National Action Plan for Conservation of Gibbons welcomed in
Vientiane The Government of Lao People’s Democratic Republic
(PDR) has taken a further step to demonstrate its commitment to
protecting globally important biodiversity by launching a
national action plan for the conservation of gibbons. Throughout
their range gibbons are under considerable threat, often
restricted to isolated patches of forest within a region with
some of the highest human population densities in the world,
namely South-East Asia. It is a poorly known fact that Lao PDR
is one of the most species-rich countries in the world when it
comes to gibbons. Altogether six species of gibbon are known
from Lao PDR, among 17 species globally, and the country offers
the best chance for long-term survival for at least two of them.
Of particular significance are the crested gibbons, of which
there are four species in Lao PDR. This is the most endangered
genus of gibbons and they are found almost exclusively east of
the Mekong River, also in Cambod