Cuc Phuong National Park

November 25, 2008
Jonathan and I spent 4 days in Cuc Phuong National Park attending a symposium on primate conservation. A bus picked us all up at the Opera House in Hanoi. After arriving, we got settled into our rooms, had a marvelous time meeting new people, catching up with old friends, and going for a walk. Following a delicious dinner, we moved over to a lovely campfire where some of the residents of the minority village nearby shared some of their songs, dances, and homemade wine. The weather in the park was much cooler than in Hanoi, chilly, in fact, so the best place to sit was right by the fire.

The following morning we were awakened by the singing of gibbons in the Endangered Primate Rescue Center. The song of the gibbons is one of my favorite songs in the whole world. Here in Vietnam, it is the ringer on my phone! At dawn, gibbons sing to one another. It is a male-female pair song that is incredible, and varies depending on the region where they are from. Some research is being done (and we got to hear about it from the researchers themselves at the symposium) to learn more about gibbon behaviour.

Each morning the gibbons would sing. If I didn't walk over to the EPRC to listen to them, then I would run by them or into the national park. Unfortunately, the national park no longer has much to offer in the way of wildlife. Here in Cat Tien, I can see animals every day. I didn't see any animals besides the ones that live in the primate rescue center or in the small carnivore rescue center where a binturong and civets now live following confiscation from illegal animal trade. This is a BIG problem in Southeast Asia. Many animals are trapped, taken from the forest, and sold. Some animals, like lorises, snakes, pengalin, and even monkeys are used in wines or traditional medicines. Others, like gibbons, macaques, and lorises are kept as pets. Sometimes animals like macaques are taken and sold for use in labs that do animal testing. Many animals are eaten as special delicacies. Part of the work being done here is in education: talking to people about how special many of these animals are and how they shouldn't be hunted. It is very complicated, especially when people are just trying to feed their families. If you are interested in learning more, here is a link to some photos from Newsweek.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/117742