Protected areas & conservation in Cambodia

Prek Toal Bird Sanctuary

Prek Toal is a world-class bird sanctuary and Ramsar site located within the Tonle Sap biosphere reserve. Efforts from conservation groups, the ministry of environment and local rangers have led to an increase in the number of birds coming to roost in the sanctuary. Photos featured in Wayne McCallum’s Mekong Solitaire (Howl press, 2021).

Phnom Kulen National Park

Located to the northeast of the Angkor temples, the mountain range of Phnom Kulen was revealed in 2015 to be the seat of a large ancient city. In spite of being a National Park, the forest has largely been cleared for cashew plantations: it is estimated that only about 20% of the original forest is in good condition. With Archaeology & Development Foundation (ADF) and HUMY.

Top: Phnom Ta Kho, one of Phnom Kulen’s scenic spot. Below: photos of different areas within Phnom Kulen National Park.

In recent years, archaeologists teamed up with local communities and the National Park to create Community Protected Areas around the last pockets of healthy forests remaining near the villages and developing community-based ecotourism.

Training of community rangers from two of Phnom Kulen’s CPA taking place in BeTreed in Preah Vihear province.
Opening ceremony of the Popel village’s ecotourism center.

Marine ecosystems

Cambodia’s marine environment faces a number of anthropogenic threats, among them overfishing, the omnipresence of marine debris and the poaching of protected species. At the same time, the country is increase the number of Marine Protected Areas.

1st row: Nudibranch; Dried seahorses on sale on Koh Sdach’s main street. 2nd row: ghost nets collected on the coral reefs by Kuda Divers; Urchin; fishing boat under the monsoon sky; 3rd row: Foreign squid fishing fleet in the gulf of Thailand, seen from Koh Rong Samloen; Fishing boat; Marine blue sponge. All pictures unless stated taken in the Koh Sdach archipelago.

Wetlands & Birds

Cambodia has a large number of wetlands – the floodplain of the Tonle Sap and the Mekong rivers – but these are disappearing fast under new developments, farmlands and expanding plantations.

1st row: Bee-eaters in Boeung Prek Lapov, Takeo, Cambodia’s next Ramsar site in the Mekong delta; The Anlong Pring wetlands, a 217-hectare IBA (Important Bird Area) hosting up to 30% of the global Sarus crane population during the dry season; A rescued Crested Serpent Eagle, a bird of prey occasionally victim of poaching, in the Angkor Center for the Conservation of Biodiversity (ACCB). 2nd row: The disappearing wetlands and floating gardens of Boeung Tumpum, with the construction of the 3rd Aeon Mall in the background; Downtown Phnom Penh is home to a dozen Great hornbills, likely brought to the capital as exotic pets for one of city’s super richs; The quickly disappearing wetlands of Preak Ta Sek to the north of the city, with the Vattanac tower in the background. 3rd row: A murmuration of Black-tailed godwit over the Anlong Pring wetlands.
Cambodia | 2022 | Nature & Conservation | Tags: , , | Comments (0)