People Resources and Conservation Foundation (PRCF)

This program arose from the recognition that bat communities within the karst complex are threatened by disturbance and inappropriate management, and thus require urgent conservation measures.

Goal of the project

The goal of the project is to establish a program for conservation of bat communities within the Ba Be / Kim Hy Karst Complex, priority sites for Vietnamese karst conservation.

Background

Vietnamese limestone karst ecosystems have major significance for biodiversity conservation as they are characterized by high concentrations of locally endemic flora and fauna. Within these ecosystems, caves are key sites for conservation as they provide crucial refuges for national bat populations and highly adapted and site-endemic biota (troglobites). This value is balanced by their inherent fragility and cultural popularity however, which renders Vietnamese cave communities extremely vulnerable to disturbance and exploitation.

The Ba Be National Park and Kim Hy Nature Reserve in northeast Vietnam are important sites for Vietnamese karst conservation. Together, they encompass a mosaic of karst protected areas, overlain by forests and agricultural lands, interspersed by extensive cave systems and numerous settlements. Surveys indicate that the complex supports roughly half of the Vietnamese bat fauna, including numerous red-listed and rarely recorded species.

The project arises from the recognition that bat communities within the karst complex are threatened by disturbance and inappropriate management, and thus require urgent conservation measures. It aims to respond to these threats by developing management plans for conservation of these sites and populations. The project complements development of these plans by helping to equip local authorities and researchers with the knowledge, materials, and skills to implement and review them as needed.

Objectives

The immediate objectives of the project are to:

• Conduct field surveys to identify a representative network of key sites for local bat populations and develop management plans for their conservation
• Establish sustainable capacity for bat conservation and community education among protected area staff
• Develop and disseminate awareness materials to generate community understanding and support for conservation of these sites and their bat populations
• Develop capacity for bat research within the Vietnamese scientific community
• Define guidelines for bat conservation management and disseminate these nationally

Project partners

• Ba Be National Park / Kim Hy Nature Reserve
• Bac Kan Provincial Peoples Committee
• Aberdeen University, United Kingdom
• Harrison Institute Centre for Biodiversity Research, United Kingdom
• Funding for this work was provided by Rufford Maurice Laing Foundation and the Darwin Initiative.

Funding for this work was provided by Rufford Maurice Laing Foundation and the Darwin Initiative.