A small blackish muntjac has been discovered in the west Quang Nam province of Vietnam. DNA sequencing of six individuals showed that this is a distinct species. A description is given. The new find is the third new ungulate species to be discovered in Vietnam in five years. The paper predicts that more species remain to be found in the Annamite mountain range and includes DNA analysis from two more undescribed species. The DNA analysis indicates that there has been a radiation of several related muntjac species in the Annamite mountains, also that the new truongson muntjac shows high intraspecific genetic diversity indicative of a large effective population size. The paper discusses the significance of these finds from an evolutionary and conservation viewpoint. The authors urge conservation authorities in the IndoChinese countries to devote special measures to protect this site of dynamic evolution which retains a combination of relict endemics (e.g. Pseudoryx) as well as on‐going speciation.
In May 1992 the discovery of three pairs of horns in the only remaining area of pristine forest in northern Vietnam led to the description of a new species of ox. A total of 20 specimens have now been found, most of them consisting of only the horns and part of the skull. The Ministry of Forestry in Vietnam is enlarging and upgrading protected areas in the suspected 4000-sq-km range of the Vu Quang ox and surveys are under way in two proposed reserves in neighbouring Laos where the ox is also reported to occur. Meanwhile a local campaign is necessary to inform villagers of the valuable nature of this species and to ban further hunting.
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