
Natural Selection
A Brief History of Ngựa, a Non-Native Animal Vietnam Has Made Its Own
Are horses a Vietnamese animal?
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Natural Selection
Kiến Ba Khoang: Not an Ant, but a Harbinger of Dread and Divine Punishment
People’s skin erupted with horrific boils that burst open, spilling stinging pus across vicious rashes. According to the Christian Bible, along with water turning to blood, frogs, lice, gnats, diseased livestock, hail, locusts, darkness for three days and the killing of firstborn sons, the boils were one of the plagues God sent down to ancient Egyptians to compel them to free the Israelites.

Natural Selection
Kiến Ba Khoang: Not an Ant, but a Harbinger of Dread and Divine Punishment
People’s skin erupted with horrific boils that burst open, spilling stinging pus across vicious rashes. According to the Christian Bible, along with water turning to blood, frogs, lice, gnats, diseased livestock, hail, locusts, darkness for three days and the killing of firstborn sons, the boils were one of the plagues God sent down to ancient Egyptians to compel them to free the Israelites.

Environment
WildAct's Trang Nguyễn Turns to Social Media to Inspire a New Generation to Love Nature
Dr. Trang Nguyễn — a wildlife conservation scientist with a PhD from Cambridge and the founder of WildAct — needs little introduction. She has been recognized as one of Forbes Asia’s 30 under 30 , called a conservation “hero” by Sir David Attenborough on BBC’s Planet Earth III , and had her inspiring story, which includes going undercover to bring down illegal ivory poaching rings in Africa after surviving cancer, covered widely . But much of her work has been behind the scenes or at least in corners devoted to conservations. Her recent arrival on the social media scene, amongst memes, music videos, and TikTok challenges, represents a shift in approach.

Saigon
After Saigon Police Bust Major Pet Theft Ring, the City Rallies to Help Care for 400 Cats
After an extended investigation, the Hồ Chí Minh City Police Department has busted a major cat theft and distribution ring that operated across multiple southern provinces.

Culture
Whale Worship: Exploring the Role of Whales in Vietnam's Coastal Lore
In 1799, the ferocious Tây Sơn army forced the first Nguyễn Emperor, Nguyễn Ánh, and his troops to flee to the sea. While making their escape, a great storm engulfed the retreating army. As their ship’s mast shivered and the hull shuddered, threatening to break it into splinters, a great whale rose from the depths. It lifted the emperor's boat and carried him and his men to safety. To thank the animal, Ánh bestowed upon whales the official title of "Nam Hải Cự Tộc Ngọc Lân Thượng Đẳng Thần," which was shortened to Cá Ông, or “Lord Fish.”

Culture
US Presidents, Russian Mascot, and Tintin: The Surprising History Behind Vietnam's Dog Names
As Vietnamese society progresses, dogs and cats’ role in our families have gradually elevated to worthy life companions instead of mere animal help in previous generations. While the archive of pet names today seems endless and every day you can easily bump into pets bearing hilariously human names, tasty food dishes, or glorious adjectives, the naming conventions of Vietnamese domestic animals in the past had recurring themes that directly correspond to the cultural and historical atmosphere of when they were coined.

Natural Selection
Voọc Cát Bà: The Endangered Primate of Karst Land
Imagine being born one color, and growing up into a very differently hued adult.

Environment
Vietnam's Woolly Bat Is Being Hunted to Extinction to Be Halloween Decorations
With hues of orange and black on its wings and a furry, fluffy face, the painted woolly bat is a stunner. But its beauty has become a deadly liability. People want to hang the bats — dead and stuffed — on their walls, display them as collectibles and even set them in jewelry.
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Natural Selection
Are horses a Vietnamese animal?

Environment
A trail of enormous footprints, criss-crossing slabs of cracked concrete, lead to a battered ranger station in Vietnam’s Pù Mát National Park. Park staff say the wild Asian elephant that left the tracks is as friendly as it is lonely.

Natural Selection
“The shimmering pine trees stand in silence / Branches and leaves seem to have sunk silently. / How can one distinguish between reality and fantasy!”

Saigoneer Getaways
What’s new? What’s trendy? What haven’t I explored? Such questions often dictate our travel plans, but sometimes, we’d be better off asking the opposite: What’s old? What’s impervious to being in style? Where have I been before and loved?

Natural Selection
A drop of the animal’s blood renders the soil barren; entire mountains can crumble and collapse where it landed. Be wary of this slow wayfarer of the forest, for if you catch sight of its glowing eyes in the distant darkness, your trip is doomed and should be abandoned immediately. And if someone brings one back to the village, make all efforts to return it to the jungle, lest you invite sorrow and ruin into your home. Don’t let its meagre stature, a mere 500 grams, and slow, cuddly demeanor confuse you; the cu li guards the gates to hell.

Environment
You first know she’s approaching by the sound of her wings; her broad shadow flashing across the forest floor. Even from far below, her body looks enormous. At half a meter long, she is roughly five times the size of the woodpeckers seen in the gardens of Europe or North America. She is the largest woodpecker left in the world, and the jewel of Yok Đôn National Park.

Environment
What is your favorite sound?

Natural Selection
I won’t bury the lede. If you are wandering Vietnam’s jungles and suddenly get a whiff of an odor that transports you to the entrance of a CineStar movie theatre, don’t ready yourself for another clichéd Marvel flick. Instead, look into the trees for a cầy mực (binturong).

Society
In July, I visited Côn Đảo National Park as part of a group of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) sea turtle volunteers to see first-hand conservation efforts aimed at the local sea turtle population.

Environment
Seeking a companion during quarantine, Khánh*, a 25-year-old Hanoian, bought a baby turtle through a Facebook group.

Environment
Worms live in the ground, birds live in the air, cá lóc live in lakes and octopuses live in the ocean, right? Wrong! Octopus can also live in the river.