Discovering treasures in the sky in the Na Hau primeval forest

Located deep in the old Northwest forest, Na Hau commune, Van Yen district, Yen Bai province, is the place that the H'Mong people chose to stick with for decades. For the family, forests are not only a support, but also a way for them to survive, the greatest asset that nature gives them.

Mr. Giang Chan Din - one of the first people to devastate this land said: "When other ethnic groups left because of difficult living conditions, the H'Mong people chose to stay because they saw the potential of the forest. We keep in mind - while the forest is the village, preserving the forest is preserving food".

Respect and protection of forests is not only in belief, but in Na Hau that spirit is also expressed through specific and drastic actions of the H'Mong people.

In Na Hau, each village has a forest protection team - a group of villagers who volunteer to be "forest watchmen". They go every week 1-2 times a month, preventing acts of deforestation and illegal exploitation.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Tuyet - Deputy Head of Van Yen District Forest Protection Department shared: Na Hau is a primeval forest with a long history, the forest structure has not been broken. In the core area, there are many caves with beautiful and diverse bulbs.

Regarding the forest plant system, there are 396 species, including 27 rare plant species listed in the Vietnam Red Book.

Regarding wildlife, there are about 72 species of animals, 240 species of birds, 48 species of reptiles, etc., including many species with names in the Vietnam Red Book and the World Red List such as mountain goose, bear, black reindeer, gray langur, big-headed turtle, and flower festival.

The forest area in the core area of the reserve is also home to a number of bird species with narrow distribution, including some globally threatened bird species such as rhinopods, landrests, etc.

Ms. Tuyet explained that in 2006, Na Hau Nature Reserve was established, but people have lived here for a long time. The strange thing is that although no one has managed it before, the primeval forest canopy here are very well preserved, people have established codes and conventions on protection, as well as clear rewards for those who violate.

Every year, the people here hold a forest worship ceremony to report and thank the forest god for protecting them.

According to Na Hau Commune Party Secretary Vu Xuan Ba, the whole commune has more than 500 households with over 2,500 people. Although the people's lives are still difficult, they always agree to preserve and protect the forest according to the laws passed down from generation to generation.

Thanks to that, over the years, the area of special-use primeval forests in the core area of Na Hau Nature Reserve has been well protected by groups of households, contributing to making this a rare locality in Yen Bai with a forest cover of 90%.