent to Chikreng. This would free up more time for effective patrolling by the current team in the other three IFBAs. To conduct patrols effectively joint patrols are conducted by a Forestry Administration officer, a policeman and a community counterpart (a different person for each IFBA). The forestry officer has authority in relation to natural resource management, such as the Forestry, Fisheries and Land laws while the policeman provides backup and can make arrests. The village counterpart provides local site knowledge and forms a bridge to local communities.

The patrol team has received training in data collection and the information they collect is vital to maintaining the project’s information database. Each month the database is updated and new maps are produced for the patrol team to take to the field. The results are also used to present to the provincial commissions, especially those pertaining to illegal developments inside the IFBAs. The patrol teams are not able to directly stop dam developments inside the IFBAs themselves as yet as the provincial governor has not given the executive secretariat explicit authority to uphold the IFBA “deika” (declaration) on his behalf. A solution is being sought.

A total of 53 signposts have been put along boundaries of IFBAs where main access roads lead into the grasslands. At each site all relevant local authorities were informed of the meaning of the posts and consulted over locations. An overview of the number of signposts established at each IFBA is given below. The numbers depend to some degree on size of the IFBA, but also on the level of use of that IFBA by people and the resultant number of access roads. Government officials including a Deputy Provincial Governor visited Chikreng IFBA in May to take part in placing the official signposts. The event was featured in the national press. Visits were also subsequently organized for government officials in Kampong Thom to witness the establishment of signposts along boundaries of IFBAs there. Further visits will be organized in the last quarter of 2007, at the end of the flood season. The signposts are crucial in informing people that they are entering an IFBA. Specifically they contain the name and size of the IFBA and a warning to companies not to build new or extend old dams within the IFBA. Plans still need to be developed on the demarcation of legal concessions inside the IFBAs and demarcation of the boundary between entry points. These activities will be conducted following the process of action against illegal incursion of companies into the IFBA areas and zoning of IFBAs together with communities.

The piloting of SRI techniques in selected villages was slightly delayed, but is now underway. This started during June 2007, implemented by CEDAC. It focuses on three villages that use the Stoung IFBA in Prolay commune in Stoung district, Kampong Thom and four villages that use the Chikreng IFBA in Spean Tnaot and Lveang Russei communes in Chikreng district, Siem Reap. This is an increase of the number of target villages from four to seven due to an increase in the amount of its own resources that CEDAC is able to contribute.

The main reasons for the IFBA project to get involved in improving agricultural systems in nearby villages are two-fold: 1) to allow villagers to produce more from their existing farmland using tested techniques in organic farming, which will hopefully lead to increased welfare, a fostering of ecological awareness and a reduction in the immediate pressure on land: 2) to cooperate with people from key villages and foster relationships with them

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The key difficulty in project implementation to-date has been the slow pace of action in Kampong Thom Province to deal with large-scale illegal land encroachment. This is a politically difficult issue with powerful people involved on all sides. The main approach of the project has been one of direct cooperation with the provincial authorities, building trust and relationships, raising awareness of the legal, livelihood and conservation issues, presenting regular updates on issues observed in the field, and making appropriate official requests for action. In this province that approach has not yet borne fruit. A second approach has been to request action at Ministerial level, which has been done, and this now appears to be increasing the pressure on the provincial authorities to enforce the law. A third approach has been to conduct quantitative research on livelihood values; when the report is completed these data should strengthen the arguments we make for grassland conservation.

The outlook in Siem Reap Province is positive and we expect to move ahead rapidly with establishment of community consultation committees, participatory zoning etc. In Kampong Thom we expect progress soon on Stoung IFBA and may be able to move ahead with community work there too. At the other three IFBAs the focus will remain on dealing with large-scale illegal land threats, combined with patrolling to detect new threats. The outlook for setting up new IFBAs in Kampong Chhnang province is also positive and we expect progress on this in the next period. The results of the first season of livelihood support work of CEDAC will hopefully be visible by December.

This project is a joint initiative of BirdLife International Cambodia Programme, the Wildlife Conservation Society - Cambodia Program and the Forestry Administration of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries with financial support from Fondation Ensemble and the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Ed.

Strengthened community natural resource management in Western Siem Pang IBA, Cambodia In July BirdLife and the Wildlife Protection Office finished implementation of a one year project entitled Strengthened Community Natural Resource Management in Western Siem Pang IBA, Cambodia. This project was funded

by Government of the Netherlands through the DGIS/TMF Small Grants Programme operated by the BirdLife Secretariat. The goal of this project was to significantly improve the management of critical dry forest trapaengs (ephemeral forest wetlands) in Western Siem Pang IBA, Stung Treng Province, Cambodia, thereby protecting biodiversity and assisting local communities reduce poverty. The project had two objectives: To increase capacity among local communities to sustainably manage natural resources and develop best practices skills and; to facilitate the incorporation of natural resource needs and priorities of local communities into higher decisionmaking plans. The project had five outcomes and progress by project-end three had been fully achieved, one almost fully achieved and one was not achieved. Of the three new agreed activities as reported in the Annual Report, two of these activities were completed and the last remains ongoing.

Overall there has been a perceived but unquantifiable improvement of the management at five high conservation value trapaengs. This improved management may have assisted a number of households improve levels of household income but there was no quantifiable attempt to measure this at the end of the project, despite the establishment of a baseline at project start. There has been a small increase in the capacity of local communities to sustainably manage natural resources, and a significant increase in awareness levels amongst them relating to the need to sustainably manage trapaengs.

Although the project was not able to promote trapaeng conservation into commune development plans per se, as a result of the project communities are aware of other development pressures on the area and supportive of a proposal to establish a Protected Forest which if successful, will help them maintain their livelihoods, including access to trapaengs. There is widespread understanding that this option is preferable to them loosing their land to commercial concessions which remains a real and present threat. The project has therefore helped promote the status quo regarding current patterns of land-ownership amongst poor communities and usage and prevented communities from becoming poorer during its lifetime. The current project modality is not sustainable and

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requires continued financial input and there appears to be no prospect of this changing in the medium-term.

Additional funds for further similar activities at the site may have been secured.

Jonathan C Eames Programme Manager BirdLife International in Indochina

Integrating watershed and biodiversity management at Chu Yang Sin National Park, Vietnam The World Bank through the Global Environment Facility (GEF) funds this BirdLife project. It is the only medium-sized GEF project implemented by BirdLife in Vietnam, since the government has decided that implementation of GEF projects should by state organizations only. The project was fist conceived back in the early 1990s and was designed to support the conservation and establishment of a protected area at this globally important site. After significant delays in the first year, during the second year project progress has accelerated and almost caught up with the work-plan. The project field office has been adequately established staffed and equipped. The project disbursed over 75% of cumulative budget up to June 2007, or nearly 30% of overall project budget. Major achievements and drawbacks were: Consolidation of the project office and strengthening of project implementation, in part due to strong support by members of the project steering committee, authorities at all levels, and CYS park staff. Restrictions on international involvement, are no longer a critical bottleneck issue. Information on the socio-economic situation of the districts around the park, biodiversity of the park, park staff capacity and training needs, and public Outside the project office, Chu Yang Sin National attitudes to, and awareness of, the park was collected.

Park, July 2007. Photo: J C Eames With a monitoring and evaluation system in place, these will function as the baseline for later monitoring of project impacts. Initial training activities for park staff were also carried out. The project log-frame was updated to better reflect the changed situation of the park, to allow for closer integration of project activities into the park management plan, and to promote the integrity of CYS in the wider landscape. Measures were also taken to ensure that any impacts of stronger enforcement on customary forest resource use by indigenous communities are in compliance with the World Bank Indigenous People and Resettlement Policy Framework.

However, the threats to the park’s biodiversity remain substantial, and so the project is ambitious in terms of available resources and expected outputs. Project implementation has also still been hampered by the relatively low capacity of personnel in the conservation community in Vietnam in general, and in the Central Highlands region in particular, the poor infrastructure and difficult topography of the project area.

Nina Ksor, Project Field Manager Le Trong Trai, Programme Officer John Pilgrim, Conservation Advisor Pham Tuan Anh, Vietnam Programme Manager

Building constituencies for site-based conservation in Myanmar At the end of March, BirdLife and the Biodiversity and Nature Conservation Association (BANCA) completed implementation of our first Darwin Initiative funded project in Myanmar. This project was entitled Building constituencies for site-based conservation in Myanmar. In this article we review the implementation, success and legacy of this project.

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The geographical focus of this project were two biodiversity “hotspots”, the Eastern Himalayas and Sundaic Lowlands Endemic Bird Areas (EBAs) in Myanmar. Specifically, the project worked in four Important Bird Areas (IBAs). These were the Natmataung National Park, located in southern Chin State, the Mount Imawbun Area and lowland wetlands in northern Kachin State, and the lowland forests in and around the proposed Lenya National Park in southern Tanintharyi Division in the far south of Myanmar.

The project aimed to address three problems. These were the lack of recent information on the specific location and status of sites of international conservation importance; A lack of capacity amongst local non-government organizations working on biodiversity conservation in Myanmar, and; a lack of involvement of local people in the management of protected areas and a belief that through their increased empowerment, better conservation and improved livelihoods could be achieved. The purpose and objectives of the project were to strengthen the institutional capacity of BANCA to prioritize, plan and undertake high quality applied research and use the results to achieve greatest benefits for conservation, and to develop Site-support Groups (SSGs) at four sites of global conservation importance, empowering communities to manage natural resources and improve their quality of life. The first objective was fully realized. The second objective was modified during the project period so that SSGs were developed at one site only within one Endemic Bird Area (EBA).

This project has been successful in terms of meeting both its objectives. The capacity of BANCA to prioritize, plan and undertake high quality applied research and the results to achieve greatest benefits for conservation was achieved within the lifetime of the project as evidenced by a published journal paper, their contribution to a published BirdLife strategy, and their admission to the BirdLife Partnership as the appointed BirdLife Affiliate in Myanmar. Within the lifetime of the project sixteen SSGs were established in the buffer zone of Natmataung National Park. Thus the second objective, in a slightly modified form was achieved and significantly exceeded.

The significant additional accomplishments of this project have been the increased credibility and profile of BANCA and BirdLife within Myanmar amongst Government of Myanmar agencies, donors, and non-government organizations. Evidence of this is provided by the appointment of the BANCA Chairman to assist the coordination of the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Planning (NBSAP) process by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the appointment of BANCA by the Government as the lead agency to produce an Environment Impact Assessment for a proposed dam on the Chindwin River, $650,000 was leveraged from the British Birdwatching Fair and the Global Conservation Fund for the establishment of Lenya National Park, BirdLife was also invited by the European Commission to develop a major new conservation project in Myanmar (estimated budget E 1,000,000).

The project conducted ornithological research at Mount Bwe Pa in Chin State during the first quarter of 2004, mounted three expeditions to the Mount Imawbun area of north eastern Kachin state during the winters of 2005, 2006 and 2007, conducted lowland wetland surveys in Kachin State between 2003 and 2006, and conducted status surveys for Gurney’s Pitta Pitta gurneyii in southern Tanintharyi Division during 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007. These expeditions included suitably qualified American, British, German and Myanmar staff who where all members of the teams at various times and who worked alongside Myanmar staff from BANCA and the Forest Department.

Mount Bwe Pa was selected for survey because it is a one of the highest peaks in the Chin Hills and at the time was ornithologically unexplored. The location was a candidate site for protected area establishment, IBA designation and SSG establishment. A collection of nearly 60 bird skins was made. Birds were trapped using mist nets. The site supports a suite of endemic and globally threatened species characteristic of the Eastern Himalayas EBA. Mount Imawbun was selected for survey because of its great height, strategic location on the edge of the Eastern Himalayas and Yunnan Mountains EBAs and because a body of data already existed on the site which had been collected by the Verne-Cutting Expedition during the 1930s. During the three year survey period almost 300 bird specimens were collected from base-camps at varying altitudes which aimed to sample the full bird biodiversity of the mountain. The wetland survey work aimed to re-discover the feared extinct Pink-headed Duck Rhodonessa caryophyllacea and collected a large body of anecdotal data on the status and distribution of Globally Threatened birds in the basin of the Chindwin River. The Gurney’s Pitta survey work involved collection of point count data on transects and analysis of forest cover data using GIS. The results of this research have included the rediscovery of the Gurney’s Pitta. The creation of an important collection of bird specimens, the publication of one peer reviewed journal paper in Bird Conservation The Babbler 22/23 – September 2007 – 29 –

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International and the acceptance for publication of two further peer reviewed journal papers in Bird Conservation International and the Natural History Bulletin of the Siam Society. Additionally original data collated by the project was incorporated and published in two important strategic documents. These were Myanmar: Investment Opportunities in Biodiversity Conservation and Important Bird Areas in Asia. Myanmar: Investment Opportunities in Biodiversity Conservation was an output of the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Profile process for Myanmar and the Indo-Burma Hotspot which BirdLife lead. This document amounts to a de facto terrestrial biodiversity action plan for Myanmar. So this output can be considered an important milestone in supporting Myanmar reach targets under the Convention on Biodiversity Convention (CBD).

The expatriate staff involved in the research programme comprised: Jonathan C Eames (British), Team Leader and Programme Manager for BirdLife International in Indochina, Andrew W Tordoff (British), formerly Conservation Advisor for BirdLife International in Indochina, Tim Appleton M.B.E (British), Reserve Manager, Rutland Water Nature Reserve, UK, Karin Eberhardt (German and USA), Myanmar-based conservation and development specialist, Dr Frank Steinheimer (German) Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Museum für Naturkunde, and formerly The Natural History Museum UK. During the project period the following BANCA and Forest Department staff received training: U Uga, U Htin Hla, Khin Ma Ma Thwin, U Aung Kyaw Nyunt, U Haung Mang, U Sein Myo Aung, U Saw Moses, Khin Min Min Thwin, U Shein Gay Ngai, U Maung Nu, U Samyo Zaw, and U Nay Moe Shwe, U Thura Win Htun and U Ngwe Lwin. Staff received training in preparation of museum study skins and spirit specimens, interpreting satellite imagery, survey techniques (point counts and line transects), workshop planning, technical report writing ,researching and drafting journal papers, bird identification, making presentations, proposal writing and project management. Because of the small number of staff involved we were able to provide one-on-one training and much of it took the form of on-the-job-training. Their improved skills and confidence acquired under the project has enabled them to formulate new projects and successfully fund raise in Myanmar. This increased capacity of BANCA is recognized by Government of Myanmar agencies and the donor and NGO community. BANCAs improved and increased capacity to deliver conservation on the ground is well illustrated by the fact that it now works with UNDP and Care to deliver conservation and development inputs at 16 villages in the buffer zone of Natmataung National Park.

Since the completion of the project a number of BANCA staff have continued to work on subsequent biodiversity projects. These projects continues to draw BirdLife and BANCA into an ever closer relationship. BirdLife, through its UK Partner the Royal Society of the Protection of Birds (RSPB) recently held a strategic planning workshop for BANCA the output of which was an organizational strategy. BANCA staff have travelled to participate in BirdLife regional meetings in Japan and Hong Kong, which has given them exposure to the conservation NGO movement, in the form of the BirdLife Partnership, and attended and gave presentations at the British Birdwatching Fair in 2005. BirdLife currently implements a programme of four ongoing conservation projects with BANCA, three of which were developed as a direct consequence of the Darwin funded project. BirdLife provides direct support to the BANCA office in Yangon and supports one member of staff there fulltime. Four further BANCA staff are retained as long term consultants to the collaborative programme.

Both the project and the presence of BirdLife have helped to support and stimulate the conservation scene and representatives from across government have responded positively. In the main local conservation NGOs are viewed positively by the Forest Department and other government agencies.

The main social impact of the project has been in amongst the villages in the buffer zone of Natmataung National Park. Whilst the Darwin project was resourced to pilot community-based management approaches, during the lifetime of the project BirdLife/BANCA developed new project proposals and secured funding from the British Embassy, USA Embassy, TMF (Dutch Government) through BirdLife to scale-up this programme of work. The total sum rose for this purpose being c. US $ 100,000. By the close of the Darwin project on 31 March 2007 the project was active in 16 villages in Kanpelet and Mindat townships in Chin State. In return for signing a nohunting agreement these villages have received a range of development inputs from BirdLife, Care and UNDP. All villagers in the target villages have benefited from improved and secure potable water supply, introduction of improved strains of vegetables, improved animal husbandry techniques, and health care in some cases. Education

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has directly benefited children and should have long term benefits for all in the community. Women may have benefited disproportionately because of their roles in securing potable water and vegetables for the family table.

The project collaborated with research staff from the Conservation and research Centre, Smithsonian Institution, National Zoological Park, Front Royal Virginia who analyzed forest cover data. The project also collaborated with a staff member from The Natural History Museum Tring who during the project moved to the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Museum für Naturkunde. There was additional collaboration with staff from Rutland Water Nature Reserve, UK. During the lifetime of the project staff also supported the elaboration of the biodiversity profile for the IndoBurma Hotspot, and research and publication of the document Myanmar: Investment Opportunities for Biodiversity Conservation. This was also a collaboration with the Centre for Applied Biodiversity Science (CABS) at Conservation International, the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF). Support for this work was additionally received from The Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Yangon, UNDP and CARE Myanmar. Project staff also support UNEP in the development of the NBSAP process and this latter project required collaboration with the government GEF and CBD focal point, the National Commission for Environmental Affairs (NCEA). During the final year of the project there was collaboration with livelihood support projects managed by UNDP and CARE Myanmar in the buffer-zone of Natmataung National Park.

The main problems encountered with this project were that the project officers at Natmataung National Park could not speak English well or write in English. They could not therefore report in English. A considerable volume of written reports and documentation was of course generated but only a small sample of this could be translated into English. This made monitoring and evaluation more difficult because the British project leader could not read or write Burmese. Furthermore the lack of experience of the Burmese project co-leader in reporting to a specification and in a specific format meant that it was more difficult to understand how the project was being implemented and to provide guidance on aspects of project implementation. Furthermore, certain Burmese working practices such as not routinely minute taking, left gaps in project documentation. It was also difficult to introduce and maintain accepted project management practices such as generating quarterly work plans and budgets and sticking to them.

Routine finance management was improved by appointing a BirdLife staff member to be responsible for handling transactions. Guidance was provided to senior BANCA staff on the project cycle and reporting.

The overall experience of this project has been positive. The project implemented as it was designed and very few minor changes were made. The only change in project activities was to concentrate on a single site to establish SSG rather than at a suit of sites across the country. This reflects some over ambition in the original project design rather than any shortcomings of implementation. Given the projects’ overall success, this is an endorsement of BirdLife’s project design abilities and a demonstration of its project management expertise. It is also an endorsement for future investment by Darwin and other donors in conservation projects in Myanmar.

A major concern of project reviewers of this project has been the sustainability of the SSG approach. This of course well understood and a concern for BirdLife too. We have no answers to this other than the hope that with the increased momentum generated by our SSG activities at Natmataung National Park and an increased realization amongst villagers of their dependence and responsibilities towards the national park, that they will become less dependent on external support. BirdLife has viewed the initial investment of Darwin project funds as experimental but it is clear that a momentum has now been generated such that not only do villages seek to join the project, but recently villages have sought to join the project with the full knowledge that they will not necessarily receive any development investment in return for their support. BirdLife judges this to be a small but perhaps significant step. Our work has also lead to the establishment of two local umbrella NGOs under which our SSGs operate and engage with local government. We view this as a real step towards increased participation and accountability of local government. Our commitment to this site is ongoing and we have recently secured a further US $ 40,000 to continue our work further.

During its lifetime this project had significant success in raising additional funds for project activities and in raising significant funds for new project activities which were related to the Darwin project. The total sum raised was US $ 858,050. UK project staff coached senior BANCA in proposal writing and approaching donors. BANCA staff raised US $ 22,000 for related project activities from the British and American Embassies in Yangon during the lifetime of the project. As a result of this project BANCA is a strengthened organization with increased technical capacity to deliver conservation and with increased confidence which will enhance its ability to work

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with government and leverage funding from donors in future. It routinely designs and raises funding from donors in Yangon and works with an increasing number of other international NGOs on an ever wider range of conservation organizations at a wider range of sites across the country. BANCA works more closely with government too and has an enhanced reputation with government agencies in the conservation sector. Senior BANCA staff are closely involved with the NBSAP process and BANCA was contracted as a consultancy to undertake an EIA for a government dam project. The project achievement most likely to endure is realization of the need to engage with local communities to develop joint management approaches to protected areas planning.

Project staff are all now engaged on follow-on BirdLife/BANCA projects. Therefore project assets continue to be shared and used on new projects. BirdLife and BANCA currently implement four projects in Myanmar. Contact between the organizations remains on a daily basis. The experiences and lessons learnt in relation to engaging with local communities in the buffer zone of Natmataung National Park have been reported widely across the BirdLife Asia and global partnership and help steer and shape BirdLife future approach to local stakeholder involvement in conservation. Additional funds have recently (September 2007) been secured from the Jensen Foundation to continue the local community based conservation at Natmataung National Park.

Another lasting legacy this project has left is by being amongst the first internationally supported NGO projects in Myanmar, it has paved the way for further projects in this field. It has brought together local NGOs, donors and government, and increased government confidence in working with the international community. It has stimulated dialogue on conservation issues in Myanmar and is, we believe a positive and good example of well designed project, well implemented.

U Uga Chairman Biodiversity and Nature Conservation Association U Htin Hla, Head of Field Operations, Biodiversity and Nature Conservation Association Wild Bird Adventure Travels and Tours Jonathan C Eames Programme Manager BirdLife International in Indochina

A successful model of rattan cultivation in Ba To District, Quang Ngai Province, Vietnam Ba To district is located a mountainous area, about 35 km from Quang Ngai in central Vietnam. The total area of Ba To is 113,254 ha, of which 39,502 ha is natural forest. Where the rattan Daemonorops pierreanus grows naturally.

In the past, H’re people in Ba To district harvested the wild rattan, which contributed to household incomes. Unfortunately, the yield declined as many people exploited rattan without any attempt to maintain the wild population or cultivate the species. This affected living conditions amongst H’re farmers in the area.

In 1990, with the recognition of the potentially important role of rattan in poverty alleviation, some H’re households in Ba Vinh commune in Ba To district started planting rattan under the

Rattan Ba Dien commune, Ba To district June 2007.

Photo: Duong Duy Khanh

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natural forest canopy by transplanting seedlings from the wild. The transplanted seedlings seemed to grow well under these the conditions and began to mature in 1995. The planted rattan yields were surprisingly high and the quality was good. As a Vietnamese saying goes “good wine needs no bush”, Farmers living in surrounding communes came to learn the planting technique. Actually, the rattan planting technique is quite simple and they passed the knowledge one to another. Rattan cultivation rapidly spread rapidly to other communes of Ba Vinh, Ba Thanh communes of Ba To district. Each H’re family in this area has approximately 2 ha of rattan with a thousands of rattan root clusters in the natural forest. Annually, each hectare of rattan yields about 2 tonnes of product, which is valued at more than 3 million VND. Planted rattan under forest cover not only brings about economic wealth, but it indirectly plays an important role in forest conservation. Simply because, if forest trees are cut or burnt, then rattan cannot continue growing well, even sometimes dying. Rattan dieback naturally reduces householder income. Thus local people are aware of the importance of natural forest conservation to sustain their income from rattan production. This model illustrates a good example of co-existence and interdependence between people and forest and could be applied more widely in Vietnam.

Tran Van Hung, Community-Based Programme Officer BirdLife International Vietnam Programme

Cambodian national vulture census 2007 The third Cambodian national vulture census was conducted on 10 and 24 June 2007. As usual, counts were undertaken at six sites namely western Siem Pang IBA, Stung Treng province; Cheap Protected Forest, Preah Vihear province; Srepok Wilderness Area, MondulKiri province; Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary, Ratanakiri province; and Phnom Prich Wildlife Sanctuary, Mondulkiri province.

The maximum counts recorded for each species were White-rumped Vulture Gyps bengalenesis 160, Slender-billed Vulture Gyps tenuirostris 26 and Red-headed Vulture Sacrogyps calvus 40. The counts on the first and second dates did not differ significantly. Compared with previous years White-rumped Vulture numbers may be increasing, whereas Slender-billed Vulture may be holding steady or showing a slight decline. Numbers of Red-headed Vulture appears to be steady. See table below.

Vulture restaurants and counts were undertaken by En Sophal/WCS, Kham Physary/Lomphat ranger/BirdLife, Lee Bun Paeng/BirdLife, Moung Kuy/WWF, Sim Samorn/WWF, Hem Simean/WWF. Chok Sokhavicheaboth, DNCP/MoE/WWF, Prach Pechphirun, FA/BirdLife, Keo Sopheak, FA/MAFF/WWF, and Doung Kong, FA/MAFF/WWF. As usual the overall census was coordinated by Song Chansocheat Department of Nature Conservation and Protection (DNCP), Ministry of Environment, whose salary and costs are part-funded by BirdLife. Project technical advisor is Tom Clements, WCS Cambodia Programme.

The Cambodia Vulture Conservation Project involves a coalition of agencies comprising the Forestry Administration (FA) of the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) and the Department of Nature Conservation and Protection (DNCP) of the Ministry of Environment and, BirdLife International (who receive support from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), BirdLife in the UK), the Wildlife Conservation Society Cambodia Progam (WCS) and the Worldwide Fund for Nature Greater Mekong Programme (WWF).

Table: Comparison of vulture species recorded during national census Census First Census Second Census Third census

Date

WRV 88 90 149 83 160 150

10 July 2004 26 July 2004 10 May 2006 24 May 2006 10 June 2007 24 June 2007

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Vulture Species SBV 34 25 27 31 24 26

RHV 40 42 58 32 35 40

BirdLife International in Indochina

Red-headed Vulture Sacrogyps calvus (above). During a vulture restaurant in western Siem Pang on 3 July a Golden Jackal Canis aureus put in an appearance. Photos: J C Eames

Jonathan C Eames Programme Manager BirdLife International in Indochina The Babbler 22/23 – September 2007 – 34 –

BirdLife International in Indochina

Training needs assessment in Chu Yang Sin National Park and Kon Ka Kinh Nature Reserve, Vietnam As part of vital capacity development in Vietnam’s protected areas, BirdLife recently undertook two Training Needs Assessments (TNA) for national park staff and forest protection rangers. It is increasingly understood by conservationists and protected area staff alike, that low capacity in key areas, such as management, research and law enforcement, is a fundamental problem in securing any long term protection of key habitats. However, every park, reserve or landscape will have specific strengths and weaknesses. As such, training courses must be tailored to those needs and that is where a TNA is crucial.

The Global Environment Facility/World Bank supported Birdlife project in Chu Yang Sing National Park and the UNDP Landscape Project in Kon Ka Kinh-Kon Cha Rang Nature Reserves, are key sites for biodiversity protection. Both are located in the mountainous highlands of central Vietnam and protect some of the largest, richest areas of primary forest in the country. Their remoteness, topography and size mean that they still contain large mammals, like gibbons and tigers, which have tragically disappeared from much of Vietnam’s forests.

Considered global biodiversity hotspots, these areas also harbour numerous range restricted or endemic bird species. The assessments covered all aspects of forest management and protection, for all key staff positions and the results are now being used to develop staff training programs for these rare and wonderful forest landscapes.

Le Trong Trai and rangers afield. Photo: Josh Kempinski/BirdLife Josh Kempinski Consultant BirdLife International Vietnam Programme

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BirdLife International in Indochina

Publication Threatened and alien species in Vietnam: background and recommendations for the content of the national Biodiversity Law BirdLife International-Vietnam Prpgramme’s Conservation Report Number 32 (and 33)

By Pilgrim, J. D. and Nguyen Duc Tu, 2007

This report is an output of the work funded by the BirdLife International Global Forest Policy Project and was prepared at the request of the Department of Environment, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Vietnam.

The report analyses the current situation with regard to threatened and alien species in Vietnam, current legislation that relates to such species, gaps and discrepancies in this legislation, and international legal experience that could help to instruct Vietnam in developing a new Biodiversity Law. From the findings, this report provides recommendations for provisions, relating to threatened and alien species, to be included in the new Biodiversity Law. The report, which is produced in both Vietnamese and English languages, was an important contribution for the formulation of the Biodiversity Law. Copies are available from the Hanoi office and PDF versions are now available to be downloaded at www.birdlifeindochina.org

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BirdLife International in Indochina

Book reviews The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Volume 2 2007 David R Wells. Christopher Helm. 800 pages, 51 colour plates, maps. ISBN-13: 9780713665345 After a delay of several years, Volume 2 of this two-volume work was published in June 2007. These well-illustrated volumes cover the birds of Singapore, peninsular Malaysia, southern Thailand and the tip of Tanintharyi Division in Myanmar. David Wells' historically complete accounts draw on a full range of recent field and museum research. Over 380 species are described, including information on systematics, distribution, plumage, biometrics, status, habitat, food and foraging, voice, behaviour, breeding biology, moult and conservation. Together volumes 1 and 2 are the most complete modern summary of the birds found in the Thai-Malay peninsula. During the project there was a switch in publisher, from Academic Press to Christopher Helm, who has subsequently repackaged and published both volumes. Thus anyone who bought Volume 1 as published by Academic Press, has been obliged to by it again in the revised format so that it matches Volume 2, a canny piece of marketing on the part of Christopher Helm. Happily, the standard of illustrations in Volume 2 is superior to Volume 1 and the plates by John Gale and Kamol Kamophalin are particularly good.

Jonathan C Eames Programme Manager BirdLife International in Indochina

Birding South-East China 2007 Tim Woodward Hong Kong Birdwatching Society and WWF Hong Kong 423 pages, 88 colour photos, 160 maps. ISBN-10: 9628508423 This book covers more than 160 sites in Hong Kong, Macau, Guangdong, Hainan, Guangxi, Hunan, Jiangxi and Fujian, not all of which are reserves.

This book is the first detailed site guide for the region, including maps, information on key bird species, other wildlife, transportation, accommodation, a check list of sites and check lists of birds and mammals in English and Chinese, with status information for each province.

Review downloaded and edited from NHBS website http://www.nhbs.com/ on 18 September 2007.

Ed.

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BirdLife International in Indochina

Staff news Vietnam Programme Le Quynh Giao joined BirdLife in January 2007. Born in 1979 she graduated from The Foreign Trade University in Hanoi and the College of Foreign Language in 2002 before joining BirdLife as an Administrative Assistant, Giao worked as a secretary and administrative officer for several international organizations including Counterpart International, Save the children UK, Caritas Switzerland, and the Embassy of South African. Embassy and currently BirdLife International. January, 2007. I am very glad to become an official member of BirdLife Family. Here is a very good working environment for me to develop my capacity. My wish is to associate with BirdLife Vietnam for a long time.

Josh Kempinski joined BirdLife in April, 2007 as a long term consultant. His role will be to support the technical staff in Hanoi on protected area management issues, staff training and wildlife surveys. A particular focus of his work with will be to guide and assist the project management team in Chu Yang Sin National park on these topics, helping to ensure that training and survey work are carried out to the highest standards. Josh has already undertaken Training Needs Assessments (TNA) in Chu Yang Sin, together with similar assessments in Kon Ka Kinh National Park, Kon Cha Rang National Park and with Forest Protection Department (FPD) staff in districts around the protected areas. The results of which are now being used to develop training regimes for staff in these key protected areas.

Prior to joining the BirdLife team, Josh worked with GTZ on the development and institutionalisation of a Forest School, for visitor awareness raising and student internships, at Tam Dao National Park. Between 2004 and late 2006 he worked in Cuc Phuong National Park, as the Conservation Advisor for the Small Carnivore Conservation Program (SCP). In 2004 Josh received his Masters degree from Imperial College London, in Environmental Technology and Ecological Management.

Born in Haiphong in 1974, Cao Hai Thanh graduated in environmental science from Hanoi National University in 1996. He later gained a Masters degree in Human Ecology at Vrije Universiteit Brusselles in 2002.

Thanh worked as a researcher in the Institute of Geography for more than eight years studying the related fields of environmental and natural resource management and geographical information systems. Previously he was also was also an environmental specialist at the Canadian Hunger Foundation where his duties were to review and integrate environmental management plans and safeguard activities into village and commune development plans, and to collaborate and cooperate with provincial government to deliver natural environmental protection plans and natural resource management in protected areas. Thanh joined BirdLife as a National Monitoring Expert in May.

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BirdLife International in Indochina

Ms Nguyen Hanh Quyen started working for the BirdLife International in Indochina programme part-time in 2007 as a GIS and Remote Sensing consultant, in a position shared with Conservation International. She has Bachelors and Masters degrees from the Faculty of Geography in the Hanoi University of Natural Science, and is in the final stages of completing her Doctorate with the Free University of Brussels and Hanoi University of Natural Science. Her research has concentrated on the application of GIS and remote sensing technology to carry out environmental assessments of industrial and urban development. However, her work experience has covered diverse applications of GIS and remote sensing, from land-use planning to mapping habitat change to monitoring natural hazards. With BirdLife, Quyen is focusing on assessing changes in natural habitats and other land use at key sites within the Greater Mekong Subregion (Cambodia, Yunnan Province of China, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam).

Tran Van Hung has recently joined BirdLife as our Community-based Conservation Program Officer. Born in 1967 in Nam Dinh Province, Hung’s background is in Forestry Economics. He obtained his Bachelor’s Degree from Leningrad Forest Technical Academy, in 1991 and an MSc. Natural Resources Conservation from the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), in Bangkok in 1996.

From 1992 Hung worked for the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute where in May 2004 he became Deputy Chief of the International Cooperation Division.

Hung has a wide range of experience in working with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), Ministry of Fisheries (MOF), Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) and Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE). He is also a permanent member of the Vietnam National Mekong River Committee (VNMRC) and Agriculture Irrigation and Forestry Program (AIFP).

Hung has also worked as a short term national consultant for a number of foreign-funded projects and cooperated with different international organizations such as the Japan Overseas Forest Consultation Association (JOFCA), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japan Forest Technical Association (JAFTA), German Technical Cooperation (GTZ), Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA), International Mekong River Commission Secretariat (MRCS), Netherlands Development Agency (SNV), and the World Conservation Union (IUCN).

Vietnam Programme staff photographed on their first retreat, at the Japanese Bridge, Hoi An. The Babbler 22/23 – September 2007 – 39 –

BirdLife International in Indochina

Cambodia Programme

Ou Chouly is currently working for Birdlife International-Cambodia program as a National Monitoring Expert as part of the Local-Stakeholder-Based Monitoring Programme Project funded by the Asian Development Bank. Her main responsibilities are collating, analyzing, assessing and storing site monitoring data on biodiversity status, threat and response at key biodiversity areas and Biodiversity Conservation Corridor Initiatives (BCI) pilot sites. Before joining BirdLife, she was an intern at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). There she was responsible for developing a country biodiversity database for the Asia Pacific region and supporting regional workshop activities. Since 2004, she was involved in several biodiversity research projects including a conservation and community-based management project for natural resources of the Ton Le Sap Lake. In 2006 she supervised a group of undergraduate students conducting research on tiger monitoring in Seima Biodiversity Conservation Area in Modulkiri Province.

Chouly obtained a bachelor degree in biology from the Royal University of Phnom Penh in 2003 and one year later was awarded a scholarship to pursue a Master's degree in Natural Resources Management at Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand. Based on her performance in this program she was invited to spend one semester on an exchange program at Roskilde University Centre (RUC) in Denmark where she worked as part of the Technological and Socio-Economic Planning, Environmental Policy and the Global Challenge programme.

Khim Sokchea is 23 and was born in Kandal Province. She graduated from the University of Technology and Management in Phnom Penh with a major in accounting. After graduation in 2005 she worked for Cambobuild Construction Co., Ltd. Her duties responsibilities for BirdLife involve accounting including preparing monthly tax declarations and financial reports, payment monitoring, office management and ensuring sound financial control, documentation and flow of accounting information in the office. In 2006 she began studying English literature at the Pannasatra University in Phnom Penh. In May 2007 she began work as Finance and Administrative Assistant in the Phnom Penh office.

On 22 April Bou Vorsak, Acting Programme Manager for the BirdLife Cambodia Programme, married Ung Kimkamika at a ceremony in Phnom Penh. We wish Vorsak and his new bride every happiness for the future.

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BirdLife International in Indochina

Indochina Programme

Ms Dong Jiangtian, or 'Maicha', started working for the Hong Kong Bird Watching Society (HKBWS) in 2007, as National Monitoring Coordinator for China. Although her work for HKBWS is focused on China's Yunnan Province, Maicha has extensive experience in the country, including extensive bird surveys in Tibet. She also led the development of the Shenzhen Bird Watching Society, of which she remains General Secretary.

Establishing the Shenzhen Bird Watching Society as one of the first birdfocused non-governmental organisations registered in China was a major achievement, necessitating Maicha leaving her previous to work as a fulltime volunteer for several years. With HKBWS and, in turn, in close collaboration with BirdLife, Maicha is collating monitoring data on biodiversity, threats to biodiversity, and conservation responses in Yunnan Province.

Ms Supreeda Tangprasertsri, or 'Note', started working for the Bird Conservation Society of Thailand (BCST) in 2007, as National Monitoring Coordinator for Thailand. She has Bachelors and Masters degrees from the Faculty of Science at Mahidol University in Bangkok, focusing on environmental biology. Since graduating from Mahidol, she has worked on a project studying seed dispersal and recruitment of liana seedlings in a forest dynamics plot within Khao Yai National Park, including a lot of time watching gibbons. It has been a natural progression for Note to work with BCST and, in turn, in close collaboration with BirdLife International in Indochina, to collate monitoring data on biodiversity, threats to biodiversity, and conservation responses in the Khao Yai-Thap Lan landscape. Now Note's focus with BCST also encompasses collation of monitoring data from the Tenasserim-Western Forest Complex in western Thailand.

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BirdLife International in Indochina

From the Archives

Few photographs of living Saola Pseudoryx nghetinhensis exist. The above images of a captive immature Saola were taken in the grounds of the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute in Hanoi in August 1994. This individual died a few days later. The picture at bottom left was taken in April 1991 near Bach Ma National Park. It clearly shows the horn of a Saola.

Photos: J C Eames The Babbler 22/23 – September 2007 – 42 –