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Paul Christiansen

in Travel

Ruminate on Our Natural Legacies While Surrounded by Cây Sao at Ao Bà Om

I never pass up an opportunity to reflect on chò nâu and its dipterocarp relative, cây sao. The massive trees that gracefully drag bare limbs upwards to unfurl canopies far above our heads were brough...

Paul Christiansen

in Natural Selection

One Nation's Beloved Cá Lóc Is Another Nation's Horror Movie

America has been losing its shit over snakeheads. All summer long my algorithm-led newsfeed has been alerting me to ominous headlines including “‘Horror movie’ snakehead fish that can slither on land ...

in Environment

On the 12th Day of Christmas Saigoneer Gave to Me: 12 Birdcalls From Across Vietnam

Almost everywhere we go in the world, birdsong abounds.

Paul Christiansen

in Natural Selection

An Ode to Lục Bình, Vietnam's Invasive, Destructive, Beautiful Aquatic Jerk

Knotted gnarls of lush stems, leaves, vines; a verdant scrimmage of tangled plant matter kept afloat by buoyant bladders accented by pleats of pink petals that resemble the skirts of ballerinas trappe...

in Environment

Learning to Coexist in Peace Is the First Step to Protect Vietnam's Last Remaining Elephants

A trail of enormous footprints, criss-crossing slabs of cracked concrete, lead to a battered ranger station in Vietnam’s Pù Mát National Park. Park staff say the wild Asian elephant that left the trac...

in In Plain Sight

In Hanoi, the Vietnam Museum of Nature Is an Inquisitive Child's Heaven

Amidst the dull, grey buildings of the Hanoi University of Science and Technology, a giant dinosaur model stands out. The T-Rex was guarding the entrance to the Vietnam National Museum of Nature (Bảo ...

Khôi Phạm

in Natural Selection

The Rise and Fall of Phượng Vĩ, the Summer Icon of Our Teenage Dreams

I was a teenage cliché. No matter how much I try to rack my brain to find any other personal connection to the incandescently red tree that is phượng vĩ, I keep going back to my middle school crush an...

in Environment

Another Hoàn Kiếm Turtle Dies in Hanoi, Setting Back Conservation Efforts

It’s reported that a “Hoàn Kiếm turtle” living in Hanoi has died, further impeding efforts by conservationists to keep the species from extinction.

Paul Christiansen

in Natural Selection

The Ugly Truth of the Life and Impending Demise of the Hoàn Kiếm Turtle

Everyone knows the mythological story of the Hoàn Kiếm turtle.

in Environment

I Saw the World's Most Handsome Bird Right in Vietnam's Hidden Backyard

Everywhere I go in Vietnam, I keep my eyes peeled for the incredible birds that call this country home. Sometimes I don’t even realize that I’m doing it. I scan the horizon above low hills for migrato...

in Environment

The Nocturnal Thrill of Capturing Vietnam's Elegant Fauna in Wildlife Photography

For most people, walking in the jungle at night would sound like a bad idea. A lack of knowledge and many misbeliefs, unfortunately, create bad assumptions about the wilderness after dark. And snakes,...

in Natural Selection

Gõ Nước: An Endangered Tree That Offers Hope for Conservation Efforts

Is it true that the more names something has, the more beloved it is? Consider all the nicknames you have for your best friends, or the myriad of terms people have invented for deities. If one can ass...

in Natural Selection

Đom Đóm: Why the Light Is Going Out for Fireflies in Vietnam

Much like their brief existence on Earth, once-common fireflies are quickly disappearing from Vietnam’s natural and oral histories.

in Environment

Searching for the World's Largest Woodpecker Species in Yok Đôn National Park

You first know she’s approaching by the sound of her wings; her broad shadow flashing across the forest floor. Even from far below, her body looks enormous. At half a meter long, she is roughly five t...

Michael Tatarski

in Natural Selection

Cầy Vằn Bắc: Caught in the Crossfire of the Cà Phê Chồn Industry

While Saigoneer’s Natural Selection series has already covered a number of iconic species and types of animals, including the tiger, Asian elephant, dogs and cats, there’s a good chance most of the pe...

Michael Tatarski

in Environment

Scientists Confirmed 91 New Species in Vietnam in 2020, WWF Report Shows

A new report from the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) highlights just how biodiverse the Greater Mekong region remains, even as major threats continue to impact flora and fauna populations.

in Environment

New Flowering Plant Species Confirmed in Central Vietnam Nature Reserve

If you discovered a new plant, what would you call it?

Paul Christiansen

in Natural Selection

Sao La: The Real-Life Unicorn of Vietnam

Disney’s Aladdin, Super Nintendo, digital fingerprint technology: the outside world was familiar with all these by 1992. Sao la, however, remained unknown. 

in Environment

24 Live Tigers Rescued From Wildlife Trade in Nghe An This Week

Shocking news from Nghe An Province.

Michael Tatarski

in Natural Selection

Voọc Cát Bà: The Endangered Primate of Karst Land

Imagine being born one color, and growing up into a very differently hued adult.

in Saigon

A New Baby Giraffe Was Born at the Saigon Zoo. You Can Help Name Her.

Will this attempt at another public naming contest go wrong or remain wholesome this time?

Michael Tatarski

in Environment

Vietnam's New Nature Reserve, Khe Nuoc Trong, Is a Sign of Hope for Biodiversity

In a move wildlife conservationists are hailing as a victory, Vietnam has established a new nature reserve encompassing critical habitat for numerous species, several of them threatened globally with ...

in Environment

A New Mantis Species in Vietnam Was Named After David Attenborough

If you've ever stared into nature and had the calming voice of an elderly British man enter to narrate the scene, you are probably a David Attenborough fan.

in Music & Arts

[Illustrations] Local Designer Turns Vietnam's Endangered Species Into Geometric Stamps

Beautiful illustrations of animals on stamps take on a mournful tone within the context of extinction.

in Asia

11 Nests of Rare Sea Turtles Found in Thailand Amid Lockdown

When the cat's away, the mice will play; or in this case, during pandemic lockdown, animals will reclaim the spaces once bustling with human activity.

in Environment

Thua Thien-Hue Plans to Build 157-Hectare Bird Sanctuary

The 157-hectare bird sanctuary 15 kilometers outside of Hue aims to attract wild birds back to their natural habitat. 

in Environment

Huge Flock of Endangered Bird Species Appears in Dong Nai

To quote Dr. Ian Malcolm in Jurassic Park, "Life, uh, finds a way."

in Society

[Photos] The Childhood of Con Dao's Baby Turtles Caught on Film

In July, I visited Con Dao National Park as part of a group of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) sea turtle volunteers to see first-hand conservation efforts aimed at the loca...

in Development

[Photos] Inside Cat Tien National Park's New Bear Sanctuary Made From Wire and Pebbles

The group of buildings inside Cat Tien National Park provides a comfortable home to 40 sun and moon bears that have been rescued from illegal trafficking and the bear bile industry.

in Vietnam

Vietnam Opens 2018 With New Program to Protect Sea Turtles

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has announced its plan to embark on a program aimed at conserving marine turtles in Quang Ngai’s Ly Son Island in 2018.