vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn  

HA NOI — Conservationists have compiled a dossier of biodiversity in the Lower Cuu Long (Mekong), to help direct resources to the most endangered regions and improve awareness.

Over eighty scientists scoured Viet Nam, Cambodia and Laos, studying the local environment and working out where conservation funds would be best targeted.

The result, a book entitled Towards a Vision for Biodiversity Conservation in the Forests of the Lower Mekong Ecoregion Complex, was launched last week by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The scientists who compiled the book chose central and southern Viet Nam, Laos and Cambodia because of the outstanding conservation significance of the region.

The landscape in this region is very diverse, stretching from evergreen forests to Karst limestone, open grasslands to upland plateaus and wetlands.

The region is home to a wide variety of wildlife, some of which is highly endangered, as well as hundreds of thousands of humans who depend on the land and water resources.

Balancing the sometimes competing needs of humans and nature over the long term is a difficult issue.

In recent years, efforts to conserve the natural diversity of life on earth have been thought of on an increasingly macro scale. In recognition of this, WWF has adopted the "ecoregional" approach.

In Viet Nam, WWF’s Ecoregion Action Programme centres on the Truong Son (Greater Annamites) mountain range.

The region has been listed among the highest priorities for biodiversity conservation as it contains some of the most unique biodiversity encompassed by the Forests of the Lower Mekong Ecoregion Complex.

The region is home to many species found nowhere else in the world, such as the Saola, the Giant Muntjac, the Golden-winged Laughingthrush and Edward’s Pheasant.

The future of these unique animal species is dependent upon successful conservation work in the Truong Son range. — VNS

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