From the stamp story
“I still thought that the Delacour’s Langur was extinct, but that thought gradually changed when I happened to see a Vietnamese postage stamp issued in 1965 with a picture of this beautiful primate,” shared Dr. Ratajsczak Radoslaw, a Polish primate researcher, when he first visited Cuc Phuong National Park in 1987.
From that hope, Dr. Ratajsczak Radoslaw spent many months conducting two research and investigation campaigns and initially identified the singing of the White-cheeked Langur in the process of communicating with its own species, in the Cuc Phuong primeval forest.
In 1989, two years after the initial research results of Dr. Ratajsczak Radoslaw, a group of scientific staff from Cuc Phuong National Park recorded images of seven individuals of Delacour's langur on a cliff in the Park's strictly protected area.
Also during this period, Cuc Phuong received 2 individuals of Delacour’s Langur confiscated from illegal trade. This was an important event that promoted the formation of a project to rescue and breed primates.
To the home of the primates
In 1993, the Ministry of Forestry of Vietnam agreed to allow the Forest Protection Department to sign a Cooperation Agreement with international organizations such as the IUCN SSC Primate Specialist Group; the Zoological Society for the Conservation of Species and Populations, Germany (ZSCSP), Federal Republic of Germany; the Royal Zoological Society of South Australia on the establishment of the Vietnam Endangered Primate Rescue Center in Cuc Phuong National Park.
With an area of 10 hectares, the Center has 50 cages and 2 semi-wild areas of 14 species, with a total of over 180 individuals. Most of the individuals here are evidence of illegal wildlife trafficking cases discovered and captured by forest rangers. Among them, many individuals are seriously injured and mentally traumatized.
Mr. Do Cong Khoa
Project Coordinator for the Conservation of Rare Primates of Vietnam in Cuc Phuong National Park
In the same year, through cooperation with the Frankfurt Zoological Society and Leipzig Zoo, the Cuc Phuong Endangered Primate Rescue Center (EPRC) was established. Since then, the Center has been considered a “common home” for primates and is the first Center in Asia to carry out the mission of rescuing, rehabilitating, breeding, preserving and releasing into the wild rare and endangered primates in Vietnam.
After more than 30 years of establishment, at the Endangered Primate Rescue Center (EPRC) Cuc Phuong, 12 species have successfully reproduced with more than 160 young individuals. Of these, 4 species were bred in captivity for the first time in the world, namely the Delacour's Langur, White-headed Langur, Grey-shanked Douc Langur, and Ha Tinh Langur. In particular, through research, the Center has discovered a new species for science, the Grey-shanked Douc Langur (Pygathrix cinerea). From conservation projects and programs, 150 individuals of 5 primate species have been released back to the wild.
The luckiest foreigner in Vietnam
Coming to the Endangered Primate Rescue Center (EPRC) Cuc Phuong, visitors can not only admire the beauty of nature, visit the magical "kingdom" of primates that are threatened by extinction, but also meet and listen to the strange story of love and sacrifice for the forest of Elke Schwierz - a wildlife expert from Germany.
After more than two decades working at Cuc Phuong National Park, each passing day, Elke believes more and more that her mission is in the S-shaped strip of land, because at least 10 times, the woman born in 1974 has refused the opportunity to work with attractive salaries at Conservation Centers in Southeast Asia, Africa... "Falling in love" with the land and people here, she taught herself Vietnamese and Muong so that she could teach all the experiences she had accumulated at the Berlin-Zollogarten Zoo to the staff at the Rescue Center.
Showing me a photo with the Center staff, Elke smiled: “In Germany or other places, I would probably also work on Easter or public holidays. I would receive a lot of extra payments for working on holidays and weekends; and I would have more days off, but I don’t care. You see, in Cuc Phuong I also have a whole family.”
Although very modest and sparing when talking about her contributions, Elke is always proud: "I am the luckiest foreigner in Vietnam!". That joy is not accidental because in her diary, Elke wrote that every morning, when the first rays of sunlight have not yet penetrated the leaves, the forest mist is still lingering, Elke is awakened by the sound of primates stirring the mountains and forests. You see, their "voices" are sometimes melodious, sometimes distant and wonderful as if echoing from a distant time. In the evening, each ray of sunlight falls through the mountain ranges, illuminating a large area of the forest. And at night, Cuc Phuong always has a "grand concert" of insects, to Elke it is the sound of life stirring. Anyone who witnesses these things will truly feel happy!
"Green nanny" under the canopy of the old forest
In order to preserve precious genetic resources, it is impossible not to mention the “green nannies” under the canopy of the old forest. They are the officers and employees of the Center who are devoted day and night to caring for and raising primates. Among the 30 officers, employees and workers of the Center, 23 are children of the Muong ethnic group.
Every day, 9 staff members of the Center will pick 400kg of leaves from more than 100 species of trees, serving meals to 180 individuals of 14 species being cared for. Many species only eat the bark and sap of trees or eat additional portions such as grapefruit, corn, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, and papaya. The remaining food will be replaced by staff, and all steps of care must include wearing masks, changing shoes, and disinfecting when in contact with primates.
Few people know that most of the individuals rescued from illegal wildlife trafficking cases were caught by traps and were injured, and during the detention period were fed inappropriate food and often suffered from diarrhea. In such cases, the Center's staff had to feed and water them 10 times a day with a syringe. And to contribute to preserving the gene pool for rare wildlife species in Vietnam, the staff here have devoted their youth, some of them put aside their family happiness and voluntarily left the city to live in the forest.
Before visiting the animal cage with Ms. Dinh Thi Oanh, an employee of the Center, she said: Taking care of primates is not an easy task, it requires not only skills but also love for them, like the case of Muom, an individual of Gray-shanked Douc Langur. Muom's mother was rescued to the Center during an illegal animal trafficking case.
After a period of care, Muom was born on May 12, 2021. More than a month later, Muom's mother became ill and passed away. At that time, Muom weighed only a few hundred grams, only as big as an adult's wrist. When she saw a shadow or a noise, Muom curled up in fear. Muom grew up being raised by the Center and "mother Oanh".
Ms. Oanh recounted: Since her mother passed away, her sisters took turns taking care of her, so she considered me her mother. When she was sick, I worried a lot. Sometimes I felt like she was my own child. I fed her milk every hour and a half. At 11pm, I had to wake up and walk 2-3 kilometers up here to feed her milk. There was a time when I raised 7 young animals at the same time.
Growing up and getting used to the sounds of love from everyone, Muom would occasionally spread out his hands and quietly look at the hands of the people who raised and cared for him. Every time he did, he would smile. Oanh explained: "He must have thought that our hands looked so similar." Three times a day, at that time, Muom would go to the door, holding his hand and looking expectantly at his parents. If anyone spoke harshly, Muom would be sad, and it would take a lot of time to "coax" him, sometimes having to hold him in her arms to make him happy again.
Message from the forest
At the end of the day, I visited the Center with German veterinarian Dr. Ralph Schonfelder. During the conversation, he said that he had only been working in Vietnam since the end of last year. Talking about his feelings about working in the S-shaped country, he expressed: The "revival" of primates at the Center not only shows that the living conditions of primates here are very close to the natural environment, but also shows an important contribution to the conservation of gene sources of rare wild animals, serving the conservation of biodiversity.
Although everyone comes to Cuc Phuong with different ideas, Cuc Phuong always welcomes you with all the original integrity! I believe in that when reviewing the knowledge I have gained after a day of learning at the Endangered Primate Rescue Center (EPRC) Cuc Phuong.
Here, I would also like to record a famous motto that is like a message from any forest on this planet. Although this motto has been said in every language on our planet, it seems that it has not been said much in Vietnamese: When you come to the forest, you do not need to bring anything but love, you should not leave the forest anything but footprints, do not bring anything from the forest except beautiful pictures!
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