Transect 104

Field crew at Phong Dien Nature Reserve in the Truong Son Mountains of Central Vietnam marking the start of transect 104 in their rattan inventory (see Song Thanh N.R. and  Field Books). This is 104 out of a total of 160 transects that they were required to sample. Image below provides a little context as to where the crew actually was. There's a road, a lot of forest - and not much else. Yellow line in the upper left is the border with Lao P.D.R. Spatial coordinates are included in case anyone wants to visit the site.  

Phong Dien

Had the last rattan inventory meeting this morning at the Phong Dien Nature Reserve headquarters. Was well attended and there was a lively discussion about managing rattan in buffer zones together with communities. I'm a big fan of this idea and was delighted that the park staff brought it up. That's Mr. Biu Van Thanh (see Kon-Tun), my local counterpart and translator, standing up on the right. The white bust with the bouquet of flowers prominently displayed to the left of the screen is, of course, Ho Chi Minh.