Preserving biodiversity in Van Long Natural Reserve

According to the latest survey in 2020, the special use forest of Van Long has 722 species of floras, 15 of which are listed in the Red Book of Vietnam. It has 39 species of animals; 100 species of birds, 38 species of reptiles, 43 species of fish and 132 species of insects.

In particular, Van Long is home to a large population of delacour's langurs.

The primitiveness of moutains, forestsin combination with its rich biodiversity, and beautiful landscapes has provided potential for Van Long's ecotourism development.

Nguyen Van Duong, head of the forest management sub-department under the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development,said in a bid to protect forests, biodiversity and wild animals, especially delacour's langurs in the Van Long Nature Reserve, the sub-department has taken the initiative in building and carrying out a plan on biodiversity preservation. It has also called for support from domestic and foreign organisations to conduct surveys and build a database on biodiversity.

In particular, with the help of the Frankfurt Zoological Society, the number of delacour's langurs in Van Long has been on the rise.

Besides, the sub-department also paid heed to implementing programmes and projects on afforestation and forest protection.

Since 2001, over 40 hectares of forest have been planted in the Van Long Nature Reserve, including three hectares of local trees to provide food for the delacour's langurs. Therefore, the high forest coverage has created a favourable habitat for many flora and fauna species to develop.

The Van Long Nature Reserve cover a total area of 2,736 hectares, spanning over seven communes of Gia Vien district. Local people mainly rely on forestry and agricultural production. Therefore, the sub-department has closely coordinated with local authorities to build a buffer zone which allows local residents to live there to realise the target of sustainable biodiversity preservation based on the community.

At the same time, the sub-department has constantly organised meetings to disseminate the responsibility of local people in forest protection.

It also established groups to patrol  and control the illegal trading, transportation and consumption of wild animals.

The active engagement of local authorities, sectors, branches and people has helped build rich biodiversity in Van Long.

Thanks to these above efforts, in 2019, the Van Long Nature Reserve was recognised as the 9^th Ramsar of Vietnam.

Recently, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)'s Green List Committee has officially approved and presented the Green List certificate to the Van Long Nature Reserve.

The recognition gives momentum  for the Van Long Nature Reserve's management board and related agencies to make greater efforts in protecting its delacour's langurs, limestone mountain and wetland ecosystems. The move also contributes to the development of tourism in Ninh Binh in the time to come.

Translated by Nguyen Thuy