Tonkin snub-nosed monkey Photos: FFIThe primates face a brighter future thanks to the new protected areas in China and VietnamThe designation of two new protected areas in Vietnam and China has brought new hope for the survival of two of the world’s most endangered primates. Fauna & Flora International (FFI) has been instrumental in increating the reserves, which protect the most viable population of the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey and the only known population of the cao vit gibbon.
The cao vit gibbon is considered the world’s second most endangered primate and both species are in the top 25 most endangered primates. There are just 110 cao vit gibbons and around 200 Tonkin snub-nosed monkeys left in the world. Both species are listed as Critically Endangered in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.
One reserve, in Khau Ca forest, Ha Giang Province, northern Vietnam, contains 90 Tonkin snub-nosed monkeys (scientific name: Rhinopithecus avunculus). The new 2000 hectare nature reserve also supports a relatively pristine sub-tropical forest with a wide range of other wildlife like macaques, lorises, small carnivores and rare plants species.
“This new reserve protects the most viable Tonkin snub-nosed monkey population and so represents the species’ best chance for survival,“ said Paul Insua-Cao, FFI’s Vietnam Primate Programme Manager. “FFI is proud to have helped to establish the protected area and congratulates the provincial government and local communities on their new nature reserve.”
Cao vit gibbonThe other reserve, just across the border in China, more than quadruples the amount of protected forest for the cao vit gibbon (scientific name: Nomascus nasutus). The new 6530 ha Bangliang Nature Reserve, in Guangxi Province, is directly adjacent to Vietnam’s Cao Vit Gibbon Conservation Area, which FFI helped to establish in 2007.
These two protected areas together contain the world’s last cao vit gibbons.
“This increase in the amount of protected cao vit gibbon habitat is a huge success for FFI and for conservation in the region,“ said Luo Yang, FFI’s China programme manager. “FFI has been encouraging the local government to establish this new reserve ever since the species was discovered in China in 2006. The cao vit gibbon currently lives mainly on the Vietnamese side of the border but it now has the chance to safely extend its population into China. The future for the species now looks much brighter.”
The main threat to both the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey and the cao vit gibbon is habitat loss. They live in rainforests with unique and fragile limestone mountain ecosystems, which are suffering from the collection of firewood, livestock grazing, agricultural encroachment, all of which stem from poverty.
FFI engages with local communities to reduce the threats to the two primates. For
example, simple and cost-effective measures such as providing villagers with fuel-efficient stoves are helping to relieve pressure on the cao vit gibbon’s habitat. In addition, FFI has established community groups to patrol and protect the forest.
The cao vit gibbon is considered the world’s second most endangered primate and both species are in the top 25 most endangered primates. There are just 110 cao vit gibbons and around 200 Tonkin snub-nosed monkeys left in the world. Both species are listed as Critically Endangered in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.
One reserve, in Khau Ca forest, Ha Giang Province, northern Vietnam, contains 90 Tonkin snub-nosed monkeys (scientific name: Rhinopithecus avunculus). The new 2000 hectare nature reserve also supports a relatively pristine sub-tropical forest with a wide range of other wildlife like macaques, lorises, small carnivores and rare plants species.
“This new reserve protects the most viable Tonkin snub-nosed monkey population and so represents the species’ best chance for survival,“ said Paul Insua-Cao, FFI’s Vietnam Primate Programme Manager. “FFI is proud to have helped to establish the protected area and congratulates the provincial government and local communities on their new nature reserve.”
Cao vit gibbonThe other reserve, just across the border in China, more than quadruples the amount of protected forest for the cao vit gibbon (scientific name: Nomascus nasutus). The new 6530 ha Bangliang Nature Reserve, in Guangxi Province, is directly adjacent to Vietnam’s Cao Vit Gibbon Conservation Area, which FFI helped to establish in 2007. These two protected areas together contain the world’s last cao vit gibbons.
“This increase in the amount of protected cao vit gibbon habitat is a huge success for FFI and for conservation in the region,“ said Luo Yang, FFI’s China programme manager. “FFI has been encouraging the local government to establish this new reserve ever since the species was discovered in China in 2006. The cao vit gibbon currently lives mainly on the Vietnamese side of the border but it now has the chance to safely extend its population into China. The future for the species now looks much brighter.”
The main threat to both the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey and the cao vit gibbon is habitat loss. They live in rainforests with unique and fragile limestone mountain ecosystems, which are suffering from the collection of firewood, livestock grazing, agricultural encroachment, all of which stem from poverty.
FFI engages with local communities to reduce the threats to the two primates. For
example, simple and cost-effective measures such as providing villagers with fuel-efficient stoves are helping to relieve pressure on the cao vit gibbon’s habitat. In addition, FFI has established community groups to patrol and protect the forest.
