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Sao La Photo – Source: https://dantri.com.vn/
Quang Nam Saola Conservation Area is located between latitude 17 o 56′ to 18 o 05′ North and from 105 o 51′ to 106 o 04′ East, to the Northwest of Quang Nam province. The conservation area includes two districts Dong Giang and Tay Giang and communes Bhallee, A Vuong, Ta Lu and Song Kon. Quang Nam Saola Conservation Area was established on July 13, 2012, through Decision No. 2265/QD-UBND with a total area of 15,486 hectares (ha). The conservation area includes 13,805.13 ha of strictly protected sub-area and 1,681.33 ha of ecological restoration sub-area.
Quang Nam Saola Nature Reserve still has dense forest with a coverage of 15,411 ha, equivalent to 99.41% of the total area. Rarely seen in Vietnam, this area still has rich and medium evergreen forests (79%).
The Quang Nam Saola Species and Habitat Conservation Area is recognized as a Global Key Biodiversity Area (BirdLife, 2018a), a highly diverse and high-risk area with significant conservation value. The area is part of a larger network of protected areas, and is adjacent to the Hue Saola Nature Reserve, with the two reserves covering a total area of approximately 32,000 ha. The reserve has rugged terrain, located on the northern slopes of a mountain range, part of the Annamite Mountains. The area has high annual rainfall. While previous surveys in the 1990s and early 2000s recorded several iconic large mammals such as the clouded leopard (Panthera pardus), Indochinese tiger (Panthera tigris), Southeast Asian gaur (Bos gaurus), sun bear (Helarctos malayanus), saola (Pseudoryx nghetinhensis), and large-antlered muntjac (muntjac muntiacus vuquangensis), recent surveys have failed to record these species. The species on which the reserve was founded, the endangered saola, has not been seen since camera trap photos were taken in 2013, and most biologists agree that the saola population will not persist in this landscape for long without intervention (Tilker et al. 2017).
Field surveys in the protected areas have confirmed the biodiversity importance of the area with 39 mammal species, 140 bird species, 194 reptile and amphibian species and a remarkable 575 plant species. Many of these species are internationally and nationally recognized as critically endangered (IUCN 2018; MoST 2007) and of high conservation importance.
Major species known to still occur in the area include the Annamite Striped Rabbit (Nesolagus timminsi), a little-known mammal that appears to still occur in moderate numbers. Important bird species include the Long-billed Babbler (Jrenouilleia danjoui), Annamese Partridge (Arborophila merlini), Hornbill (Anorrhinus austeni), and Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis).
Reptiles and amphibians include several turtle species, including critically endangered striped-necked turtles (Mauremys annamensis) and Bourret’s box turtles (Cuora bourreti) and several endangered and vulnerable species such as Platysternidae, Geoemydidae, Testudinidae and Trionychidae. A total of 45 plant species found in the Reserve are classified as nationally or internationally endangered.
Source: Department of Natural Resources and Environment