The Tram Chim National Park in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Dong Thap has been recognised as the world's 2,000th Ramsar site, which lists wetlands of international importance.

Rangers on patrol in Tram Chim National Park in Dong Thap Province. — VNA/VNS Photo Nguyen Van Tri

Nguyen Duc Tu, Water and Wetlands Coordinator of the International Union for Conservation of Nature in Viet Nam, said the recognition was conveyed to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment by Ananda Tiega, general secretary of the Ramsar Convention.

The Tram Chim National Park has become the country's fourth Ramsar site after the Xuan Thuy National Wetland Reserve in the northern province of Nam Dinh, which was recognised in 1988; the Bau Sau (Crocodile Lake) Wetlands and Seasonal Floodplains in Cat Tien National Park in southern Dong Nai Province, in 2005; and the Ba Be National Park in northern Bac Kan Province, in 2011.

The 7,588-ha park is home to 130 species of plants, 100 species of vertebrate animals, 40 species of fish and 147 species of water birds.

The most distinguished resident bird is the Sarus Crane (Grus antigone), which has been recognised as a threatened species and mentioned in the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red Book.

The Ramsar Convention is an international treaty signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971, and has continued to provide a framework for wetland preservation since then.

The convention embodies the commitment of its member countries to maintain the ecological character of their Wetlands of International Importance and to plan for sustainable use of all the wetlands in their territories.