A joint-patrol team of rangers and locals check a habitat of the gray-shanked douc langur -- an endangered primate -- in Núi Thành district of Quảng Nam Province. WWF-Vietnam and GreenViet agreed to work together in protecting the primates.
The project, with funding of VNĐ350 million (US$15,000) from WWF-Vietnam, will help provide knowledge and skills for a team of 10 volunteers from the village.
“We provided equipment, the Spatial Monitoring Reporting Tool (SMART) for conservation and protection of wildlife, data recording during jungle trips over a total of 150ha of protective zone,” he said.
A fire-free zone was set up on a 70ha log farm – a safe habitat for the gray-shanked douc langurs, he added.
Chairman of the provincial people’s committee, Lê Trí Thanh, said the province had been seeking a fund of $4.4 million to restore a 100ha area as a safe habitat for the gray-shanked douc langurs.According to a report by the provincial Forest Protection Division, a herd of about 50 gray-shanked douc langurs was found living in the area in 1997.
According to Dr. Hà Thăng Long, head of the Frankfurt Zoological Society, some 1,000 gray-shanked doucs have been found in forests of five provinces, including Quảng Nam, Quảng Ngãi, Bình Định, Kon Tum and Gia Lai.
The gray-shanked douc langur is listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature red list as one of the world’s 25 critically endangered primates.
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