\u201cWe did not see the monkeys this year,\u201d says Lam Van Hoang, director of Fauna & Flora\u2019s Vietnam office, which led the survey. That doesn\u2019t mean they\u2019ve gone locally extinct, or extirpated, he says, noting it\u2019s possible that a population of 20 individuals or fewer could remain undetected in the forest. \u201cWe need to apply more conservation technology, maybe using thermal drones or more human efforts, in order to have more accurate data of the population.\u201d<\/p>\n
Agricultural expansion, widespread deforestation, and hunting for meat and body parts for use in traditional medicine has driven the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey to the brink of extinction. The pressure of cardamom farming in and around Quan Ba Forest is particularly intense. There\u2019s scant data on the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey elsewhere in Vietnam, and the species isn\u2019t part of any captive-breeding program or known to be held in zoos.<\/p>\n The \u201cterrible news\u201d from Quan Ba was somewhat predictable given the intensity of these pressures on the tiny population, says Luu Tuong Bach, Tonkin snub-nosed monkey project manager at Conservation Impact, who was not involved in the recent survey.<\/p>\n \u201cIn my opinion, the biggest problem to this subpopulation is habitat loss by unsolvable extended cardamom cultivation, and this problem will affect not only [the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey] but also the wildlife in the area,\u201d Bach says.<\/p>\n Though the Fauna & Flora team still have hope that the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey somehow persists in Quan Ba, it\u2019s possible that the last remaining viable population now resides in Khau Ca. When discovered in 2002, estimates placed the Khau Ca population at around 50 individuals. Since then, that number has grown to more than 200, thanks to greater protection and community initiatives such as community-led monitoring and habitat protection, Hoang says, showing it can bounce back if given an opportunity.<\/p>\n Khau Ca is better protected, Bach says, as it\u2019s designated as a conservation area specifically for the protection of the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey. It doesn\u2019t face the same pressures as Quan Ba, but if the species is to cling on and have a chance of continued recovery, more efforts are needed.<\/p>\n \u201cWithout strong conservation attempts, especially from the local authorities, the population in Khau Ca will face high risks from illegal activities and pressure from local communities,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Hoang says protecting Quan Ba is also vitally important as, if the species persists, it could act as a \u201cbackup population.\u201d<\/p>\n Quan Ba Forest is currently classed a watershed protection area, but Fauna & Flora is working with the Vietnamese government to have it designated as a nature reserve and simultaneously expand a wildlife corridor in Khau Ca.<\/p>\n \u201cKeeping the forest habitat and maintaining that small population is very important for the species,\u201d Hoang says, adding they may look to reintroduce monkeys into Quan Ba, if it\u2019s secured, threats are reduced and the existing population still survives. \u201cI think in the future, the government [and] conservation actors like us need to turn to the next step of developing the backup population for the species.\u201d<\/p>\n Maheshwari, A., Canh, C. X., Tam, N. Q., Toan, N. V., Thien, H. T., & Ha, V. V. (2024). Decline of the Critically Endangered Tonkin snub-nosed monkey in Quan Ba forest, Vietnam. Oryx, 1-1. doi:10.1017\/S0030605324000875<\/p>\nUnder pressure<\/h2>\n
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