Affirming position on the map of the national park system in the country and region

Possessing the most biodiversity in Vietnam, in 22 years (2002 - 2024) of construction and development, Hoang Lien National Park (Lao Cai) has strived to fulfill its tasks with the highest and consistent goal of managing, protecting, and conserving the most important values ​​of biodiversity that the whole country and the world expect.

A corner of Hoang Lien National Park. (Source: Shutterstock)

Established in 2002, Hoang Lien National Park is one of the important special-use forests of Vietnam with a total area of ​​29,845 hectares. The park is divided into sub-zones: Strictly protected zone (11,800 hectares); Ecological restoration zone (17,900 hectares); Administrative, tourism and service zone (70 hectares). In addition, the park also has a buffer zone of 38,724 hectares adjacent to and covering part of the area of ​​neighboring communes in Van Ban district (Lao Cai province); Than Uyen and Phong Tho districts (Lai Chau province).

Due to the characteristics of climate, weather, and terrain, Hoang Lien range has formed here an extremely rich flora and fauna system. According to scientists , Hoang Lien National Park is one of the most biologically diverse centers in Vietnam, especially forest flora.

According to statistics, Hoang Lien National Park has 2,847 species of vascular plants, belonging to 1,064 genera of 229 families, in 6 plant phyla, many species are listed in the Red Book. The park owns 3 particularly rare tree species: green cypress, red pine, and Fansipan spruce (cold spruce). These 3 tree species have been recommended by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the Indochina Program to have conservation and propagation measures because they are facing a high risk of extinction.

Along with that, scientists have discovered many rare orchid species in Hoang Lien National Park, such as Sa Pa jellyfish orchid, Sa Pa thick-lipped orchid and many orchid species endemic to Vietnam distributed in Sa Pa, such as Dendrobium leucocephala, Thanh Dam Tuyet Ngoc, and Lan Lam An Vang Lan...

In particular, Hoang Lien National Park cannot fail to mention the rhododendron species, such as thorny rhododendron, small-toothed rhododendron, silage rhododendron, lily rhododendron, magical rhododendron, sulfur rhododendron... with about 20 species out of a total of 27 species present in Vietnam. In addition, in Hoang Lien National Park, medicinal plants are also very rich, with nearly 800 species discovered.

Besides the diverse and rich flora, in Hoang Lien National Park, scientists have recorded 555 species of terrestrial vertebrates, including 96 species of mammals; 346 species of birds; 63 species of reptiles and 50 species of amphibians, especially a very rare species of spiny frog that has just been discovered.

Diverse fauna at Hoang Lien National Park. (Source: 52 HZ)

Notably, Hoang Lien National Park has many beautiful butterfly species, not only of conservation and commercial value, but also of tourism and aesthetic value. 304 species have been recorded here, belonging to 138 genera and 10 families. This is the only place in Vietnam with many butterfly species that have not been found in other regions of the country.

Therefore, at the ASEAN Heritage Parks Conference held in Thailand in December 2004, four national parks of Vietnam, including Hoang Lien (Lao Cai), Ba Be in Bac Kan province, Chu Mom Ray (Kon Tum) and Kon Ka Kinh (Gia Lai), were recognized as ASEAN Heritage Parks. The park was also ranked by the Global Environment Facility as category A, the highest in terms of biodiversity value in Vietnam.

In the first 6 months of 2024, Hoang Lien National Park has well implemented assigned tasks and targets; forest fire prevention and fighting work has been effectively implemented, no special-use forest fires have occurred in the management area; Project topics have been implemented according to schedule and plan; Rescue work for animals and plants has been effective, with a high success rate; Environmental education and landscape tourism development work has always been clean and beautiful, ensuring safety for tourists to visit and experience.

In the last months of the year, the garden will continue to focus on scientific research and international cooperation; Forest protection management and development; Environmental education and environmental services; Rescue, conservation and development of organisms.

With the efforts of more than two decades of journey, Hoang Lien National Park has affirmed its position on the map of the national park system in the country and the region. The road ahead seems to be posing many opportunities for Hoang Lien National Park to develop, especially when the Government approved the National Strategy on Biodiversity to 2030, vision to 2050.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/khang-dinh-vi-the-tren-ban-do-he-thong-vuon-quoc-gia-trong-nuoc-va-khu-vuc-288057.html