Nam Kading National Protected Area is a national protected area in Bolikhamsai Province in central

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...

. This rugged and largely inaccessible park, cut through by its namesake Nam Kading river, is home to a wide variety of plant and animal species, some endangered. Due to its ruggedness, the park lacks any significant human settlement.

Geography

Nam Kading National Protected Area is located about east of

Paksan Pakxan (''Paksan'' or ''Muang Pakxan'') ( Lao ປາກຊັນ) (french: Paksane) is a district and a town in Bolikhamsai Province, in western Laos. It is the capital of Pakxan District. The Nam Xan River joins the Mekong River at Pakxan on ...

near the village of Pakkading and covers parts of

, Pakkading, Borikhane and Khamkeut districts. The park's current area is about . Elevations range from about to the park's highest point, Phou Pa Paek at . The park's main river is the

Nam Kading Nam, Nam, or The Nam are shortened terms for: * Vietnam, which is also spelled ''Viet Nam'' * The Vietnam War Nam, The Nam or NAM may also refer to: Arts and media * Nam, a fictional character in anime series ''Dragon Ball'' * ''NAM'' (video ...

, flowing from south to north through the park. It is a significant tributary of the

Mekong The Mekong or Mekong River is a trans-boundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's List of rivers by length, twelfth longest river and List of longest rivers of Asia, the third longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , ...

. The

Nam Theun 2 Dam The Nam Theun 2 Hydropower Project, or simply NT2, is a hydroelectric dam on the Nam Theun River in Laos. Commercial operation of the plant began in April 2010. The scheme diverts water from the Nam Theun, a tributary of the Mekong River, to the X ...

, Laos's largest hydroelectric project, impounds the Nam Kading south of the park in Khammouane Province. The courses of three other rivers, the Nam Muan, Nam Sat and Nam Tek, divide the park into four mountain ranges.

History

Beginning in 1989, the area of the current park was surveyed by air and land. In 1993 Nam Kading National Biodiversity Conservation Area was decreed. Surveying began in 1995 to assess the impact on the park of two further proposed hydropower projects: Theun-Hinboun and Nam Theun 1.

Flora and fauna

The park's main forest types are evergreen forest dry mixed

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

forest. Native forests in Nam Kading cover 84% of the park area. A study for the proposed hydropower projects identified 256 plant species in the park. Included were two rare species: '' Lagerstroemia balansae'' and ''

Justicia gendarussa ''Justicia gendarussa'', commonly known as willow-leaved justicia ( mr, बाकस, , , ; sa, कसनः, , , ),Lapsulis in Creole Seychelles; is a small erect, branched shrub. It has been described as rare and endemic to India, though tho ...

''.

The native forests of Nam Kading host a large variety of animals and birds, including endangered species. At least 43 mammal species and 234 bird species have been catalogued. Animal species include both

northern Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ra ...

and

southern white-cheeked gibbon The southern white-cheeked gibbon (''Nomascus siki'') is a species of gibbon native to Vietnam and Laos. It is closely related to the northern white-cheeked gibbon (''Nomascus leucogenys'') and the yellow-cheeked gibbon (''Nomascus gabriellae'') ...

, sun bear, gaur,

tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus '' Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on u ...

elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae an ...

and

giant muntjac The giant muntjac (''Muntiacus vuquangensis''), sometimes referred to as the large-antlered muntjac, is a species of muntjac deer. It is the largest muntjac species and was discovered in 1994 in Vũ Quang, Hà Tĩnh Province of Vietnam and in cen ...

. Endangered bird species include great hornbill,

rufous-necked hornbill The rufous-necked hornbill (''Aceros nipalensis'') is a species of hornbill in Bhutan, northeastern India, especially in Arunachal Pradesh, Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It is locally extinct in Nepal due to hunting and significant loss ...

green peafowl The green peafowl or Indonesian peafowl (''Pavo muticus'') is a peafowl species native to the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. It has been listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2009 because the global population has been declining r ...

and

Vietnamese crested argus The Vietnamese crested argus (''Rheinardia ocellata'') is a large and spectacular peafowl-like species of bird in the pheasant family with dark-brown-spotted black and buff plumage, a heavy pink bill, brown irises and blue skin around the eyes. ...

. Other bird species include wire-tailed swallow, wreathed hornbill, river lapwing,

sooty babbler The sooty babbler (''Stachyris herberti'') is a species of bird in the family Timaliidae. It is found in Laos and Vietnam. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest. It is threatened by habitat loss. References *Colla ...

and

rufous-throated fulvetta The rufous-throated fulvetta (''Schoeniparus rufogularis'') is a species of bird in the family Pellorneidae. It is found in southeastern Asia from the Himalayas through Indochina to southwestern Cambodia. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tr ...

. One species is unique in Laos to Nam Kading: the

pale-capped pigeon The pale-capped pigeon (''Columba punicea''), also known as the purple wood pigeon, is a species of large pigeon that is found patchily distributed in parts of the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It has a slow flight and spends a lot of t ...

Environment

Nam Kading faces a number of environmental threats. The most significant is from the effects of current and future hydropower projects. The current Theun-Hinboun project has reduced the flow of the Nam Kading river. The Nam Theun 1 project would flood an area of within the park, causing biodiversity loss and separating habitats. Hunting of wildlife by locals is currently a threat and is expected to increase if the Nam Theun 1 project finishes, as easier boat access to the park interior would become possible.

References

{{reflist, refs = {{cite web , title = Nam Kading NBCA , url = http://www.ecotourismlaos.com/directory/protected_areas/namkading.htm , publisher = Greater Mekong Subregion Sustainable Tourism Development Project in Lao PDR , accessdate = 13 December 2015 , archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20151222080154/http://www.ecotourismlaos.com/directory/protected_areas/namkading.htm , archivedate = 22 December 2015 , url-status = dead {{cite book , last1 = Sayer , first1 = Jeffrey , editor1-last = Sunderland , editor1-first = Terry C. H. , editor2-last = Sayer , editor2-first = Jeffrey , editor3-last = Hoang , editor3-first = Minh Ha , title = Evidence-based Conservation: Lessons from the Lower Mekong , chapter = Chapter 8: Nam Kading National Protected Area , publisher =

Routledge Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, and ...

, date = 2013 , pages = 91–109 , isbn = 978-1-8497-1394-8 , chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=1B3PsQArBIMC&pg=PA91 , accessdate = 13 December 2015 {{cite web , title = Nam Kading , url = http://www.ecotourismlaos.com/namkading.htm , publisher = Greater Mekong Subregion Sustainable Tourism Development Project in Lao PDR , accessdate = 13 December 2015 , archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20151123153348/http://www.ecotourismlaos.com/namkading.htm , archivedate = 23 November 2015 , url-status = dead National Biodiversity Conservation Areas Protected areas established in 1993 Geography of Bolikhamsai province