Pressureful cross-border journey
At 9 pm on June 23, the door of a specialized vehicle slowly opened in Tram Chim National Park. After nearly 19 hours of continuous movement, 6 red-crowned crane individuals successively stepped down to the semi-wild area under the supervision of conservation experts.
On the afternoon of June 24, the handover and official reception program was held in Tram Chim commune, marking the second reception of the Project "Conservation and development of Red-crowned Cranes in Tram Chim National Park for the period 2022-2032".
Behind that peaceful moment is a thoroughly prepared transnational journey. For birds that are particularly sensitive to noise, temperature and environmental changes, every stage of transportation is carefully calculated to ensure absolute safety.
Dr. Tran Triet - Director of the Southeast Asian Crane Conservation Program, who directly participated in the receiving delegation, said that from early morning on June 23, experts at Nakhon Ratchasima Zoo (Korat, Thailand) checked the health, putting each individual into a specialized transportation cage before departing for Vietnam.
According to Mr. Nguyen Phuoc Thien - Vice Chairman of Dong Thap Provincial People's Committee, for the cranes to reach Tram Chim safely, there is close coordination of many domestic and foreign organizations and units. In which, Vietnam Airlines supports the transportation of cranes from Thailand to Vietnam; quarantine agencies, customs and functional forces create conditions to quickly complete entry procedures.
After landing at Tan Son Nhat airport, the specialized vehicle convoy immediately set off for Dong Thap. On a distance of more than 150km, the Traffic Police force organized guidance, prioritizing transport vehicles to move continuously, minimizing stopping and parking to reduce stress for the cranes.
The smooth coordination between conservation experts, transportation units and functional agencies of Vietnam and Thailand has helped six red-crowned cranes complete their journey of more than 1,000km safely and on schedule.
Affirming the bravery of Red Lotus Land
Dr. Tran Triet emphasized that the biggest difference of this reception is that the cranes are brought straight to the semi-wild area of Tram Chim National Park immediately after completing the necessary procedures.
Previously, in 2025, the first six red-crowned cranes had to stay at Saigon Zoo and Botanical Gardens to implement isolation time before being transferred to Dong Thap. This year, the process has been shortened when Tram Chim has fully met the conditions to receive, care for and nurture the crane herd right in the locality.
According to Thai experts, the semi-wild farming system, veterinary procedures, care and quarantine at Tram Chim National Park have now met technical requirements. This is the result of the process of investing and completing infrastructure to serve the Red-crowned Crane Conservation and Development Project.
In parallel with that, Dong Thap is also implementing many solutions to restore the ecosystem of the core area and Tram Chim buffer zone. The regulation of hydrology according to natural laws, the restoration of Ngan Kim beaches - the main food source of Red-crowned Cranes - and the ecological rice production model in the buffer zone are gradually creating a suitable living environment for this rare bird species.
According to the plan, six red-crowned cranes will continue to be monitored for health, cared for and trained to adapt to natural conditions before gradually implementing the re-release roadmap.
The successful reception of six more red-crowned cranes not only marks a new step forward in the Project "Conservation and Development of Red-crowned Cranes at Tram Chim National Park in the period 2022-2032", but also shows that Tram Chim is gradually meeting the conditions to restore the red-crowned crane population in nature, towards the goal of building a sustainable wetland ecosystem in Dong Thap Muoi.
