Cuc Phuong National Park
Encyclopedia
Cuc Phuong National Park is located in Ninh Binh Province
, in Vietnam
's Red River Delta
. Cuc Phuong was Vietnam's first national park
and is the country's largest nature reserve. The park is one of the most important sites for biodiversity
in Vietnam.
. Human habitation in Cuc Phuong dates back long before the park’s creation, 7,000-12,000 years ago. Artifacts from that time have been found in numerous caves within the park, including human graves, stone axes, pointed bone spears, oyster shell knives, and tools for grinding. In 1789 the Quen Voi section of the park was the site of a major battle in the civil war between Nguyen Hue
and Thanh Long. More recently, conflicts have emerged between the government and 2,500 Muong
ethnic minority tribesmen who live, farm, and hunt in the park. In 1987, 500 Muong were relocated outside of the park because of issues over poaching and land use.
mountains and lush valleys. Elevation varies from 150 meters (500 feet) to 656 m (2,152 feet) at the summit of May Bac Mountain, or Silver Cloud Mountain. The limestone
mountains house numerous caves, many of which are accessible for exploration.
The average temperature in Cuc Phuong is 21 Celsius
(70 Fahrenheit
), with a mean winter temperature of 9C (48F). High temperatures can reach above 30C (85 F) and lows are just above zero (32 F). At the low elevations in the valley the temperature is hot and humid while at higher elevations the temperature drops and frostbite
is a threat. On average it rains more than 200 days a year and the average annual rainfall is 2,100mm (7 feet). The dry season is November to February, the driest months being December and January.
and fauna
. Inhabitants of the park include 97 species of mammal
s, most notable endangered langurs; 300 species of bird
s; 36 reptilian species; 17 species of amphibian
s; 11 species of fish
; 2,000 species of vascular plant
s, and thousands of species of insect
s. A number of species in the park are listed on Vietnam Red Book of endangered species.
Primates in the park include macaque
s, gibbon
, Francois' Leaf Monkey and slow loris
.
Other mammals including bat
s, porcupine
, flying squirrel
, small striped squirrel, belly-banded squirrel, and the rare Black Giant Squirrel
. In the past the park was home to Asiatic Black Bears, wild dogs
, and tiger
, but over hunting and lack of prey have most led to the loss of these species. Leopard
, clouded leopard
and jungle cat
may still be present in the park.
Bird species include Bar-backed Partridge
, Scaly-breasted Partridge
, Silver Pheasant
, Red Junglefowl
, Grey Peacock Pheasant, Laughing Thrushes, Red-vented Barbet
, Green-eared Barbet
, Scimitar-billed Babblers, Brown Hawk Owl
, Scarlet Minivet
, Racket-tailed Drongos, Racket-tailed Treepie, White-winged Blue Magpie. Migrant species include thrush
es, flycatcher
s, tit
s, finch
es, pipit
s amongst others. Hornbill
s can also be spotted in the forest.
An endemic
sub-species of sub-terranic cave fish is also located in the park.
Flora in the park includes multi-layered canopy; trees up to 70m in height; flowers, including, orchids; fern
s with amazingly tall leaves; and an abundance of liane
and cauliflory
. The park also contains plants used for such practicalities as spices and medicines as well as edible fruit
s, nuts
, and shoots.
, and gibbon
species, include the critically endangered Delacour's Langur
, Golden-headed Langur, Tonkin Snub-nosed Langur
and Black Crested Gibbon. The primate center was established in 1993 with the help of the Frankfurt Zoological Society
and has grown to 100 animals in 30 cages, 4 houses, two semi-wild enclosures.
, linsangs, small cats, weasels, otters and badgers) and pangolins
in Vietnam. The program was established in 1995 as a species specific program for the endangered Owston's civet
and has since expanded to include all species of small carnivore. In 2006 the program also began focused conservation activities for Vietnam's two species of pangolin, the Chinese pangolin
and the Sunda pangolin. All of these species are threatened by the illegal wildlife trade which is having a devastating impact on the wild populations of these species throughout South East Asia.
The CPCP aims to conserve these threatened species of mammal through the rescue and rehabilitation of trade confiscated wildlife, education and awareness and field research. The CPCP also runs the region's only conservation breeding program for the Owston's civet, a species that is endemic to Indochina, and whose main range is within Vietnam.
The CPCP's main centre is within Cuc Phuong National Park, but operates a nationwide rescue program and has active field sites in Central and Southern Vietnam.
Other nearby tourist destinations located in Ninh Binh Province include Phat Diem Church
, Hoa Lu Ancient Capital
, Tam Coc - Bich Dong, Trang An, and Bai Dinh Pagoda.
Ninh Bình Province
-Festivals:* Thai Vi festival * Truong Yen Festival* Yen Cu Festival* Non Khe Festival-Transportation:...
, in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
's Red River Delta
Red River Delta
The Red River Delta is the flat plain formed by the Red River and its distributaries joining in the Thai Binh River in northern Vietnam. The delta measuring some 15,000 square km is well protected by a network of dikes. It is an agriculturally rich area and densely populated...
. Cuc Phuong was Vietnam's first national park
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
and is the country's largest nature reserve. The park is one of the most important sites for biodiversity
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet. Biodiversity is a measure of the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity is in part a function of climate. In terrestrial habitats, tropical regions are typically rich whereas polar regions...
in Vietnam.
History
In 1960 Cuc Phuong was made into a forest reserve and in 1962 Cuc Phuong National Park was consecrated by President Ho Chi MinhHo Chi Minh
Hồ Chí Minh , born Nguyễn Sinh Cung and also known as Nguyễn Ái Quốc, was a Vietnamese Marxist-Leninist revolutionary leader who was prime minister and president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam...
. Human habitation in Cuc Phuong dates back long before the park’s creation, 7,000-12,000 years ago. Artifacts from that time have been found in numerous caves within the park, including human graves, stone axes, pointed bone spears, oyster shell knives, and tools for grinding. In 1789 the Quen Voi section of the park was the site of a major battle in the civil war between Nguyen Hue
Nguyen Hue
Nguyễn Huệ, also known as Emperor Quang Trung , born in Bình Định in 1753, died in Phú Xuân on 16 September 1792, was the second emperor of the Tây Sơn Dynasty of Vietnam, reigning from 1788 until 1792...
and Thanh Long. More recently, conflicts have emerged between the government and 2,500 Muong
Muong
Muong may refer to:*Muong people, third largest of Vietnam’s 53 minority groups**Muong language, spoken by the Mường people of Vietnam*No Muong, king of the southern Laotian Kingdom of Champasak in 1811...
ethnic minority tribesmen who live, farm, and hunt in the park. In 1987, 500 Muong were relocated outside of the park because of issues over poaching and land use.
Landscape and climate
Cuc Phuong is situated in the foothills of the northern Annamite Mountains. The park consists of verdant karstKARST
Kilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
mountains and lush valleys. Elevation varies from 150 meters (500 feet) to 656 m (2,152 feet) at the summit of May Bac Mountain, or Silver Cloud Mountain. The limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
mountains house numerous caves, many of which are accessible for exploration.
The average temperature in Cuc Phuong is 21 Celsius
Celsius
Celsius is a scale and unit of measurement for temperature. It is named after the Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius , who developed a similar temperature scale two years before his death...
(70 Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit is the temperature scale proposed in 1724 by, and named after, the German physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit . Within this scale, the freezing of water into ice is defined at 32 degrees, while the boiling point of water is defined to be 212 degrees...
), with a mean winter temperature of 9C (48F). High temperatures can reach above 30C (85 F) and lows are just above zero (32 F). At the low elevations in the valley the temperature is hot and humid while at higher elevations the temperature drops and frostbite
Frostbite
Frostbite is the medical condition where localized damage is caused to skin and other tissues due to extreme cold. Frostbite is most likely to happen in body parts farthest from the heart and those with large exposed areas...
is a threat. On average it rains more than 200 days a year and the average annual rainfall is 2,100mm (7 feet). The dry season is November to February, the driest months being December and January.
Flora and fauna
Cuc Phuong is home to an amazing diversity of floraFlora
Flora is the plant life occurring in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring or indigenous—native plant life. The corresponding term for animals is fauna.-Etymology:...
and fauna
Fauna
Fauna or faunæ is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess shale fauna"...
. Inhabitants of the park include 97 species of mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
s, most notable endangered langurs; 300 species of bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s; 36 reptilian species; 17 species of amphibian
Amphibian
Amphibians , are a class of vertebrate animals including animals such as toads, frogs, caecilians, and salamanders. They are characterized as non-amniote ectothermic tetrapods...
s; 11 species of fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
; 2,000 species of vascular plant
Vascular plant
Vascular plants are those plants that have lignified tissues for conducting water, minerals, and photosynthetic products through the plant. Vascular plants include the clubmosses, Equisetum, ferns, gymnosperms and angiosperms...
s, and thousands of species of insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s. A number of species in the park are listed on Vietnam Red Book of endangered species.
Primates in the park include macaque
Macaque
The macaques constitute a genus of Old World monkeys of the subfamily Cercopithecinae. - Description :Aside from humans , the macaques are the most widespread primate genus, ranging from Japan to Afghanistan and, in the case of the barbary macaque, to North Africa...
s, gibbon
Gibbon
Gibbons are apes in the family Hylobatidae . The family is divided into four genera based on their diploid chromosome number: Hylobates , Hoolock , Nomascus , and Symphalangus . The extinct Bunopithecus sericus is a gibbon or gibbon-like ape which, until recently, was thought to be closely related...
, Francois' Leaf Monkey and slow loris
Slow loris
Slow lorises are a group of five species of strepsirrhine primates which make up the genus Nycticebus. Found in South and Southeast Asia, they range from Northeast India in the west to the Philippines in the east, and from the Yunnan province in China in the north to the island of Java in the south...
.
Other mammals including bat
Bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...
s, porcupine
Porcupine
Porcupines are rodents with a coat of sharp spines, or quills, that defend or camouflage them from predators. They are indigenous to the Americas, southern Asia, and Africa. Porcupines are the third largest of the rodents, behind the capybara and the beaver. Most porcupines are about long, with...
, flying squirrel
Flying squirrel
Flying squirrels, scientifically known as Pteromyini or Petauristini, are a tribe of 44 species of squirrels .- Description :...
, small striped squirrel, belly-banded squirrel, and the rare Black Giant Squirrel
Black Giant Squirrel
The black giant squirrel is a large tree squirrel in the genus Ratufa native to the Indomalayan zootope...
. In the past the park was home to Asiatic Black Bears, wild dogs
Dhole
The dhole is a species of canid native to South and Southeast Asia. It is the only extant member of the genus Cuon, which differs from Canis by the reduced number of molars and greater number of teats...
, and tiger
Tiger
The tiger is the largest cat species, reaching a total body length of up to and weighing up to . Their most recognizable feature is a pattern of dark vertical stripes on reddish-orange fur with lighter underparts...
, but over hunting and lack of prey have most led to the loss of these species. Leopard
Leopard
The leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...
, clouded leopard
Clouded Leopard
The clouded leopard is a felid found from the Himalayan foothills through mainland Southeast Asia into China, and has been classified as vulnerable in 2008 by IUCN...
and jungle cat
Jungle Cat
The jungle cat is a medium-sized cat and considered the largest remaining species of the wild cat genus Felis. The species is also called the swamp lynx but is not closely related to the lynxes....
may still be present in the park.
Bird species include Bar-backed Partridge
Bar-backed Partridge
The Bar-backed Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found in Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam....
, Scaly-breasted Partridge
Scaly-breasted Partridge
The Green-legged Partridge , also known as the Scaly-breasted Partridge or Green-legged Hill-partridge, is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is found in forests in Indochina, ranging slightly into southernmost China...
, Silver Pheasant
Silver Pheasant
The Silver Pheasant is a species of pheasant found in forests, mainly in mountains, of mainland Southeast Asia, and eastern and southern China, with introduced populations in Hawaii and various locations in the US mainland. The male is black and white, while the female is mainly brown...
, Red Junglefowl
Red Junglefowl
The Red Junglefowl is a tropical member of the Pheasant family. They are thought to be ancestors of the domestic chicken with some hybridisation with the Grey Junglefowl...
, Grey Peacock Pheasant, Laughing Thrushes, Red-vented Barbet
Red-vented Barbet
The Red-vented Barbet is a species of bird in the Ramphastidae family.It is found in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam....
, Green-eared Barbet
Green-eared Barbet
The Green-eared Barbet, Megalaima faiostricta, is an Asian barbet. Barbets are a group of near passerine birds with a worldwide tropical distribution. They get their name from the bristles which fringe their heavy bills....
, Scimitar-billed Babblers, Brown Hawk Owl
Brown Hawk Owl
The Brown Hawk-Owl is an owl which is a resident breeder in south Asia from India and Sri Lanka east to western Indonesia and south China....
, Scarlet Minivet
Scarlet Minivet
The Scarlet Minivet, Pericrocotus flammeus is a small passerine bird. This minivet is found in tropical southern Asia from the Indian subcontinent east to southern China, Indonesia, and the Philippines. They are common resident breeding birds in forests and other well-wooded habitats including...
, Racket-tailed Drongos, Racket-tailed Treepie, White-winged Blue Magpie. Migrant species include thrush
Thrush (bird)
The thrushes, family Turdidae, are a group of passerine birds that occur worldwide.-Characteristics:Thrushes are plump, soft-plumaged, small to medium-sized birds, inhabiting wooded areas, and often feed on the ground or eat small fruit. The smallest thrush may be the Forest Rock-thrush, at and...
es, flycatcher
Flycatcher
There are various families of bird termed flycatchers:* The Old World flycatchers, Muscicapidae* The Tyrant flycatchers, Tyrannidae* The Monarch flycatchers, Dicruridae* The Silky-flycatchers, Ptilogonatidae* The Fairy flycatchers, Stenostiridae...
s, tit
Titmouse
The tits, chickadees, and titmice constitute Paridae, a large family of small passerine birds which occur in the northern hemisphere and Africa...
s, finch
Finch
The true finches are passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. They are predominantly seed-eating songbirds. Most are native to the Northern Hemisphere, but one subfamily is endemic to the Neotropics, one to the Hawaiian Islands, and one subfamily – monotypic at genus level – is found...
es, pipit
Pipit
The pipits are a cosmopolitan genus, Anthus, of small passerine birds with medium to long tails. Along with the wagtails and longclaws, the pipits make up the family Motacillidae...
s amongst others. Hornbill
Hornbill
Hornbills are a family of bird found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly-colored and sometimes has a casque on the upper mandible. Both the common English and the scientific name of the family...
s can also be spotted in the forest.
An endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
sub-species of sub-terranic cave fish is also located in the park.
Flora in the park includes multi-layered canopy; trees up to 70m in height; flowers, including, orchids; fern
Fern
A fern is any one of a group of about 12,000 species of plants belonging to the botanical group known as Pteridophyta. Unlike mosses, they have xylem and phloem . They have stems, leaves, and roots like other vascular plants...
s with amazingly tall leaves; and an abundance of liane
Liane
Liane is a female given name and may refer to one of the following;* Liane Bahler, German professional racing cyclist;* Liane Balaban, Canadian actress;* Liane Berkowitz, member of the German resistance movement during World War II;...
and cauliflory
Cauliflory
Cauliflory is a botanical term referring to plants which flower and fruit from their main stems or woody trunks rather than from new growth and shoots. This can allow trees to be pollinated or have their seeds dispersed by animals which cannot climb or fly...
. The park also contains plants used for such practicalities as spices and medicines as well as edible fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
s, nuts
Nut (fruit)
A nut is a hard-shelled fruit of some plants having an indehiscent seed. While a wide variety of dried seeds and fruits are called nuts in English, only a certain number of them are considered by biologists to be true nuts...
, and shoots.
Conservation Programs
There are three conservation programs located in the Cuc Phuong National park:Endangered Primate Rescue Center
The primate center houses specimens of langurs, lorisLoris
Loris is the common name for the strepsirrhine primates of the subfamily Lorisinae in family Lorisidae. Loris is one genus in this subfamily and includes the slender lorises, while Nycticebus is the genus for the slow lorises....
, and gibbon
Gibbon
Gibbons are apes in the family Hylobatidae . The family is divided into four genera based on their diploid chromosome number: Hylobates , Hoolock , Nomascus , and Symphalangus . The extinct Bunopithecus sericus is a gibbon or gibbon-like ape which, until recently, was thought to be closely related...
species, include the critically endangered Delacour's Langur
Delacour's Langur
The Delacour's langur, or Delacour's lutung, is a critically endangered species of lutung endemic to Vietnam. It is considered to be one of the world's most endangered primate species...
, Golden-headed Langur, Tonkin Snub-nosed Langur
Tonkin Snub-nosed Langur
The Tonkin snub-nosed monkey or Dollman's snub-nosed monkey is a species of colobine endemic to northwestern Vietnam....
and Black Crested Gibbon. The primate center was established in 1993 with the help of the Frankfurt Zoological Society
Frankfurt Zoological Society
The Frankfurt Zoological Society is an independent, non-profit conservation organisation based in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. The society is funded through membership fees, donations, bequests, grants and earnings from its endowment fund.-History:...
and has grown to 100 animals in 30 cages, 4 houses, two semi-wild enclosures.
Carnivore and Pangolin Conservation Program
The Carnivore and Pangolin Conservation Program (CPCP) is dedicated to the conservation of small carnivores (civetsCIVETS
The CIVETS is an acronym for favored emerging markets coined in late 2009 by Robert Ward, Global Forecasting Director for the Economist Intelligence Unit . The term has also been used by HSBC's chief executive Michael Geoghegan...
, linsangs, small cats, weasels, otters and badgers) and pangolins
Pangolin
A pangolin , also scaly anteater or Trenggiling, is a mammal of the order Pholidota. There is only one extant family and one genus of pangolins, comprising eight species. There are also a number of extinct taxa. Pangolins have large keratin scales covering their skin and are the only mammals with...
in Vietnam. The program was established in 1995 as a species specific program for the endangered Owston's civet
Owston's Palm Civet
Owston's palm civet is a civet that lives in the forests and wooded lowland river basins of northern Vietnam, northern Laos and southern China....
and has since expanded to include all species of small carnivore. In 2006 the program also began focused conservation activities for Vietnam's two species of pangolin, the Chinese pangolin
Chinese Pangolin
The Chinese Pangolin is a pangolin that is found in north India, Nepal, Bhutan, possibly Bangladesh, across Myanmar to northern Indochina, through most of Taiwan and southern China, including the islands of Hainan.-Conservation:...
and the Sunda pangolin. All of these species are threatened by the illegal wildlife trade which is having a devastating impact on the wild populations of these species throughout South East Asia.
The CPCP aims to conserve these threatened species of mammal through the rescue and rehabilitation of trade confiscated wildlife, education and awareness and field research. The CPCP also runs the region's only conservation breeding program for the Owston's civet, a species that is endemic to Indochina, and whose main range is within Vietnam.
The CPCP's main centre is within Cuc Phuong National Park, but operates a nationwide rescue program and has active field sites in Central and Southern Vietnam.
Turtle Conservation Center
The turtle conservation center was established in 1998 and is home to some of the most endangered turtles in Vietnam, including the Vietnamese Pond Turtle which is nearly extinct in the wild.Tourism
Cuc Phuong National Park is one of the most popular nature tourist destinations in Vietnam. Tens of thousands of Vietnamese and a steady stream of foreign tourists visit the park each year. Lodging and restaurant facilities are available at the park’s entrance and within the park. A paved road cuts into the park and a number of paths for hiking are maintained. Park rangers patrol Cuc Phuong and provide guided tours for a fee.Other nearby tourist destinations located in Ninh Binh Province include Phat Diem Church
Phat Diem Church
Phat Diem Cathedral is located in Kim Son district of Ninh Binh Province. This is one of the most famous churches in Vietnam. Phat Diem church architecture is a interference between Vietnam and Europe. Though a church, it was built in traditional Vietnamese temple architecture...
, Hoa Lu Ancient Capital
Hoa Lu Ancient Capital
Hoa Lu Ancient Capital was the economic, political and cultural center of Dai Co Viet . It is also the native land of 3 royal dynasties: the Dinh, Early Le and Ly. The ancient capital covered an area of , including both the Inner and Outer Citadels. It was surrounded by rock mountain ranges...
, Tam Coc - Bich Dong, Trang An, and Bai Dinh Pagoda.