The Wildlife Rescue Programme of the Nam Theun 2 Hydropower … · 2020. 5. 24. · Le programme de sauvetage de la faune sauvage du projet hydroélectrique de Nam Theun 2 (Laos)

Hydroécol. Appl.© EDF, 2014DOI: 10.1051/hydro/2014006

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The Wildlife Rescue Programme of the Nam Theun 2Hydropower Project (Lao PDR)

Le programme de sauvetage de la faune sauvage du projethydroélectrique de Nam Theun 2 (Laos)

U. Streicher

Independent Wildlife Management Consultant, Danang City and Senior Veterinarian, Endangered PrimateRescue Center, Cuc Phuong National Park, [email protected]

Abstract – During inundation of the Nam Theun 2 Hydropower Project a wildlife rescue pro-gramme was conducted to respond to animal rescue needs. Based on a series of field sur-veys conducted in 2007, priority species were identified for rescue and translocation. Oncefilling of the Nam Theun 2 Reservoir commenced and islands started to form, animals trap-ped on these islands were captured by various means and translocated to the Nakai – NamTheun National Protected Area managed by the NT2 Watershed Management and Protec-tion Authority (WMPA) on the north shore of the reservoir. Various data was collected onthese animals and a number of these animals were radiotracked after translocation toassess their survival. Such rescue efforts are often considered a mere act of animal welfareor a public relation exercise. The experience of the Nam Theun 2 wildlife rescue programmeshows however that a carefully conducted wildlife rescue programme can provide not onlyinvaluable scientific and ecological insights but significantly contribute to conservation of thebiodiversity in the area.

Key words – wildlife capture, wildlife translocation, wildlife rescue, biodiversity,large-antlered muntjac, conservation

Résumé – Lors de la phase d’inondation du projet hydroélectrique de Nam Theun 2, un pro-gramme de sauvetage de la faune sauvage a été conduit. Sur la base d’une série d’enquêtesde terrain réalisées en 2007, les espèces prioritaires pour un sauvetage et une translocationont été identifiées. Une fois la mise en eau du réservoir de Nam Theun 2 commencée, lesanimaux piégés sur les îles récemment formées ont été capturés par divers moyens et relâ-chés dans la zone protégée « Nakai-Nam Theun National Protected Area » en rive nord duRéservoir. Diverses données ont été collectées sur ces animaux et certains d’entre eux ontété suivis par un système de radiotélémetrie après leur translocation afin d’évaluer leur sur-vie. De tels efforts de sauvetage sont souvent considérés comme un simple acte en faveurdu bien-être animal ou comme une opération de communication. L’expérience du programmede sauvetage de la faune sauvage de Nam Theun 2 montre cependant qu’un tel programme

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http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/hydro/2014006

2 U. Streicher

mené avec soin peut fournir non seulement des informations scientifiques et écologiquesinestimables mais peut également contribuer significativement à la protection de la biodiver-sité dans la région.

Mots-clés – capture de la faune sauvage, translocation de la faune sauvage, biodiversité,muntjac à grand bois, conservation

1 INTRODUCTION

Hydropower projects are a mainmeans to respond to the increasingenergy needs in the rapidly developingcountries of Southeast Asia. Theirnumber is increasing and in manyareas they conflict with wildlife conser-vation requirements as most hydro-power projects do not pay specificattention to the wildlife living in theinundation area. The fact that wildlifewill perish during inundation is oftenaccepted as a regrettable but overallinevitable side effect. In 1999, Vie pro-vided a review of wildlife translocationsconducted on hydroelectric projects,reported on the wildlife translocationconducted at the Petit Saut hydroelec-tric project in French Guiana, and con-cluded that such an effort was highlyworthwhile and of great scientific inter-est (Vie, 1999). But still only few hydro-power projects have a specific wildliferescue component.

During the planning of the NamTheun 2 Hydropower Project con-ducted by Nam Theun 2 HydropowerCompany in Khammouane Province inLao PDR, one of the environmentalrequirements was to develop a plan tominimize the damage to wildlife in theproject area.

The field surveys conducted inpreparation of the Nam Theun 2Hydropower Project were the firstdetailed surveys conducted on the

Nakai Plateau and found that the pla-teau was home to a high diversity ofdifferent species. It was clear that dur-ing inundation it would be impossibleto rescue all animals and large num-bers of animals would perish as thewater rose. However as long as theseanimals were representatives of com-mon species and had a large distribu-tion area, their loss would not mean athreat to the species in general andwas considered acceptable. But thesurveys also found several species onthe plateau, which were endemic to asmall area within Indochina, occurredonly in low numbers or had been sig-nificantly reduced in other parts of theirdistribution range. Their loss wouldhave meant a significant loss to thespecies.

Based on these considerations anumber of priority species were identi-fied for which the rescue of individualshad the potential to significantlyenhance the survival of local popula-tions (Tab. I).

The main objective of the wildliferescue programme was to monitor thereservoir for potential wildlife rescueneeds and if necessary, capture andtranslocate individuals of these speciesto the adjacent protected area. If theysuccessfully establish there, they couldmake an important contribution to thelocal populations of the species in thesense of a re-enforcement as stated byIUCN (IUCN/SSC, 2013).

The Wildlife Rescue Programme of the Nam Theun 2 Hydropower Project (Lao PDR) 3

Table I. Priority species.Tableau I. Espèces prioritaires.

English name Scientific name Presence on the Nakaiplateau

Mammals

Pangolins Manis spp. Confirmed

Black leaf monkeys Trachypithecus laotumTrachypithecus hatinhensis

Unlikely

Grey langur Trachypithecus crepusculus Unlikely

Loris Nycticebus pygmaeusNycticbus bengalensis

Likely

Binturong Arctictis binturong Probable

Lowe's Otter Civet Cynogale lowei Unlikely

Fishing Cat Prionailurus viverrinus Unlikely to probable

Jungle Cat Felis chaus Probable

Leopard Panthera pardus Confirmed formerly

Tiger Panthera tigris Confirmed formerly

Asian Black Bear Ursus thibetanus Probable

Sun Bear Ursus malayanus Probable

Dhole Cuon alpinus Probable

Eurasian Otter Lutra lutra Probable

Hairy-nosed Otter Lutra sumatrana Unlikely

Oriental Small-clawed Otter Aonyx cinerea Confirmed

Smooth-coated Otter Lutrogale perspicillata Confirmed

Eld's Deer Cervus eldii Confirmed formerly

Hog Deer Axis porcinus Probable formerly

Large-antlered Muntjac Muntiacus vuquangensis Confirmed

Banteng Bos javanicus Confirmed formerly

Gaur Bos gaurus Confirmed formerly

Birds

Green Peafowl Pavo muticus Confirmed formerly

White-winged Duck Carina scutulata Confirmed formerly

Reptiles

All tortoises/turtles Several genera/species Confirmed

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2 MATERIALS AND METHODS

Preparations to the project startedin January 2008 and ended in March2009. Due to the delay in filling of thereservoir animals were only capturedfrom April 2008 until February 2009.

2.1 Team composition and training

The project team leader was a wild-life veterinarian, working in conserva-tion in Indochina since 1997 with expe-rience in capturing wildlife and workingin rural areas. She was supported byone to four trained expatriate animalhandlers. The project had one projectassistant/translator, three boat drivers,three local trackers, one car driver andfour tracking dogs.

Staff were intensively trained in thebeginning of the project. Staff with vet-erinary qualification were trained in theperformance of anaesthesia in wildlifeincluding drug selection and dosage,

IUCN Definitions

“Translocation”: deliberate and media-ted movement of wild individuals or popu-lations from one part of their range toanother.

“Re-enforcement/Supplementation”:addition of individuals to an existing popu-lation of Conspecifics

Not all species occurring on the plateauwere attended to by the wildlife rescueprogramme. All turtle species were sub-ject to a programme run by a team fromConservation International (CI) Cambodiaand team from Wildlife ConservationSociety (WCS) Laos was responsible todeal with issues concerning the elephantpopulation on the plateau.

anaesthetic monitoring, anaestheticrecovery, emergency measures andthe recording of information. All staffreceived training in use of the rescuegear and specific methods to captureand safely handle different animals.Most of the team was not familiar withthe animal species on the plateau andhad to be trained in species identifica-tion. Staff were furthermore trained inbasic animal care principles, includingcare during transport, temporary hous-ing and husbandry and quarantineprinciples. Staff also received trainingin the use of GPS units and navigation,the use of radios and the principles ofradio communication. They were thor-oughly familiarized with forest conduct,camp site regulations and law enforce-ment. The most difficult concept tograsp for the villagers was the regula-tion against removing any wildlife fromthe Nam Theun 2 Reservoir. Educatingstaff that proper law enforcement doesnot allow any exception to this rule wasone of the most challenging aspects oftraining. Several team members partic-ipated in first aid training and all teammembers received rabies vaccinationsas a precaution when handling wildlife.

2.2 Capture equipment

Capture equipment comprised sixiron cage traps in different sizes, ofwhich the largest ones were largeenough to trap an adult sun bear.These traps were made on order inThailand. An additional eight cagetraps were obtained from the Conser-vation International Cambodia Pro-gramme. These were standard madecollapsible live traps, large enough to


capture small mammals up to the sizeof a squirrel or mongoose.

Two catchpoles and two hoop nets,with a hoop diameter of 60 cm weremade on order in Thailand. A dartgunand blowpipes and the necessarydarting equipment were ordered fromGermany. A field gas anaesthesia kit,pulsoximeter and all major veterinaryequipment were provided by the teamleader, who preferred to use familiarequipment under demanding circum-stances. Heavy duty wildlife handlinggloves, blankets, towels and ropescompleted the capture equipment.

2.3 Selection of survey and capturesites

An area of 489 km2 was supposedto get flooded for the Nam Theun 2Reservoir. Due to the geomorphologyof the plateau it was expected that dur-ing inundation a large number of smallislands would temporary form on thewestern part of the plateau in the socalled “Thousand Island” area. Themajority of these islands would onlyexist for several days or weeks andthen gradually get submerged. Onlyvery few islands were assumed to per-manently remain. It was assumed thatwildlife would get stranded on islands,where it would find insufficient foodsources and be vulnerable to huntingand hence rescue of such strandedanimals would be required.

Prior to inundation, surveys on footwere conducted over the entire plateauin all areas, where potentially islandswould later form. These surveys wereaimed at identifying general animaldensities and occurring species. If anarea was found to have no priority

species and no or only few other wildanimals during these surveys, it wasexcluded from further survey work.Additionally boat surveys were con-ducted aimed at identifying possiblelater navigation routes

At water levels from 525 m.a.s.l. to533 m.a.s.l. a combination of boat andfoot surveys was conducted, focusingon the areas east of Ban Thalang (seethe map in Descloux et al., same issue),where first islands formed. These sur-veys provided the baseline data for trap-ping and rescues in this area.

At water levels from 533 m.a.s.l. to535 m.a.s.l. islands also formed west ofBan Thalang and were included in thework. Rescues were conducted in allareas where surveys had identifiedwildlife and on islands small enoughthat capture appeared feasible.

Once the water reached full supplylevel at 538 m.a.s.l. most of the islandswest of Ban Thalang were very com-pletely isolated and the “ThousandIslands” area was fully accessible andthe majority of animal rescues wereconducted. At this time, wildlife positivesurveys were always immediately fol-lowed by rescue efforts.

After the water level reached535 m.a.s.l. in October 2008, islandshad formed over the entire area of thereservoir. Now surveys and rescueefforts were focused on areas whereprevious surveys had identified highdensities of wildlife and possibly prior-ity species.

Once the actual filling started thetime spent to survey and rescue wild-life was considerable. Also as wildlifepositive surveys were always followedby an immediate capture and rescueeffort it was usually impossible to limit

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work hours and work was conductedwhatever weather conditions. In aver-age surveys were conducted for358 hours (from 90–460 hours) permonth.

2.4 Survey and capture methods

Survey and capture work was usu-ally conducted with three boats with acomplete set of survey and captureequipment. The boat carrying the vet-erinarian additionally carried equip-ment for field anaesthesia and medicalprocedures.

Animals were trapped on the island,captured with hoop nets or catch polesor flushed off the islands and capturedwith hoop nets in the water. Thoughdarting equipment was available thedense vegetation made it impossible toreliably dart on the islands.

For trapping live animals traps wereset up on the larger islands and baited

Fig. 1. Capture of a Muntjac.

Fig. 1. Capture d’un Muntjac.

with chicken, fish, and various fruit andchecked every second day. Traps weremoved to a new location about everythree weeks, depending on reports andsigns of animals on the island, and thefrequency of successful trapping. Whenanimals were found in burrows on theislands, they were dug out and capturedwith hoop nets. Only on two occasionsanimals were captured with catchpoles.

When ungulates were located onislands, they were captured by strategi-cally placing the boats around theislands and then flushing of the targetanimal into the water by a driver teamwith dogs.

Once the animal was successfullyflushed off the island and localized, theteam in the nearest boat captured theanimal with a hoop net; the animal waslifted into the boat and immediatelyanesthetized (Fig. 1). If an animal couldnot be flushed into the water within30 minutes or if the animal escaped toanother island and a second capture


effort was not successful, the captureof the respective animal was aban-doned for that day in order to reducethe risks of exhaustion, capture myop-athy and death.

After capture, a thorough healthcheck was conducted on every animalto assess the general health andcollect physiological parameters (inanaesthetized animals, Fig. 2). Anyinjuries were taken care off immedi-ately and data was recorded on an ani-mal capture sheet. Animals weretransported to the release site eitherunder anaesthesia, or alert in transportboxes or cages. Specific care wastaken to prevent hypothermia or hyper-thermia during the transport. Tempera-ture, heart rate, respiration rate andpartial oxygen saturation of the bloodwere checked every ten minutes(Stalder et al., in print).

Fig. 2. Health check of a captured Binturong.

Fig. 2. Bilan de santé d’un Binturong capturé.

2.5 Capture risks and fatalities

Capture and anaesthesia inevitableholds a health risk for animals. Com-mon health risks associated with wild-life capture are capture myopathy,physical trauma, regurgitation of rumi-nal fluid or food, bloat, hypothermia/hyperthermia, shock, respiratory dis-tress, circulatory failure.

To prevent capture myopathy exten-sive chasing of animals was avoidedand captures were abandoned if notsuccessful after 30 minutes. After cap-ture the animals received injections of aVitamin E Selen combination to preventacidosis. Application of a short actingtranquillizer (Acepromacin) reducedstress after release and also helped tominimize capture associated problems.

Furthermore, small injuries duringtentative of escape of animal were

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immediatelyand locally treated (cleanedand sometimes long acting antibioticinjectionadministration)and theanimalswere released without delay.

Another problem was bloating, asafter an hour of transport muntjacsstarted to visibly bloat, their respira-tion rate decreased gradually andbecame shallow. However no interfer-ence was required other than speed-ing up the anaesthetic reversal andrelease process.

Hyper and hypothermia are a con-siderable problem for many of the res-cues. Some muntjac captures wereconducted during months with veryhigh ambient temperatures. Immedi-ately following capture, the animalshad a body temperature approaching40.0 °C increasing the risk of hyper-thermia. Using cold rectal fluids orexternal cold water applications couldreduce the body temperature to around38.5 °C. Other captures were con-ducted when low ambient tempera-tures created the opposite problem. Oncapture, the animal’s body temperatureusually was around 38.0 °C, but due towind chill on the boat, it could rapidlydrop to values below 36.0 °C. Rescuefoils and full body coverage duringtransport were necessary to preventcritical hypothermia.

Small animals which appearedweak or cold were kept overnight andwere provided with a hot water bottleand additional nesting material. How-ever several squirrels and one North-ern treeshrew died due to hypothermia.

Asphyxia (respiratory arrest) oc-curred during three muntjac captures.The respiration of the animals stopped.In all three cases immediate injection of

a respiratory stimulans and immediateanaesthetic reversal resulted in restartof respiration.

Two macaques, one orphanedinfant and one young female with asever snare injury could not bereleased but where transferred to afacility in Luang Prabang (Lao PDR).One common palm civet and oneNorthern treeshrew were euthanized.Both animals were found severelyinjured by hunter traps.

2.6 Release of wildlife

2.6.1 Wildlife requiring holding beforerelease

Sometimes animals could not beimmediately released, because theywere injured, weak or sick, wet and inrisk of getting hypothermic, dependentyoung or simply captured too late in theday to allow safe release and return tothe operational base in day light. Somespecies were also included into a wild-life disease study of the Pasteur Insti-tute. In these cases the animals werekept at the small holding facility inBan Thalang, where appropriate treat-ment for injuries was applied, the ani-mals were provided with dry nestingmaterial (towels) and hot water bottles.If necessary, animals received fluids,vitamins and minerals. As soon as ani-mals appeared in good condition theywere immediately released. The ani-mal holding facility was managed as aquarantine facility and though condi-tions in the rural environment were ofcourse limited strict quarantine rulesapplied.


2.6.2 Release sites

The selected release sites werelocated on the north shore of the NamTheun 2 Reservoir inside the Nakai –Nam Theun National Protected Area.The habitat in this area consists of apatchwork of evergreen drainage for-est, dry pine forest and grassland andremained accessible at rising waterlevels, had a well hidden access, pro-vided maximum security from huntingand was free from presence of domes-tic animals (buffaloes). Release sites ofthe Turtle Conservation Programmeand several mineral licks of the Ele-phant Conservation Programme (twoadditional conservation programmesconducted and funded under the NamTheun 2 Hydropower Project) werealso located in this sector in order tofacilitate targeted protection operationsby the WMPA and specifically by theirReservoir Patrol Unit which was taskedto work in cooperation with the WildlifeRescue Program as part of their poach-ing reduction role. Animals were mostlyreleased in the early afternoon hours.Smaller animals and animals whichwere not anaesthetized were releasedfurther inside the forest, larger animalscloser to the edge of the water.

2.6.3 Release animals

The IUCN principles for reintroduc-tion apply also to translocation: thatmeans animals to be translocated mustexhibit suitable behaviours to be able tosurvive in the wild and must be freefrom any sign of disease. In this casethere was no change in environmentalconditions for the animal and the hab-itats at the release sites resembled

capture habitats and there was no needfor a specific adaptation period to a newenvironment. Animals were only keptfor a minimal time and had no contactwith animals other than those that werecaptured simultaneously at the samesite. Thus, there were no pre-releasequarantine measures taken. Animalswere either released on the day of cap-ture or within 48 hours after capture. Onrelease animals had to appear healthy,move normally, be dry and appear notoverly stressed.

Prior to release a health check wasconducted on every animal. If animalsappeared to be in mildly compromisedcondition, e.g. thin, but not really sickenough to justify keeping them for anextended period of time they receivedan injection of vitamins and/or fluidsand minerals.

All muntjacs received precautionarytreatment for capture myopathy and toreduce stress (Vitamin E/Selen, shortacting tranquilizer) and were markedwith an eartag.

The animals were carried into theforest for a short distance and placedon the forest floor. All mats and blan-kets were removed. If appropriate, theanimal was then given an anaestheticantidote. All assisting staff retreatedfrom the site, only the veterinarian oranimal handler stayed behind to moni-tor the recovery of the animal.

2.7 Sampling and data collection

The aim of the project was thetranslocation of the animals. There wasno specific focus on scientific data col-lection. However species, capture site,capture time, habitat, capture method,

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estimated weight, general condition,sex, release site and release time wererecorded for each animal. When ani-mals had to be sedated after capturedata were also collected on anaes-thetic drug dosage, time of anaesthe-sia application, time anaesthetic effectachieved heart rate, respiration rate,temperature, dental condition, esti-mated age, body measurements andrecovery time and of most animals hairsample was taken. All data were storedat Environment and Social Division ofthe Nam Theun 2 Hydropower Project.Between July and September 2008blood and swab samples were takenfor a wildlife disease study by the Pas-teur Institute (Duval et al., in print).

2.8 Radiocollaring muntjacs

In preparation of the Wildlife Res-cue Programme radio-tracking equip-ment had been purchased to providethe opportunity for monitoring repre-sentatives of priority species afterrelease. According to the originalschedule conclusion of the project wassupposed to be at the end of Septem-ber. But by the end of August no priorityanimals suitable for radiocollaring hadbeen captured and the decision wasmade to use radiocollars on commonmuntjacs to assess their survival aftertranslocation. Capture and transloca-tion of ungulates is known to be partic-ularly difficult and even if animals sur-vive the actual translocation, effects ofcapture myopathy might last for sev-eral days or weeks and fatalitiesamongst translocated animals is usu-ally high. It was hoped to gather someinformation on the actual survival ratesof these sensitive animals.

As the main focus was capture andrelease of wildlife from the reservoirarea, collared animals could only bemonitored until the animal movedfurther into the Nakai – Nam TheunNational Protected Area and it becameimpossible to track them without com-promising the capture and releaseactivities.

Later, when large-antlered muntjacswere captured, these were collared asthey were priority species of high con-servation value. However suitable col-lars only arrived in late January andwere placed on animals in February justbefore the closure of the project. Theactual Wildlife Rescue Programmeended at the end of February but theleader of the Wildlife Rescue Pro-gramme returned to the project area inApril 2009 to track the large-antleredmuntjacs and provide training in track-ing methodologies to staff of theNational Protected Area.

2.9 Cooperation with other projectcomponents

During the entire project duration thewildlife rescue programme cooperatedvery closely with the two other projectscharged with wildlife conservationissues. Several times the wildlife rescueteams found turtles on islands orreceived turtles from villagers. Thoseanimals were handed to the turtle res-cue project for further processing. Viceversa the turtle rescue project did nothave access to veterinary equipment orskills and if turtles captured within theirproject required veterinary attention,they were treated by the veterinary staffof the wildlife rescue programme. Onceit came to the stage of radiotracking


translocated wildlife, the wildlife andturtle rescue programmes coordinatedtransmitter frequencies and equipmentuse to maximize efficiency of the mon-itoring efforts. Cooperation with theelephant team mainly consisted ininformation exchange but occasion-ally also in direct support of activitieseg in one case when a small herd ofelephants was found swimming in thereservoir and had to be protectedagainst disturbance.

3 RESULTS OF THE WILDLIFERESCUE PROGRAMME

3.1 Rescued animals

A total of 289 animals were rescuedduring the duration of the project(Tab. II). Of particular importance is thecapture of 38 large-antlered muntjacs.All animal rescue locations are shownin Figure 3.

The low number of rescue casesbetween dam gate closure in April2008 and June of the same year isaccounted for by the delay in reservoirfilling (see Fig. 4). The number of res-cue events increased immediately afterthe water level of the reservoir rose(June to November 2008) with amaximum rescue in October 2008.Captures of priority species mainlyoccurred after the reservoir filling (allpriority species and large-antleredmuntjacs) from November 2008.

3.2 Rescue of large-antleredmuntjac

The first large-antlered muntjacfemale was captured in November

2008. Intensified work in the capturearea showed that more large-antleredmuntjacs occurred there and requiredtranslocation. Given the species’ con-servation importance, by the end ofNovember 2008 the programmedecided to focus primarily on the large-antlered muntjacs (Fig. 4).

Focusing on one species allowedconcentrated efforts. Primarily concen-trating on muntjacs permitted the wild-life rescue team soon to distinguishbetween habitats which were likely tohold large-antlered muntjac and otherareas which were likely to hold com-mon muntjac and specifically targetthose areas. Based on the number ofsigns indicating presence of muntjacon the islands, we estimated that by theend of the programme in February2009, about 60% of the large-antleredmuntjac population in the ThousandIslands area had been translocated.The remaining animals had moved tolarge islands where capture at this timewas not possible.

3.3 Results of the radiotrackingof muntjac

Four common and five large-ant-lered muntjacs have been equippedwith radiocollars during the WildlifeRescue Programme. Two animals lostthe collars shortly after release.

Due to time constraints during Wild-life Rescue Programme the signals ini-tially were only monitored to assess ifthe animals were alive. The collarsused comprised a motion sensor whichallowed to detect if the animal wasactive, inactive or dead. Animals couldbe tracked from 0 to 30 days after

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Table II. Species rescued.Tableau II. Espèces sauvées.

Species Scientific name Number of individuals

Northern treeshrew Tupaia berlengeri 16

Sunda colugo Galeopterus variegatus 1

Primates

Pygmy loris Nycticebus pygmaeus 13

Northern slow loris Nycticebus bengalensis 1

Rhesus macaque Macaca mulatta 1

Northern pigtailed macaque Macaca leonina 1

Carnivores

Dhole Cuon alpinus 2

Binturong Arctictis binturong 1

Common palm civet Paradoxurus hermaphroditus 3

Large Indian Civet Viverra zibetha 4

Small Asian mongoose Herpestes javanicus 2

Crab-eating mongoose Herpestes urva 2

Hog badger Arctonyx collaris 1

Stripe-backed weasel Mustela strigidorsa 1

Rodents

Black giant Squirrel Ratufa bicolour 3

Pallas red-bellied squirrel Callosciurus erythraeus 88

Inornate squirrel Callosciurus inornatus 7

Red-cheeked squirrel Dremomys rufigenys 5

Cambodian striped squirrel Tamiops rodolphi 4

Indochinese ground squirrel Menetes berdmorei 2

Parti-coloured flying squirrel Hylopetes alboniger 3

Hairy-footed flying Squirrel Belomys pearsoni 1

East Asian porcupine Hystrix brachyura 4

Siames hare Lepus peguensis 2

Ungulates

Sambar deer Cervus unicolor 1

Large-antlered muntjac Megamuntjacus vuquangensis 38

Common muntjac Muntjacus muntjacus 15

Lesser mousedeer Tragulus javanicus 7

Wild pig Sus sp. 5


release and in average, they weretracked for 9 days after release. Thisallows to say that no animal died imme-diately after release and 66% of thetranslocated and collared muntjacsdefinitely survived the first week afterrelease. None of the collared animalswas found dead in the vicinity of therelease site during the whole durationof the project. Considering the well

Table II. Continued.Tableau II. suite.

Species Scien

Other

Sunda pangolin Manis javanic

Reptiles

Water monitor Varanus salva

Bengal monitor Varanus beng

Indochinese waterdragon Physognathus

Elongated tortoise Indotestudo e

Asian leaf turtle Cyclemys tche

Indochinese box turale Cuora galbinif

Impressed tortoise Manouria imp

Malayan snail eating turtle Malayemys su

Asian giant pond turtle Heosemys gra

White lipped pit viper Trimeresurus

Burmese python Python moluru

Indochinese rat snake Ptyas korros

Common rat snake Ptyas mucosu

Birds

Siamese fireback Lophura diard

Red junglefowl Gallus gallus

White headed laughing thrush Garrulax leuco

Chinese pond heron Spizaetus nip

Chinese francolin Francolinus p

Mountain hawk eagle Spizaetus nip

Mandarin duck Aix galericulat

documented high fatality ratesamongst captured ungulates this isconsidered a very positive result.

During the tracking survey con-ducted in April 2009, more than twomonths after the end of the WildlifeRescue Programme, we were able tolocate a female and male large-ant-lered muntjac northeast of the releasesite (Fig. 5). Despite the shortage of the

tific name Number of individuals

us 2

tor 2

alensis 11

cocincinus 1

longate 5

ponensis 2

rons 1

ressa 1

btrijuga 13

ndis 1

albolabris 1

s 2

2

s 1

i 1

1

lophus 3

alensis 1

intadeanus 2

alensis 1

a 1

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Fig. 3. Capture sites.

Fig. 3. Sites de captures.

Fig. 4. Rescue frequency over the year of the programme (start of impoundment: April 2008).

Fig. 4. Fréquence de sauvetage sur l’année du programme (début de la mise en eau : avril 2008).


time of the surveys, it was possible toassess that the animals were activeand moved with some regularity in thearea, which could indicate that the ani-mals have established a stable homer-ange in this area.

3.4 Considerations on rescueand translocation of conservationrelevant species

Pictures of relevant species are pre-sented in Appendix 1.

Pygmy loris Nycticebus pygmaeusLittle is known on distribution and

ecology of the small nocturnal primate(Appendix 1, Photo 1). But reports fromCambodia and Vietnam indicate that

Fig. 5. Tracking locations where signal from large-a

Fig. 5. Localisation des signaux reçus des Muntjacs

the species is rapidly declining in mostof its distribution range. It was also reg-ularly found in markets surrounding theproject area. However, during nightsurvey work on the reservoir a numberof lorises were rescued. Night surveyscould only be conducted in a restrictedarea and only for a limited time, but thissuggests that lorises were still abun-dant on the Nakai plateau at projectinception. The night surveys also con-firmed observations from Duckworth(1994), who found the species to bedirectly sympatric, an observation thathas not been made in any of the othercountries where lorises occur.

Binturong Arctictis binturongThe binturong has a large distribu-

tion area within Southeast Asia and in

ntlered muntjac male and female were received.

à grands bois mâles et femelles.

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some areas still remains widespread(Fig. 2). The capture of the animal onthe Nakai Plateau however means asignificant extension of the species’range in Lao PDR. The translocation ofa single young adult male has poten-tially a positive impact on the residentbreeding population.

Small Asian mongoose Herpestessp.

Two small Asian mongooses havebeen captured during the course of theproject (Appendix 1, Photo 2). There isevidence that the Small Asian mon-goose on the Nakai Plateau differ fromSmall Asian mongooses elsewhere inLao PDR and the region. Unfortunatelythis information was not available to thewildlife rescue teams during the courseof the project thus minimal data wascollected as the animal was catego-rized as a non-priority species. Severalphotographs are however available. Apair of small Asian mongooses werespotted around the release site severalweeks after the release. This indicatesthat the species is present at therelease site and it is likely the releasedindividuals had an opportunity to inte-grate into the existing population.

Colugo Galeopterus variegatusThe unexpected capture of a

Colugo was one of the big surprises inthe Wildlife Rescue Programme andwas only the second field observationof a colugo in Lao PDR (Appendix 1,Photo 3). Data collected on this animalhelped to provide a better understand-ing of this enigmatic species (Stalderet al., 2009). Colugo numbers in thewild are low and the successful translo-cation of even a single individual canbe an important contribution to the spe-cies’ survival.

Hairy-footed flying squirrel Belo-mys pearsoni

Parti-coloured flying squirrelHylopetes alboniger

Little is known about the small flyingsquirrels (Appendix 1, Photo 4) and therescues during the project providedonly the fifth record for this species inLao PDR. It also showed that at leasttwo small flying squirrel inhabit the pla-teau, a fact previously unknown. Thecapture of these animals in daylightwas a surprise well as their agility andconfidence moving between trees indaylight given their nocturnal activitypattern. This species occurs in very lownumbers and in this case every translo-cated individual can be a valuable con-tribution to the species’ conservation.

Stripe-backed weasel Mustelastrigidorsa

The Stripe-backed weasel is one ofthe least known small carnivores in theworld (Appendix 1, Photo 5). The spe-cies has not been recorded in the 2007baseline surveys for this project. Ourrecord not only first confirmed this spe-cies on the plateau but also providedthe first full set of photographs andmeasurements of a live specimen(Streicher et al., 2010).

Sambar Cervus unicolorVillagers captured a young Sambar

swimming in the reservoir, which wastaken over by the wildlife rescue teamand released. Evidence of Sambardeer (Appendix 1, Photo 6) was foundin a few locations east of Ban Thalangprior to inundation. It appeared theSambar on the plateau has large homeranges, therefore the general densityof these animals is very low.

Large-antlered muntjac Mega-muntjacus vuquangensis


This species was only described in1994 and is the largest of the muntjacspecies with males reaching weights ofup to about 60 kg (Appendix 1, Photo 7).It is endemic to the Annamite mountainrange in central Vietnam and Lao PDR.Very little is known about this speciesecology. Though the presence of theseanimals in the reservoir area wasknown, nothing was known about thespecies’ density on the plateau, its dis-tribution pattern on the plateau, its ecol-ogy or even its morphology. Further-more muntjacs are possibly the mosthunted wildlife species on the plateauand are hunted not for the trade but fordirect consumption. Signs of muntjachunting and hunting parties searchingfor muntjacs were frequently found onthe plateau. The capture and transloca-tion of these animals was of high con-servation value for two reasons: firstlyonce muntjacs were isolated on anisland there was no chance that theseanimals could survive the hunting pres-sure for long especially on islands thatwere easily accessible. Furthermorethe existing populations of large-ant-lered muntjacs in the Nakai – NamTheun National Protected Area arelikely to be depleted due to high huntingpressure and the addition of 38 healthybreeding animals to a depleted popula-tion means a significant contribution tothe species’ conservation.

Dhole Cuon alpinusTwo dhole cubs were found by

hunters on the plateau and transferredto the rescue programme. The animalswere in very bad condition and diedafter only a few days despite all efforts.Although this is a sad loss, reintroduc-ing captive reared carnivores is a

longterm project that is beyond thecapacity of the Wildlife Rescue Pro-gramme and requires adequate facili-ties, as the animals would have had toremain in a captive facility for the restof their life and such a facility does atpresent not exist in Lao PDR. For thewild dhole populations, these cubswere lost regardless. However theirfinding confirms the occurrence ofdhole on the plateau, a fact not con-firmed prior to this programme.

Sunda pangolin Manis javanicaLittle known and heavily exploited,

both pangolin species are meanwhileamongst the highly prized items in thewildlife trade. Knowledge on their ecol-ogy is still rudimentary, the species suf-fers from hunting and wildlife trade, andits future is unsure. Pangolins (Appen-dix 1, Photo 8) were confiscated by theReservoir Protection Unit of the Water-shed Management Protection Authorityof Nakai Nam-Theun from hunters.They were not meant for immediateconsumption but for the trade. Thishighlights the effectiveness of wildlifetrade networks in the region. Obviouslyeven in a remote area like Ban Thalanga hunter has no problem to find a traderfor pangolins.

Efforts to reintroduce trade confis-cated pangolins often fail. The chanceof survival of reintroduced pangolinsdepends on the time they have spent incaptivity and transport prior to release;the shorter the time the higher theprobability of survival. As these ani-mals were intercepted directly from thehunter and only spent a few days incaptivity they should have a chance ofsurvival and possibly be able to contrib-ute to the wild population.

18 U. Streicher

4 DISCUSSION

Wildlife rescue and translocationwas the main purpose of the pro-gramme. A total of 289 animals weretranslocated. The low number of res-cue cases is a result of the extremelyslow filling regime. Animals on theNakai Plateau experienced floodingregularly and were familiar with theneed to withdraw to higher grounds onthe North of the Plateau. Many animalsapparently moved out of the inunda-tion, when major parts of their homer-anges were flooded. The results of theprogramme suggest that only animalswith small homeranges remained onthe islands and required translocation.During the entire project the expectedlarge scale drowning of animals wasnever observed. The only animalexcept of fish, which was found dead inthe reservoir was one domestic goatnear Ban Thalang. However we did

Fig. 6. Rescue frequency and filling of the reservoir

Fig. 6. Fréquence de sauvetage et mise en eau du

observe very large water monitors andpythons and we assume that thehealthy numbers of these excellentlyswimming predators might have keptthe reservoir free of carcasses.

The extremely low number of fatali-ties during the wildlife capture andtranslocation has to be accounted to thecareful and deliberate implementationand has to be considered an outstand-ing success. Many representatives ofspecies with a high conservation valuewere translocated and can make a po-tential contribution to local populationsof those species.

But appropriate timing of activities isessential to stake financial resourcesand manpower economically. 93% ofall rescue cases occurred only afterAugust 2008, when the water level roseabove 533 m.a.s.l. (Fig. 6). 47% of allrescue cases occurred after November2008, when the water level rose above535.90 m.a.s.l. Only when islands

(asl = above sea level).

réservoir (asl = au-dessus du niveau de la mer).


became small could be effectivelylocalized and rescued.

After setting up the logistical frame-work for the programme, implementa-tion of the capture phase of the pro-gramme should only be started aftercontinuous surveys show that condi-tions are favourable for captures (sizeand accessibility of islands, presenceof animals on islands). But the occur-rence of stranded wildlife is very muchsubject to the filling regime and thegeomorphology and beyond the controlof the wildlife rescue team. Though alarge number of animals have beenrescued and translocated during thecourse of the project, a number of indi-viduals remained after project closureon large island in the Thousand Islandarea. But at that time the project hadalready been extended twice and fundsand staff were exhausted. Later com-mencing of the programme would haveallowed to continue after the completefilling of the reservoir. In any case plan-ning of such a programme should in thefuture always extend for severalmonths after the reservoir reaches fulllevel.

It is scientifically extremely valuableto conduct a wildlife rescue programmeduring the inundation of a large naturalhabitat. Every site has its unique geo-morphological features and the behav-iour of wildlife can simply not be pre-dicted. Such rescue programme mightlead to the discovery of new species forthe area or the country, which are notdetected in previous baseline surveys.Stranded and rescued wildlife providesa unique possibility for data collectionon animals. During the Nam Theun 2Hydropower Project the Wildlife Res-cue Programme was able to gather

information of substantial scientificvalue. Inundation provided unique pos-sibilities to gather, which could not begained in traditional surveys and thetranslocation and direct handling ofthe animals gave the opportunity to col-lect comprehensive data. The uniqueaccessibility of forest at canopy levelduring inundation is a huge opportunityfor scientists and should be maximallyutilized also with botanical studies.However no scientific work was con-ducted after the end of the WildlifeRescue Programme and the hugeopportunity to keep radiotracking theradiocollared large-antlered muntjacsafter April 2009 was missed. And onlycontinuous research in the reservoirarea and the neighbouring protectedareas does finally allow to assess thetrue impacts of the inundation project tolocal biodiversity.

The increase in water levels and thechange in the environment made theanimals vulnerable to hunting. Themore habitat disappeared the moreanimals got displaced from their homeranges. The islands got easily accessi-ble and hunting pressure increased inareas which before were very difficultto access. Protection of capture sitesand release sites as well as a veryclose cooperation of the wildlife rescueteam with the forest protection authori-ties was vital during the project. Coop-eration with forest protection authori-ties must be very close at all stages ofthe programme from the initial stagesonward and forest protection forcesshould actively participate in captureand translocate whenever possible toascertain capacity building in animalhandling which is a vital skill for forestprotection rangers. Forest protection

20 U. Streicher

rangers should be trained andequipped so after project closure theyhave the ability to respond to furtherwildlife rescue needs should thoseoccur.

In respect to achieve sustainableconservation of wildlife on the NakaiPlateau, raising awareness was animportant output of the Wildlife RescueProgramme. The placement of theproject staff in a resettlement villageascertained a very close relationshipwith the local population and daily pos-sibilities for awareness raising. In fact,several wild animals were brought tothe Wildlife Rescue Programme by vil-lagers. These were animals with a highconsumption value (sambar, monitor)or a high trade value (tortoises). Theprogramme was not able to give anykind of financial incentive to local peo-ple handing over wildlife and there wasno benefit for local people to do so. Theanimals were given to the project in agenuine effort to contribute to wildliferescue and not for material benefits.

Another shortcoming was thatwithin the programme there was nooption for a reward or pay raise ifexceptionally hard work was required.Basing the programme at the resettle-ment village ascertained that local peo-ple did clearly understand and supportthe purpose of wildlife rescue andtranslocation and conservation of wild-life on the plateau

5 CONCLUSION

To implement a wildlife rescueand translocation programme is animportant and worthwhile measure tominimize the negative impacts of a

hydropower project to the local biodi-versity. It does not only rescue individ-uals of species of conservation valueand allow that these can still contributeto the population of the species. It alsoallows continuous monitoring of thewildlife situation on the newly formingreservoir and is an important means torecognize and prevent illegal activities.It holds immense scientific possibilitiesand is a very important means to createawareness in the local population. Thebenefits by far outweigh the relativelylow cost and this opportunity should notbe missed in any hydropower project.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Conducting this programme was achallenge by some considered impos-sible, therefor I firstly want to thankKlaus Schoenfeldt and Stuart Gillonfrom the Nam Theun 2 HydropowerCompany for charging me with this task.Against all odds and those were manythey never seized to believe that I couldrun this. I know that they never regrettedtheir choice of consultant. After Klausleft Stephen Duthy continued to providethe same kind of support. They demon-strated how important it is to delegateand have confidence in others. Manythanks to all of them, wherever theymeanwhile are. Many thanks to all for-eign assistants, Brian Crudge, GabrielleStalder, Sebastian Ball, Neville Broadisand Ahmad Mas’ Adi. Thanks to myincredible Lao team – Lamphoune,Hongkham, Tuksamphane, Boee, Viet,Top, Joy and my Thalang staff Vanna,Somda, Mei, Khenkham, Chan andSon. And thanks to my working dogs,Ma Dam, Ma Deng, Ma Cao – without


them we would have achieved muchless. Thanks to the people of Thalang,who made us feel at home there and cel-ebrated every success with us how everstrange our work must have appearedto them. Thanks to the WMPA staff forexcellent cooperation. Thanks to WillDuckworth and Bill Robichaud forremaining interested in the scientificfindings of our programme all the waylong.

REFERENCES

Descloux S., Guédant P., Phommachanh D.& Luthi R., 2014. Main features of theNam Theun 2 hydroelectric project (LaoPDR) and the associated environmentalmonitoring programme. Hydroécol.Appl., same issue.

Duckworth J.W., 1994. Field sightings of thepygmy loris Nycticebus pygmaeus inLaos. Folia Primatol. 63 : 99-101.

Duval L., Streicher U., Stalder G., Pourrut X.,Bourgarel M., Ebang Ella G., Leroy E.,Landau I., Brey P. & Ariey F. New mole-cular data on two Haemosporidia rodent

parasites: Plasmodium atheruri fromAfrican brush-tailed porcupines andHepatocystis sp. from Asian squirrels.Parasitol. Research, in print.

IUCN/SSC, 2013. Guidelines for Reintro-ductions and Other Conservation Trans-locations. Version 1.0. Gland,Switzerland: IUCN Species SurvivalCommission, viiii + 57 p.

Stalder G., Broadis N., Mas’ Adi A. &Streicher U., 2009. Field Observation,Capture and Anaesthesia of a flyinglemur (Galeopterus variegates) in LaoPDR. Der Zoologische Garten 79 (2-3) :105-108.

Stalder G., Heymerle A. & Streicher U. Cap-ture and Anaesthesia of Large–antleredMuntjac (Megamuntjcus vuquangensis)under extremely stressful conditions,in print.

StreicherU.,DuckworthJ.W.&RobichaudW.,2010. Further records of Stripe-backedWeasel Mustela strigidorsa from LaoPDR. Tropical Natural History 10 (2).

Vie J.-C. 1999. Wildlife Rescues – the caseof the Petit Saut hydroelectric dam inFrench Guiana. Oryx 33 (2) : 115-126.

22 U. Streicher

Photo 1: Pygmy loris

Photo 3: Colugo

Photo 5: Stripe-backed weasel

Photo 7: Large-antlered muntjac

Appendix 1. Pictures of some relevant species fromAnnexe 1. Photo de quelques espèces concernéesau niveau de NT2.

Photo 2: Small Asian Mangoose

Photo 4: Flying squirrel (under anaesthesia)

Photo 6: Sambar

Photo 8: Sunda pangolin

the wildlife rescue and found in the NT2.par le sauvetage de la faune sauvage et trouvées

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The Wildlife Rescue Programme of the Nam Theun 2 Hydropower … · 2020. 5. 24. · Le programme de sauvetage de la faune sauvage du projet hydroélectrique de Nam Theun 2 (Laos)