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VN006
Tram Chim
Location Vietnam, Dong Thap
Central coordinates 105o 31.00' East  10o 44.00' North
IBA criteria A1, A3, A4i
Area 7,588 ha
Altitude 0 - 2m
Year of IBA assessment 2004

BirdLife Indochina Programme (Country programme)



Site description Tram Chim National Park supports one of the last remnants of the Plain of Reeds wetland ecosystem, which previously covered some 700,000 ha. The site is located 19 km to the east of the Mekong river. The topography of the national park is flat, and slopes slightly to the east. The site has large areas of seasonally inundated grassland and Melaleuca forest. Large populations of waterbirds are found at the site, particularly in the winter when many thousands of waterfowl visit.

Populations of IBA trigger species

Species Season Period Population estimate Quality of estimate IBA Criteria IUCN Category
Garganey Anas querquedula winter  1993  1 unknown  good  A4i  Least Concern 
Common Teal Anas crecca winter  1989  1 unknown  good  A4i  Least Concern 
Lesser Adjutant Leptoptilos javanicus -  2004  present [units unknown]  -  A1  Vulnerable 
Bengal Florican Houbaropsis bengalensis -  2004  present [units unknown]  -  A1  Critically Endangered 
Sarus Crane Grus antigone -  2004  present [units unknown]  -  A1, A4i  Vulnerable 
Indochinese Cuckooshrike Coracina polioptera resident  1999  1 unknown  good  A3  Least Concern 
Racket-tailed Treepie Crypsirina temia resident  1999  1 unknown  good  A3  Least Concern 
Streak-eared Bulbul Pycnonotus blanfordi resident  1999  1 unknown  good  A3  Least Concern 
Plain-backed Sparrow Passer flaveolus resident  1999  1 unknown  good  A3  Least Concern 

Protected areas

Protected area Designation Area (ha) Relationship with IBA Overlap with IBA (ha)  
Tram Chim National Park 7,588 is identical to site 7,500  

Habitats

IUCN habitat Habitat detail Extent (% of site)
Grassland Grassland - edaphic, wet  64%
Wetlands (inland) Permanent herbaceous swamps and bogs  6%
Artificial landscapes (terrestrial) Forestry & agro-industrial plantations  30%
Forest   -

Land use

Land-use Extent (% of site)
agriculture 4%
Notes: Permanent Agriculture.
nature conservation and research 96%

Other biodiversity Tram Chim is one of the few places in the Plain of Reeds where the Eleocharis and wild rice Oryza rufipogon community is likely to survive to any extent, and therefore one of the most important sites for the conservation of wild rice.

Management considerations Tram Chin now has National Park status, which confers a relatively high degree of protection, yet several threats remain. The frequent encroachment of local people into the national park to hunt and collect firewood is a major conservation issue. Also, because the site is surrounded by rice cultivation, land-use activities outside the site can have a substantial impact on the integrity of the wetland ecosystem of the park. Examples of such impacts are pollutant discharge and alteration of natural water levels. The biggest current threat to the site is mismanagement of the water level: the water level is allowed to remain high for unnaturally long periods each year, leading to changes in the vegetation, especially die-back of the main food plants for Sarus Crane.

Protection status Protected as a Sarus Crane Reserve since 1986. In 1994 the area became a Nature Reserve, covering 7,500 ha and in 1998 it became established as a National Park, covering 7,588 ha. Buckton et al. (1999) describe an area of 7,740 ha and mention the site staff describing the area being 7,612 ha.

Further web sources of information 

Site account from Directory of Important Bird Areas in Vietnam: key sites for conservation (Tordoff 2002)

References Birdlife International and the Forest Inventory and Planning Instutute (2001) Sourcebook of existing and proposed protected areas in Vietnam. Hanoi, Vietnam: BirdLife International Vietnam Programme and the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute.Buckton, S. T., Ngyuyen Cu, Nguyen Duc Tu and Ha Quy Quynh (1999) The conservation of key wetland sites in the Mekong delta. Hanoi: Birdlife International Vietnam programme.

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Recommended citation  BirdLife International (2013) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Tram Chim. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 20/05/2013

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