![Nui Chua National Park](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Nui_Chua_National_Park.jpg)
Núi Chúa National Park ( vi, Vườn quốc gia Núi Chúa, links=no), formerly Núi Chúa Nature Reserve is a
national park
A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...
in the province of
Ninh Thuận Province, on the border with
Khánh Hòa Province
KH may refer to:
Places
* Cambodia (Kampuchea, Kambuja, ''Srok Khmer''), a sovereign state with ISO 3166-2 alpha code KH
** .kh, the Internet country code top-level domain for Cambodia
* Kutná Hora District, Czech Republic (vehicle plate code)
* ...
,
South Central Coast
South Central Coast ( vi, Duyên hải Nam Trung Bộ, links=no) or (South Central Region) is one of the regions of Vietnam. It consists of the independent municipality of Đà Nẵng and seven other provinces. The two southern provinces Ninh ...
,
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
.
[ Fonte]
www.world-wildlife-adventures.com
. (URL accessed 15 January 2010)
Geography
The National Park was established according to "Decision 134/QĐ-TTg" dated 9 July 2003 signed by the
Prime Minister of Vietnam
The prime minister of Vietnam ( vi, Thủ tướng Việt Nam), officially styled as the Prime Minister of the Government of the Socialist Republic ( vi, Thủ tướng Chính phủ nước Cộng hòa Xã hội chủ nghĩa), is the head of g ...
. This decision turned Núi Chúa Nature Reserve into Núi Chúa National Park.
Núi Chúa National Park is situated on a wide, mountainous promontory, which projects into the
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phil ...
between Cam Ranh and Phan Rang bays. Elevations range from sea level to 1,039 m at the summit of Núi Chúa peak.
Núi Chúa National Park is bounded to the south and east by the South China Sea, to the west by Highway No.1 and to the north by the boundary with neighbouring Khánh Hòa Province.
Amanoi
Amanoi is a five star franchise hotel belonging to the international group of Aman Resorts, located in Ninh Thuận Province, Vietnam. It opened in September 2013, and was Aman's 26th property to open around the world and the first in Vietnam.
...
, a five star franchise hotel owned by
Aman Resorts
Aman Resorts is the trading entity of Aman Group Sarl, a Swiss-headquartered multinational hospitality company. Founded by Indonesian hotelier Adrian Zecha in 1988, the company operates 34 properties in 20 countries. Vladislav Doronin is the ch ...
is also found on the Eastern border of the Park. The total area of the Park is 24,353 ha, comprising:
*Strict forest protection area of 16,087 ha
*Forest rehabilitation area of 8, 261 ha
*Administration and services area of 5 ha
*Buffer zone of 11,200 ha.
Núi Chúa National Park also abuts a protected marine area of 7,352 ha.
The northern end is the southern part of
Cam Ranh Bay
Cam Ranh Bay ( vi, Vịnh Cam Ranh) is a deep-water bay in Vietnam in Khánh Hòa Province. It is located at an inlet of the South China Sea situated on the southeastern coast of Vietnam, between Phan Rang and Nha Trang, approximately 290 kilom ...
administratively belongs to
Cam Lập Commune,
Cam Ranh
Cam Ranh () is a city in southern Khánh Hòa Province, in the South Central Coast region of Vietnam.
Geography
It is the second-largest city in the province, after Nha Trang. It is located on Cam Ranh Bay. As of 2009 the city had a population o ...
town,
Khánh Hòa Province
KH may refer to:
Places
* Cambodia (Kampuchea, Kambuja, ''Srok Khmer''), a sovereign state with ISO 3166-2 alpha code KH
** .kh, the Internet country code top-level domain for Cambodia
* Kutná Hora District, Czech Republic (vehicle plate code)
* ...
, the east and the south is
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phil ...
in the communes of Vĩnh Hải and Nhơn Hải of
Ninh Hải District. The west is limited by the
National Route 1.
Ninh Thuận Province is the driest and hottest province in Vietnam, and the area receives the lowest rainfall in south-central Vietnam with an average of 650 mm per year. The dry season extends for eight months from November or December to July or August.
Biodiversity values
Núi Chúa National Park is a very special and unique area and is one of the priority areas for nature conservation in Vietnam. It is one of the few remaining sites in Southeast Asia where the coastal and marine habitats are still in relatively good condition, and it protects an impressive and largely intact biodiversity. It contains unique semi-arid vegetation and sea turtle nesting beaches, and is located on a promontory bordering a marine park with coral reefs.
Núi Chúa National Park is in the south-eastern part of the Great Annamites Ecoregion, one of the four Global Ecoregions identified by the World Wildlife Fund in the southern region of Vietnam. It is made up of the terrestrial ecoregions of Southern Vietnam Lowland Dry Forests and Southern Annamite Montane Rain Forests. There are few, if any, opportunities to expand the areas of the three Special Use Forests in this dry coastal forest ecoregion, so strict protection of the existing resources is imperative. The semi-arid coastal areas of southern Vietnam are the most arid in Vietnam, so the vegetation also has high value as a source of
germ plasm
Germ plasm () is a biological concept developed in the 19th century by the German biologist August Weismann. It states that heritable information is transmitted only by germ cells in the gonads (ovaries and testes), not by somatic cells. The r ...
for restoring other areas that become drier or are affected by sea level rises due to climate change.
The original vegetation was a mixture of evergreen forest, semi-evergreen forest and deciduous forest. However, most of the forest was destroyed at the beginning of the 1990s as a result of over-exploitation. Currently the only relatively undisturbed primary forest remaining is lower montane evergreen forest, distributed in the north of the Park at elevations above 800 metres. At lower elevations there are extensive areas of degraded and secondary forest. The southern parts of the Park, at elevations between 150 and 800 metres, support scrub dominated by thorny trees. This habitat type is only found at sites with hot and dry climates and is under-represented within Vietnam's protected areas network.
72 mammal species and 181 bird species have been recorded in Núi Chúa National Park. The park also supports a number of mammal and bird species of global conservation concern, including the black-shanked douc ''
Pygathrix nigripes'', pygmy loris ''
Nycticebus pygmaeus'', Asian black bear ''
Ursus thibetanus
The Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), also known as the Asiatic black bear, moon bear and white-chested bear, is a medium-sized bear species native to Asia that is largely adapted to an arboreal lifestyle. It lives in the Himalayas, sout ...
'', sun bear (
U. malayanus), large-antlered muntjac ''
Muntiacus vuquangensis'' and siamese fireback ''
Lophura diardi''.
It is reported to have the highest known population of black-shanked douc in Vietnam.
There are twelve species of bats in the park, including the
lesser short-nosed fruit bat
The lesser short-nosed fruit bat (''Cynopterus brachyotis'') is a species of megabat within the family Pteropodidae. It is a small bat that lives in South Asia and Southeast Asia. It weighs between , and measures . It occurs in many types of habit ...
listed in the IUCN Red List of Vietnam. Other bats are: the ''
greater short-nosed fruit bat
The greater short-nosed fruit bat (''Cynopterus sphinx''), or short-nosed Indian fruit bat, is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae found in South and Southeast Asia.
Description
These bats have a relatively long snout. Their upper pa ...
'', ''
Ratanaworabhan's fruit bat
The Ratanaworabhan's fruit bat (''Megaerops niphanae'') is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. It is found in Bhutan, India, Thailand, and Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of ...
'', ''
Leschenault's rousette
Leschenault's rousette (''Rousettus leschenaultii'') is a species of fruit bat. The scientific name of the species was first published by Desmarest in 1820.
Description
Leschenault's rousette is brown to grey-brown in colour with lighter under ...
'', ''
great roundleaf bat
The great roundleaf bat, also known as the great Himalayan leaf-nosed bat (''Hipposideros armiger'') is a species of bat in the family Hipposideridae found in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and China. It gives birth to two young a year. It has bee ...
'', ''
intermediate roundleaf bat
The intermediate roundleaf bat (''Hipposideros larvatus'') is a species of bat in the family Hipposideridae. It is found in Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet N ...
'', ''
bicolored roundleaf bat
The bicolored roundleaf bat (''Hipposideros bicolor'') is a species of bat in the family Hipposideridae found in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Timor-Leste. This bat inhabits caves, rock crevices and tunnels among lowland for ...
'', ''
intermediate horseshoe bat'', ''
Pearson's horseshoe bat
Pearson's horseshoe bat (''Rhinolophus pearsonii'') is a species of bat in the family Rhinolophidae. It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam.
The species is named after John Thomas P ...
'', ''
least horseshoe bat
The least horseshoe bat (''Rhinolophus pusillus'') is a species of bat in the family Rhinolophidae. It is found in Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam. It is a food source of the parasite Si ...
'', ''
Rhinolophus sp.'' and the ''
round-eared tube-nosed bat''.
As well as being important for the conservation of terrestrial
biodiversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
, the National Park is important for
marine biodiversity
Marine life, sea life, or ocean life is the plants, animals and other organisms that live in the salt water of seas or oceans, or the brackish water of coastal estuaries. At a fundamental level, marine life affects the nature of the planet. M ...
. It has eleven species of turtles, both terrestrial and marine – the highest for a Special Use Forest in Vietnam. Also, several of the beaches within the park constitute the last remaining nesting sites in mainland Vietnam for small numbers of endangered
green turtle
The green sea turtle (''Chelonia mydas''), also known as the green turtle, black (sea) turtle or Pacific green turtle, is a species of large sea turtle of the Family (biology), family Cheloniidae. It is the only species
In biology, a spec ...
s and other marine turtles on the IUCN Red List. The fringing coral reefs are also particularly rich with 307 species recorded, and are generally in good to excellent condition. The most recent surveys by WWF
[DeVantier, L. 2003. ''Reef-building corals and coral communities of Nui Chua Nature Reserve, Ninh Thuan, Vietnam'': Rapid Ecological Assessment of biodiversity. WWF IndoChina Programme.] identified 46 species with new distribution records for Vietnam, and a distinctly different coral community structure to other reefs in Vietnam.
Conservation issues
Núi Chúa National Park is now an "island" of natural forest surrounded by agricultural land to the north and west, and sea to the south and east. The main threats to biodiversity conservation are subsistence hunting and forest produce harvesting and agricultural encroachment into forest area, as well as historic land clearing.
About 30,000 people live inside the boundaries of Núi Chúa National Park, and a further 25,000 live in the buffer zone. The majority of these people belong to the Kinh, Cham and Raglay ethnic minority groups. The Raglay people make up 21% of the community and
Cham people
The Cham (Cham: ''Čaṃ'') or Champa people (Cham: , ''Urang Campa''; vi, Người Chăm or ; km, ជនជាតិចាម, ) are an Austronesian ethnic group. From the 2nd century to 1832 the Cham populated Champa, a contiguous territo ...
another 3%. The socioeconomic level of many of these people is quite low, especially the inhabitants of the National Park, who experience an average of six months of food shortages per year. These communities are heavily dependent on forest resources, which are being depleted, and work is underway to secure sustainable alternative livelihoods for these communities.
Forest clearance for agriculture is a particular problem – there are over 600 ha of wet rice land, over 2,500 ha of
shifting cultivation
Shifting cultivation is an agricultural system in which plots of land are cultivated temporarily, then abandoned while post-disturbance fallow vegetation is allowed to freely grow while the cultivator moves on to another plot. The period of cul ...
and over 750 ha of industrial cropland inside the National Park boundary. Agricultural products such as rice, banana, cashew nuts, papaya, jackfruit and pineapple can secure the livelihood of the Raglay for a maximum of four months. For the remaining months of the year they are dependent on illegally harvested forest products collected from more than 100 plant species. Traded forest products are estimated to contribute 56% to their annual income per head. Common products are timber, charcoal, fuelwood and non-timber forest products (NTFPs).
Another problem is the harsh climate, which makes the forest highly susceptible to fire, as well as climate change and associated erratic weather events. There has been also been increased competition for water that has its source within the Park's watershed.
Water scarcity
Water scarcity (closely related to water stress or water crisis) is the lack of fresh water Water resources, resources to meet the standard water demand. There are two types of water scarcity: physical or economic water scarcity. Physical water ...
is arising out of climate change with more frequent and intense droughts being recorded in the last five years. Recent studies by
Oxfam
Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent charitable organizations focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International.
History
Founded at 17 Broad Street, Oxford, as the Oxford Co ...
Great Britain and
Kyoto University
, mottoeng = Freedom of academic culture
, established =
, type = National university, Public (National)
, endowment = ¥ 316 billion (2.4 1000000000 (number), billion USD)
, faculty = 3,480 (Teaching Staff)
, administrative_staff ...
have highlighted that climate change is already having a profound impact on the intensity of droughts making local livelihoods even more marginal. As the droughts become more frequent and intense, there has been greater reliance and pressure on certain resources from within the Park, particularly wood for charcoal production, as other forms of livelihoods reliant on good water sources become less viable.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nui Chua National Park
National parks of Vietnam
Geography of Ninh Thuận province
Protected areas established in 2003
2003 establishments in Vietnam
Tourist attractions in Ninh Thuận province