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A
rapid field survey of five sites in Bac Kan, Cao Bang and Quang Ninh
Province, Vietnam. A review of the Northern Indochina Subtropical Forest
Ecoregion. Executive Summary
As part of the European Union-funded project Expanding the Protected Areas Network in Vietnam for the 21st Century, BirdLife International and the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute (FIPI) conducted an analysis of Vietnam's protected areas system. Many of the recommendations made in the ensuing report relate to the Northern Indochina Subtropical Forests Ecoregion. For instance, the report recommended that the protected areas system be expanded to include a further 194,300 ha of natural forest in this ecoregion. Also, the report identified 11 protected areas in this ecoregion that support less than 25% natural forest cover and, therefore, warrant reassessment in terms of their boundaries or management categories. In November 1999, BirdLife International and FIPI conducted a rapid field survey of the Northern Indochina Subtropical Forests Ecoregion, in order to assess the suitability of some of these recommendations. Kim Hy proposed nature reserve, Na Ri district, Bac Kan province, is centred on an area of limestone karst, which supports relatively undisturbed limestone forest. To the north of the limestone karst, the vegetation is characterised by a mosaic of swidden fields, secondary vegetation, and remnant patches of sub-montane dry evergreen forest. The results of the rapid field survey indicate that Kim Hy may support populations of Black Gibbon Hylobates concolor, Francois' Leaf Monkey Semnopithecus francoisi francoisi, Chinese Forest Musk Deer Moschus berezovskii, Common Pheasant Phasianus colchicus and three rare conifers: Keteleeria davidiana, Pseudotsuga brevifolia and Tsuga chinensis var. chinensis. As the result of the presence of these species of high conservation importance, and because the site supports one of the few extensive forest areas in the ecoregion, this report recommends that Kim Hy should be decreed as a nature reserve, with an area of approximately 10,000 ha. Thang Hen, Tra Linh district, Cao Bang province, has been proposed as a suitable site for the establishment of a nature reserve, on the basis of recent discoveries of several plant species new to science. The site supports an area of limestone forest, centred on a series of natural lakes. The forest is being steadily eroded by unsustainable timber extraction and firewood collection, and less than 1,161 ha remain. Although Thang Hen may support remnant populations of Black Gibbon and Chinese Forest Musk Deer, these populations are under high hunting pressure and the area of remaining habitat is likely to be too small to support viable populations. As a result of these factors, nature reserve status is not appropriate for Thang Hen, and this report recommends that the site be managed at the provincial level as a site for tourism. Trung Khanh Nature Reserve, Trung Khanh district, Cao Bang province, was decreed as a nature reserve in 1986 but a management board was never formed and the precise boundary of the nature reserve was never defined. Trung Khanh district contains large areas of limestone karst but these are now almost entirely devoid of forest. Small areas of sub-montane dry evergreen forest remain in the south of the district, in Dam Thuy and Chi Vien communes, but these are fragmented and total only 846 ha. The results of the rapid field survey indicate that the diversity and abundance of mammal species in Trung Khanh district are low due to habitat loss and high hunting pressure. Because of the loss of forest cover, it is now impossible to identify a suitable boundary for the nature reserve, and this report recommends that Trung Khanh be removed from Vietnam's protected areas system. Nui Pia Oac Nature Reserve, Nguyen Binh district, Cao Bang province, supports 3,174 ha of sub-tropical broadleaved hill forest, centred on Mount Pia Oac (1,931m). Although the forest was heavily disturbed as a result of mining activities during the French colonial era, it shows signs of regeneration. An investment plan has been produced for Nui Pia Oac, which defines the boundary of the nature reserve. This boundary includes over 10,000 ha of non-forest land, a town, a zinc mine and several thousand people. Consequently, this report recommends revising the boundary of Nui Pia Oac Nature Reserve to exclude areas of habitation, scrub, grassland and agricultural land. The proposed revised boundary covers 3,603 ha, including 2,586 ha of natural forest. Ky Thuong proposed nature reserve, Hoanh Bo district, Quang Ninh province, supports one of the largest remaining blocks of evergreen forest in north-eastern Vietnam. However, commercial and illegal logging activities currently taking place both within and outside the proposed nature reserve threaten to significantly reduce the conservation importance of the site. In their analysis of Vietnam's protected areas system, BirdLife International and FIPI proposed establishing a nature reserve at Ky Thuong, in order to increase the proportion of evergreen forest in the Northern Indochina Subtropical Forests Ecoregion with protected area status. An investment plan has been produced for Ky Thuong, which defines the boundary of the nature reserve. This boundary, however, includes five villages, with a total population of 1,700 people. This report recommends that the boundary of the proposed nature reserve be revised so as to exclude these villages and to include contiguous forest areas that are currently under forest enterprise management.
[Report 14. Full report 2.0 MB. pdf format]
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