Endangered species

  Mangrove forests in Sóc Trăng Province’s Trần Đề District. — VNA/VNS Photo Trung Hiếu SÓC TRĂNG — The co-management model for mangrove forest protection in Sóc Trăng Province has improved livelihoods in local communities and efficiently protects forests. Located south of the Hậu River, the southern-most tributary of the Mekong River, Sóc Trăng has faced the impacts of climate change, including coastal erosion. Human activities like overexploitation of aquatic resources in mangrove forests have caused the degradation of those forests which act as shields preventing erosion of coasts. To grow mangrove forests, the province launched the co-management model in Âu Thọ B Hamlet in Vĩnh Châu Town’s Vĩnh Hải Commune in 2007. Under it, local people together with authorities protect the forests and exploit aquatic resources and wood. Thạch Soal, … [Read more...] about Sóc Trăng forest co-management model helps protect mangroves, improve locals’ incomes

‘Sa sung,’ a common species of sea worm in several Vietnamese coastal provinces, have been the primary source of income for fisherwomen in the northern province of Quang Ninh for a long time. Known in English as peanut worms, sa sung were first cataloged in 1827 by a French zoologist.  So far, over 140 different species of peanut worm have been discovered around the world, with some measuring as short as two millimeters and others as long as 70 centimeters. In Vietnam, sa sung are raked from the sand by fisherwomen working the tidal flats in Van Don District and Mong Cai City in Quang Ninh, in the south-central province of Nha Trang, as well as on Con Dao Island in the southern province of Ba Ria – Vung Tau. According to Pham Van Hoc, chairman of the Farmer Association in Dong Xa Commune in Van Don District, sa sung have been a popular source of income in the district for several generations, valued primarily for the intense flavor they add to soups, … [Read more...] about Vietnamese fisherwomen rake in big bucks with local sea worms