Vietnam's elephant population that has suffered severe declines during the past three decades is now believed to number 60-80 individuals in the wild. Cat Tien National Park is thought to be one of the key areas for the recovery of Vietnam's elephants. We carried out a molecular genetic study of elephants in Cat Tien National Park and its adjoining areas with the objectives of estimating minimum population size, assessing genetic diversity, and obtaining insights into social organization. We obtained a minimum population size of 11 elephants based on a combination of unique nuclear microsatellite genotypes and mitochondrial haplotypes. While mitochondrial diversity based on a 600-base pair segment was high in this small sample of individuals, the six microsatellite loci examined showed low diversity and the signature of a recent population bottleneck. Along with nuclear genetic depauperation of Cat Tien's elephants, we also report disruption of normal social organization, with different matrilines having coalesced into a single social group because of anthropogenic disturbance. The results emphasize the critical condition of this elephant population and the need for urgent conservation measures if this population is to be saved.

To evaluate the application of camera-trap technology in population dynamics studies of the Asian elephant, indigenously designed, cost-effective, infrared-triggered camera-traps were used.Usability of pictures was defined based on quality, clarity and positioning of the subject.With 99 pictures of 330 elephants, 20 sequences were obtained and 44 distinct individuals were identified.It was found that 38.6% were adult females, 4.5% adult males, 13.6% sub-adult females, 6.8% sub-adult males, 20.4% juvenile females,while juvenile males were poorly represented(2%), and 13.6% were calves.These results were surprising identical with those of other systematic and long-term studies.

This study updates the status and conservation of the Endangered Asian elephant Elephas maximus in Cat Tien National Park, Vietnam. Line transect indirect surveys, block surveys for elephant signs, village surveys of elephant-human conflict incidents, guard-post surveys for records of sightings, and surveys of elephant food plants were undertaken during the dry and wet seasons of 2001. A minimum of 11 elephants and a maximum of 15-17 elephants was estimated for c. 500 km 2 of the Park and its vicinity. The elephants are largely confined to the southern boundary of the Park and make extensive use of the adjoining La Nga State Forest Enterprises. During the dry season the elephants depend on at least 26 species of wild and cultivated plants, chiefly the fruits of cashew. Most of the villages surveyed reported some elephant-human conflict. Two adult male elephants seem to cover a large area to raid crops, whereas the family groups restrict themselves to a few villages; overall, the conflict is not serious. Since 2001 there have been no reports of any deaths or births of elephants in the Park. We make recommendations for habitat protection and management, increasing the viability of the small population, reducing elephant-human conflicts, and improving the chances of survival of the declining elephants of this Park. The Government has now approved an Action Plan for Urgent Conservation Areas in Vietnam that calls for the establishment of three elephant conservation areas in the country, including Cat Tien National Park.

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Two methods namely, short strip transect count(SSTC)and point count(PC),were evaluated to select a robust method of estimating bird diversity on the campus of the Indian Institute of Science, a man-made ecosystem. For bird species/h(PC=6.7,SSTC=3.0) and the number of birds/km2h (PC=184.7,SSTC=40.3),The PC method encountered more species and individuals in relatively shorter time. The mean number of sightings and species per minute (sightings:PC=1.31,SE=0.08,SSTC=0.9,SE=0.07,species:PC=1.09, SE=0.06 and SSTC=0.67,SE=0.03) were also more in the PC method and the differences are very significant (sightings=3.09,p<0.001 and for species=5.48,p<0001). Species accumulation curve richness, diversity(H'=1.98(PC) and 1.75(SSTC),and evenness(E)(0.610 for PC, and 0.50 for SSTC) also favoured the PC method.These results indicate that the PC is an appropriate method for estimating bird diversity.The paper also discusses the possible ecological reasons for PC being a robust method.