A Feasibility Study for the Establishment of Xuan Lien Nature ...

Section 2 - Site Features
elevations were also present in lower areas. These species included Euploea mulciber, Faunis eumeus,
Notocrypta feistamelii, Paralaxita dora, Yasoda tripunctata and Abisara neophron. Some species were found
only above 1,200 m: Ragadia crisilda, Thaumantis diores, Bassarona iva and Parantica sita. The distributions
of most of the species recorded are restricted to the Indochinese peninsular and East Asia (Appendix 5).
Eighty five species (59% of the total) have a distribution restricted to East Asia. Twenty eight species
(20%) have a distribution restricted to the Indochina sub-region and the distribution of 14 species
(10%) is restricted to northern Indochina. Eleven species have a distribution restricted to the tropical
region of Indo-Australia.
Endemic Species. Ten species found in the study area are endemic to Vietnam. These species belong
mainly to the Satyridae and Amathusiidae and include Neorina patria, Lethe syrcis, L. naga, Mycalesis
misenus and Enispe euthymius sychaeus. Celaenorrinhus vietnamicus is a recently described species
(Devyatkin 1997) endemic to Vietnam, which is also known from Pu Mat Nature Reserve and Cuc
Phuong National Park
New Species. The field survey recorded a new species in the Satyridae, Ypthima sp. nov. (Monastyrskii
in prep.). The first specimen of this species was collected at Pu Mat Nature Reserve with a later specimen
collected at Ben En National Park. During the field survey, three specimens were observed, one of
which was collected. This species occurs in bamboo forest or secondary forest habitats at low elevations
(300 to 400 m).
New Distribution Records. The survey found six species which had not previously been recorded in
either central Vietnam or Vietnam as a whole. Jamides virgulatus and Celaenorrhinus inaequalis represent
new records for Vietnam. Four species in the Hesperiidae (Iton semamora, Scobura phiditia, Matapa
cresta and Halpe frontieri) had not been recorded in central Vietnam previously, only in northern Vietnam
(Evans 1949, Devyatkin and Monastyrskii in press).
In addition to these new records, Unkana ambassa was recorded during the field survey. This species
was first recorded in Vietnam in 1998, and the specimen from Xuan Lien proposed nature reserve is
only the second record. The species is yet to be described and is not included in inventories of the
butterfly fauna of Vietnam.
Endangered Species. During the field survey, no nationally or globally threatened species of butterfly
were recorded. However, Rhinopalpa polynice is a relatively rare species in Vietnam, with recent records
from Ben En National Park and Pu Mat Nature Reserve. In Laos, Thailand and the Malay peninsular,
this species is also considered rare.
2.14 Socio-Cultural Features
Xuan Lien proposed nature reserve includes all or part of six communes in Thuong Xuan district; an
additional three communes are included in the buffer zone. The total population of the proposed
nature reserve is 600 households, comprising 200 households in Xuan Lien commune and 400 households
in Xuan My commune. The Thanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee propose to build a dam in
Xuan My commune to supply water for irrigation and hydro-electricity. The water level of the resulting
artificial lake will rise to 100 m above sea level, flooding approximately 7,000 ha, including approximately
1,716 ha within the proposed nature reserve. As a result of this, cultivated land will be inundated and
residents will be forced to relocate to new areas under a programme organised by Thanh Hoa province.
Consequently, the nature reserve will not include any human settlements in the future.
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