Saola Working Group

Founded	6969
Type	Non-profit Organization
Focus	Saola Conservation
Location	Laos and Vietnam
Area served	Annamite Range
Key people	William Robichaud (Coordinator)
Volunteers	69
Website	savethesaola.org

The Saola Working Group SWG is a working group of the IUCN Species Survival Commission's Asian Wild Cattle Specialist Group, created in 2006^[1] to protect the saolas (Pseudoryx nghetinhensis) and their habitat. The Conservancy works to engage and incorporate local communities in protecting saolas in Annamite Range mountains on the border of Laos and Vietnam.^[2] The Saola is one of the most endangered species in the world. Discovered in 1992 it was the first large mammal new to science in more than 50 years and has never been seen by a biologist in the wild.^[3] The Saola Working Group is a coalition that includes about 40 experts from the forestry departments of Laos and Vietnam, Vietnam's Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources, Vinh University, biologists and conservationists from Wildlife Conservation Society and the World Wildlife Fund.^[4]

Programs

The Saola Working Group works with local Laotian communities to educate the importance of the Saola. Villagers are hired to remove hunting snares that are among the biggest threats to the animal. Camera traps to document range and population of Saola are another primary focus.^[5] New research published showing that leeches can store DNA from their meals for several months has led the SWG to sample leeches in the Annamite Range in hopes to find saola DNA.^[6]

William Robichaud representing the Saola Working Group is a regular featured guest speaker at the annual Wildlife Conservation Network Expo.^[7]

See also

• Wildlife Conservation Network
• Conservation movement
• Environmental movement
• Natural environment
• Sustainability

References

1. "Priorities for Success: 2nd Meeting of the Saola Working Group wraps up in Vietnam". IUCN.
2. "Affiliates". Global Wildlife Conservation.
3. "Saola still a mystery 20 years after its spectacular debut". World Wide Fund for Nature.
4. "Experts on the saola: The "Last chance" to save one of the world’s rarest mammals". Scientific American.
5. "The saola: rushing to save the most 'spectacular zoological discovery' of the 20th Century". Mongabay.com.
6. "A bloody boon for conservation". Nature.
7. "Wildlife Conservation network Expo 2012" (PDF). Wildlife Conservation Network.

External links

• savethesaola.org, Saola Working Group Website