World Animal Protection (WAP) released its first global report on the supply chain of Chinese medicines this month, pointing to the Chinese medicine markets in China and Vietnam as accomplices in promoting the inappropriate use of wild animals. So, what is the current state of wildlife conservation in Vietnam? What are the substantive programmes and progress?
Hunt wild animals for medicinal herbs
According to 2017 data, there were 1352 wildlife violations. Among them, trafficking and advertising accounted for 65.2%, illegal breeding accounted for 21.1% and wildlife poaching accounted for 1.61%.
Catba Island white-headed langur
The white-headed langur (Voọc Cát Bà), which inhabits catba island (đảo Cát Bà), is one of the 25 endangered animals in Vietnam, according to the Vietnam Youth Daily, According to the Vietnam Youth Daily, The KyiBa Island Langur Conservation Project Manager Neahga Leonard said that they are almost always facing the threat of poaching, because many people believe that they can be made into folk Chinese medicine. In addition, the Great Shogunate (Gekko gecko) on Cat Ba Island is one of the most hunted animals, and they are used to make sake or dry for therapeutic purposes. During the breeding season, the young brown-winged crow (Centropus sinesis) is also hunted to make alcohol for diseases, and snakes, especially cobras and king cobras, face the same problem.
In Vietnam, where laws on marine ecology are porous, it is common for hippocamps, starfish and other marine animals to be hunted for alcohol and disease treatment.
Traditional medicinal herbs are one of the main reasons driving the endangerment of the white-headed langur, and ads for related goods are readily available. The number of langurs was already decreasing, but since 1966, when Cat Ba Island became a tourist attraction, the number of langurs poached and sold to Chinese and Vietnamese tourists to make Chinese medicine has increased dramatically.
In fact, consuming pangolin tablets, rhino horn or drinking alcohol made from wild animals has never been shown to have any effect on the body. Rhino horn and pangolin tablets are made up of the equivalent of human hair and nails, and some studies have pointed out that making food or medicine from wild animals carries the risk of transmitting animal diseases to eaters.
At present, the rhinoceros in Vietnam is extinct, many primates are on the verge of extinction, the population of pangolins has decreased dramatically, the situation is the same for tortoises and freshwater turtles, and snakes in some areas are gradually disappearing. According to research by the TRADEFFIC (Wildlife Trade Monitoring Network), 80% of rhino horns are sent to the Vietnamese market. In the eyes of Africans, Vietnam and China are the main causes of rhino poaching.
The Heidi Quine In Vietnam has so far housed 175 black bears that were once held in breeding grounds for bear bile, and they have experienced various cruel methods of taking bear bile medicine. The Vietnam Association of Chinese Medicines pointed out that there may be bacteria in bear bile, and there have been cases of death after using bear bile.
Since 1992, Vietnam has banned trafficking and the construction of breeding grounds, but due to legal loopholes, the practice of raising black bears on a family scale for bear bile still exists.
The image is taken from the Vietnam Association for The Protection of Nature and The Environment.
Rescue and Education Advocacy
Although Vietnam's laws are still full of loopholes, there is still considerable progress in the protection of wildlife by the people and the government at home and abroad.
For more than a decade, Fengshang County (xã Phụng Thượng) has been the largest place in the north where the artificially bred black bears are taken for bile. At its peak, there are 59 breeding grounds in the area, for a total of 325 black bears. For three years, on average, the Animals Asia in Vietnam has worked with local governments to select a community in Phuong Shang County for black bear conservation advocacy activities. In addition, each participant received a jar of chinese medicine that had a practical effect instead of bear bile. Through this activity, not only has the use of bear bile been reduced, but there has been a huge change in the perception and behavior of the residents of Fengshang County. Specifically, as of April 2018, there were only 173 captive-bred black bears in Fengshang County, all of which were attached to position trackers.
The Wildlife Rescue and Forest Conservation Center, established in 1996 in Huyện Sóc Sơn, Hanoi City, also carries out rescue work throughout the country. The center said it has saved nearly 100 species of animals in the past 12 years, including many conservation wild animals designated by Vietnamese law. Currently, the centre houses 274 animals, including 39 tigers, 24 bears, and the rest are primates such as monkeys and gibbons, as well as reptiles and birds such as snakes, pythons, salamanders, turtles and turtles.
In addition to its containment work, the Centre also works with national parks to provide an appropriate wild environment for wildlife, including Gườn quốc gia Cát Tiên), Ba Bể National Park (vườn quốc gia Ba Bể), Ji Po National Park (vườn quốc gia Cát Bà), Buyamo National Park (vườn quốc gia Bù Gia Mập) and Hương Sơn forested areas.
Conservationists field red-cheeked black apes in Bidoup - Nui Ba National Park. Screenshot from Vietnam Nature and Environmental Protection Association.
The development of the Nature House
At present, there are many wildlife rescue and conservation centers in Vietnam that meet national and international standards. These shelters, called "Nature Homes," help long-term captive wildlife recover their natural behaviors and reactions, as well as reintegrate into their natural environment. The first typical "nature home" was the Asian Animal Funded Black Bear Rescue Center. The centre, which was put into operation in April 2008, has a total area of 12 hectares and an investment of more than US$3.3 million, and can care for 200 bears at the same time.
In addition, Jufang National Park (rừng quốc gia Cúc Phương) has three major wildlife conservation centers:
Rescue and protection of rare primates (EPRC): Currently cares for 165 animals, including some particularly rare and not housed in other parts of the world: Trachypithecus delacouri, Vietnamese langur (Trachypithecus hatinhensis), Laos Trachypithecus laotum, Trachypithecus laotum, Trachypithecus Ebenus, white-headed langur, gray-legged white-rumped langur (Pygathrix cinerea).
Carnivores and Pangolin Conservation Centre (CPCP): currently cares for Malay pangolins, Chinese pangolins, Hemigalus derbyanus, Binturong , Arctogalidia trivirgata , Civets , Paradoxurus hermaphroditus ), Felis silvestris , Viverricula indica, Burmese mustela (Melogale personata) and weasel badger. In 2008, the centre successfully bred pangolins, the first pangolin conservation centre in Vietnam to receive worldwide acclaim.
Turtle Conservation Center (TCC): The center currently cares for more than 600 tortoises and freshwater turtles. The center successfully bred 900 turtle species in semi-wild conditions, notably Mauremys annamensis and Yellow-fronted Closed-shelled turtles (Cuora galbinifrons).