Red River freshwater swamp forests
Satellite view of the Red River Valley, Vietnam. (Photograph by USGS)
Introduction This ecoregion (Red River freshwater swamp forests) is nearly extinct. Representing the swamp forests of the Red River in northern Vietnam, the natural habitat has long been cleared for agriculture. Today it is nearly impossible to even ascertain the natural biodiversity that used to occur in this ecoregion.
Location and General Description
WWF
This ecoregion comprises the freshwater swamp forests along the lower Red River in northern Vietnam.
Swamp forest occurs inland of the mangroves in freshwater conditions. Freshwater swamp forest occurs on permanently or seasonally flooded mineral soils, often in zones up to 5 kilometers (km) wide, along rivers or around freshwater lakes. The original vegetation in these freshwater swamp forests may have been Melaleuca-dominated. This ecoregion used to provide habitat for several endangered species of mammals and birds.
Biodiversity Features
Freshwater [[swamp]s] support a wide variety of plant species, many limited to this specialized habitat, and they support a great diversity of freshwater fish, birds, and mammals. There are no endemic birds or mammals in this ecoregion.
Current Status
This freshwater swamp forest ecoregion along the lower Red River in northern Vietnam has been almost totally cleared of its original habitat. There are no protected areas in this ecoregion, and little freshwater swamp forest remains.
Types and Severity of Threats
Most of these forests have been converted for agricultural use and settlements.
Additional information on this ecoregion
- For a shorter summary of this entry, see the WWF WildWorld profile of this ecoregion.
- To see the species that live in this ecoregion, including images and threat levels, see the WWF Wildfinder description of this ecoregion.
- World Wildlife Fund Homepage
Further Reading
- References for this ecoregion are currently consolidated in one document for the entire Indo-Pacific realm: Indo-Pacific Reference List
| Disclaimer: This article is taken wholly from, or contains information that was originally published by, the World Wildlife Fund. Topic editors and authors for the Encyclopedia of Earth may have edited its content or added new information. The use of information from the World Wildlife Fund should not be construed as support for or endorsement by that organization for any new information added by EoE personnel, or for any editing of the original content. |
