Tram Chim National Park in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap is a highlight in the local tourism map, according to Nguyen Ngoc Thuong, Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Birds flock to Tram Chim National Park.

The park, flooded for half the year and dry for the other six months, spans more than 7,300 hectares in Tam Nong district. It is inhabited by 231 species of water birds, including 16 rare birds such as the Burmese Sarus crane, greater adjutant, black-headed ibis, black-faced spoonbill and great-billed heron.

Vice director of the park Nguyen The Hanh said that Asian openbill storks have flocked to the park and they are prioritised for preservation. The park has a good environment with appropriate water level for the development of flora and aquatic animals, Hanh added.

The World Wide Fund for Nature in Vietnam provided 2.6 billion VND (114,000 USD) for a project encouraging eco-tourism and sustainable use of natural resources in the park in 2017. The project aims to improve livelihoods for locals through community-based tourism.

The park will also store and exhibit eggs of birds from the Mekong Delta region.

The park is the fourth Ramsar site of Vietnam and the 2000th Ramsar site of Wetlands of International Importance in the world. 

It has become a tourism destination for both domestic and foreign visitors. In the first half of this year, the park welcomed more than 75,000 visitors, a year-on-year surge of 26.03 percent and earned revenue exceeding 3.8 billion VND (167,000 USD), up 81.47 percent from the same time last year.

VNA