Flora
Vietnam's rich forests. It is estimated that almost 80% of what is now Vietnam was originally covered by forests: dense tropical forests, temperate forests at high altitudes, forest clearings in the south-central region, pine forests in the high plateaus, mangrove forests with roots plunging into the water at river mouths... The first systematic inventories of Indochinese flora were drawn up by French botanists. The Flore forestière de Cochinchine by Louis Pierre, director of the Saigon botanical garden, was published under the auspices of the Ministry of Marine and Colonies in 1880. This was followed by the monumental Flore générale de l'Indochine, a collective work directed by H. Lecomte, subsidized by the colonial government and published between 1907 and 1951. These works reveal the abundance and variety of species, estimated at between 11,000 and 12,000, most of which are unknown in Europe. Endemic species account for a quarter to a third of the total. The organization of the vegetation depends on the nature of the terrain and altitude, where a "Sino-Himalayan temperate" flora flourishes. Among the most precious species are lim (Erythrophleum fordii) or ironwood, which is rot-proof and used in the construction of palaces and pagodas; gu (Sindora Cochinchinensis), which is very hard and heavy, used in boating to make ribs; huynh (Tarrietia Cochinchinensis), whose wood is red, fibrous, weather-resistant and insect-resistant; dang huong (Pterocarpus), sometimes assimilated to "rosewood", red and veined, used in cabinet-making, weather-resistant and not attacked by insects. The original richness of Vietnam's forests is reflected in the accounts of explorers. In the 18thcentury , Pierre Poivre, missionary, botanist and "discoverer" of spices, who lived in Faifo (Hôi An), noted that cinnamon from Cochinchina sold for three to four times more than that from Ceylon, sold by the Dutch. In his account Autour du Tonkin, Henri d'Orléans (1867-1901) focuses on the trade in cardamom(Elettaria cardamomum) and benzoin, a resin obtained by cutting the trunk of a large tree(Styrax tonkinensis), and used in pharmacopoeia and perfumery.
In earlier times, Cristoforo Borri (1583-1632), a Milanese Jesuit and one of the first missionaries to penetrate Cochinchina, had been interested in the trade in eaglewood, also known as calambac, aloe wood or agarwood (in Vietnamese, Trâm huong, Trâm gio or Ky nam). This is a fragrant resin produced by a tree(Aquilaria) as a result of injury or mold. Trees can reach 40 m in height and between 1.5 and 2.5 m in diameter. They generally grow in mountainous regions, in Vietnam, but also in Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos and Papua New Guinea. However, not all Aquilaria produce resin, and it is impossible to judge from the outside whether a tree is infected or not. Felling the tree is therefore often the only way of knowing whether it contains the precious resin. In Vietnam, ancient texts mention the use of eaglewood in connection with itinerant Buddhist monks. It is also known to have played an important role in the economy of the Champa kingdoms, where the products of the mountainous regions fed the trade of the maritime trading posts. Today, eaglewood, used to make incense, perfumes and cosmetics, is as much in demand as ever, especially in Asia and the Gulf States. It is used to make the most precious of essential oils, which fetch up to ten times the price of sandalwood oil. The commercial value of sandalwood has led to the species becoming extremely rare due to uncontrolled logging, and to its being listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Yet trafficking is in full swing, and in the highlands of Vietnam, resin hunters face the perils of the forest and the deadly ambushes of their competitors in search of the tree that will make them rich.
Threats to the country's forests. The story of eagle wood is emblematic of the threats hanging over Vietnam's forests... or what's left of them. Today, Vietnam is one of the least forested countries in Southeast Asia. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), out of 12.9 million hectares officially classified as forest, only 85,000 ha are covered by virgin primary forest, i.e. forest that has never been damaged by human activity - just 1% of the national surface area. Around 1943, forests still covered almost 43% of the country's surface area. From 1945 to 1975, Vietnam experienced a period of uninterrupted war that caused widespread destruction. The devastating effects of American bombing on vegetation are still evident. Millions of hectares of forest, particularly in the south, were washed away by carpet-bombing, the spraying of 72 million liters of defoliants on almost half the total forest area, the stripping of the soil by bulldozers and the use of napalm. The post-war period brought no respite for forest cover, which began to shrink rapidly as a result of population growth, urbanization and migration. There was also a problem of historical representation. The Viêt, people of the deltaic plains and irrigated rice-growing, have historically considered the forest as a hostile space that had to be cleared, a vision that is at odds with that of the mountain ethnic groups, who maintain a close relationship with the forest, in which spiritual aspects play a fundamental role. Since the end of the 1980s and the opening up of the economy, forest areas have been identified as pioneer zones for the expansion of cash crops (in particular, coffee growing in the highlands), to the detriment of the original forest and biological diversity. According to the latest data from Global Forest Watch, from 2001 to 2018, Vietnam lost a further 2.64 million hectares of forest cover, a 16% decrease since 2000, a trend that is leading to an ecological impoverishment that seems unstoppable. The remainder of Vietnam's forest cover is now concentrated in the highlands (the five provinces of Tây Nguyên alone officially account for a quarter of the country's forest area), in a few high-altitude areas and in national parks, where it is supposed to be protected - a situation that scares neither poachers nor loggers. Officially, the Vietnamese authorities have become aware of the social and environmental issues surrounding the forest. The Vietnamese government is pursuing a reforestation policy which, while improving forest cover statistics, remains unconvincing: choice of inappropriate species, monoculture tree planting, insufficient cover... On a positive note, new plant species are regularly discovered in Vietnam. Such is the case of Xanthocyparis vietnamensis (the Vietnamese golden cypress); revealed in October 1999, it is the only new conifer species discovered in the world since 1948. Also, two species of Camellia, Camellia vuquangensis and Camellia hatinhensis, discovered in 2016 in a protected area of Ha Tinh province.
Wildlife
As with the flora, the diversity of ecosystems also favours the richness of the fauna. There are thousands of species: 275 mammals, 180 reptiles, 826 birds, 80 amphibians, around 5,000 fish and 12,000 insects. But the reduction in forest area and illegal hunting have already led to the disappearance of many mammal species, and the list of animals in danger of extinction continues to grow.
Endangered species. The tiger once thrived in Vietnam's forests, which provided the large carnivore with vast hunting grounds. Colonial archives tell us that at the end of the 19th century, the tiger sowed terror. Several hundred victims perished each year, devoured by the terrible beast: 1.10 m tall and up to 3 m from mouth to tail. For fear of attracting the attention of the tiger - reputed to have acute hearing - the Vietnamese still speak of it only in hushed tones and with deference. They refrain from uttering his name, instead referring to him allusively as Ong Kop. In Vietnamese, Ong, which means Sir, Master, is reserved for high personalities worthy of the greatest respect, and Kop is an onomatopoeia reminiscent of a tiger's snapping. The colonial authorities took measures to "gradually eliminate the carnivorous race". They granted bounties and generalized trapping. Many animals were captured alive, and some made the long journey to Paris, where they found themselves in the cages of the Jardin des Plantes. Caught very young, tigers were easily tamed, and in 1875, a municipal by-law forbade Saigonese to walk around town with a tiger "even if on a leash". Today, fewer than five tigers remain in Vietnam's forests. The species is "functionally extinct", meaning that its population has dwindled to the point where it is no longer able to reproduce or fulfill its role in the ecosystem. Vietnam is also said to have several hundred tigers held in captivity in more or less clandestine breeding farms, where they reproduce only to be slaughtered in order to sustain an illegal but highly lucrative trade in skins, bones and claws used for their alleged curative virtues. A sad fate for Ong kop!
Like the tiger, the elephant plays an eminent role in Vietnamese tradition. Stone statues abound, and domesticated elephants were used as parade animals in official ceremonies, but also as war animals. Placed under the authority of a high-ranking mandarin, they were responsible for breaching enemy lines. At the beginning of the 20th century, there were some 5,000 elephants in the country. In 1980, their numbers were estimated at between 1,500 and 2,000. Today, fewer than a hundred remain in Vietnam's forests, in the highlands and Nghe An province. The wild elephant population, like that of the tiger, is now considered "functionally extinct", a victim of war, herbicide spraying, deforestation, the ivory trade (now illegal)... There are less than 200 domesticated elephants (down from 600 in 1980), located in Dak Lak province, where minority ethnic groups have a long tradition of capture and training.
Another pachyderm is the rhinoceros(Rhinoceros sondaicus annamiticus). The body of the last specimen, a female between 15 and 25 years old, was discovered in Cat Tien National Park in April 2010. The animal had been shot by a poacher who had removed the horn, which is said to have aphrodisiac properties in traditional Sino-Vietnamese medicine. The rhinoceros has now totally disappeared.
Discovery of new species. After the graveyard of extinct or endangered species, a little optimism with the revelation of new species recently discovered. Indeed, Vietnam is one of the few places on the planet where plant and animal species are still being discovered. A case in point is the saola(Pseudoryx nghetinhensis), a cousin of the bovine, but similar in appearance to the antelope, discovered in 1992 in Ha Tinh province, on the border between Vietnam and Laos. The species remains mysterious and invisible. At most, only 200 individuals are known to exist. Since the discovery of the saola, Vietnam and Laos have created a network of protected areas in the animal's core habitat, and are working to combat poaching. Two new deer species have also been discovered in the region, the Giant Muntjac(Muntiacus vuquangensis) in 1994 and the Truong Son Muntjac(Muntiacus truongsonensis) in 1997, not forgetting other less spectacular species that are just as important for ecosystems: the Vietnam crocodile-lizard(Shinisaurus crocodilurus vietnamensis) identified in 2003; a bat(Murina kontumensis) detected in the highlands; the tiger rabbit(Nesolagus timminsi) ; a venomous snake with bright red eyes(Trimeresurus rubeus), discovered in the forests near Hô Chi Minh-Ville; several bird species, including the black-capped actinodure(Actinodura sodangorum).. The identification of a new species is always good news, but also involves a race against time to ensure that it is protected. A number of collectors are prepared to pay a fortune for rare and endangered species, and many specimens have already disappeared or will disappear before they can be identified.
Animal trafficking. Vietnam is indeed a major link on the route of illegal wildlife trafficking, on a regional and global scale. In November 2016, the NGO Wildlife Justice Commission presented the results of a lengthy investigation revealing the role of the small village of Nhi Khe, located south of Hanoi, in a vast traffic in wildlife products. In Nhi Khe, the investigators infiltrated by the NGO discovered animal parts from 907 elephants, 579 rhinoceroses and 225 tigers, as well as animals mainly from Africa (pangolins, bears, turtles, etc.) destined for the Chinese market. The ivory arrives in Vietnam in the form of small tusks, which are worked by Vietnamese craftsmen. The resulting objects are then smuggled to China. Rhinoceros horn, which is believed to have therapeutic properties in traditional medicine, is also highly sought-after. On the black market, a kilo of rhinoceros horn fetches up to 50,000 euros - more than gold and seven times more than ivory! According to the World Wildlife Fund, "the explosion in demand in Vietnam is the main reason for the boom in the rhino horn trade", and over the last eight years, more than 5,000 rhinos - a quarter of the world's population - have been killed in South Africa.
See wild animals in Vietnam
The surprising number of new species discovered in Vietnam since the early 1990s has attracted international attention and prompted the Vietnamese government to adopt measures to protect and conserve biodiversity. The system of national parks and protected areas developed since the 1960s has been strengthened and extended. It now includes certain coastal and marine ecosystems. Discovering the national parks is an excellent opportunity to get close to the wealth of wildlife. However, reception facilities and the organization of visits remain rudimentary. Here we list some of the most accessible and interesting parks for wildlife observation. In the north, 120 km southwest of Hanoi in Ninh Binh province, Cuc Phuong National Park is home to a primary forest and an Endangered Primate Rescue Center ( https://www.eprc.asia/). Cat Ba National Park, the largest of the Along Bay islands, is home to the critically endangered langur monkey(Trachypithecus poliocephalus). It is not a national park, but the Tam Dao bear rescue center (www.animalsasia.org), 65 km north of Hanoi, allows visitors to get close to bears rescued from breeding farms where they were held captive in deplorable conditions to enable the extraction of bile, used for its alleged medicinal virtues. The center provides a sanctuary and retreat for the plantigrades, now too weak to be released back into the wild. Near Da Nang, the Son Tra Nature Reserve, as part of programs organized by the NGO GreenViet (en.greenviet.org), offers the opportunity to observe a magnificent and little-known monkey in critical danger of extinction, the Red-legged Douc(Pygathrix nemaeus). In the highlands, Yok Don National Park (Dak Lak province) has introduced a new tourism model that replaces elephant rides, which are very traumatic for the pachyderm, with observation. Further south, Cat Tien National Park is one of the largest in the country, and one of the best organized in terms of accommodation and activities. The Con Dao Archipelago National Park organizes ecotourism tours to observe sea turtle egg-laying.
