THE EXTRAORDINARY, ENDANGERED
INDOCHINESE LEOPARD

The Indochinese leopard, Panthera pardus delacouri, is a subspecies of leopard native to the dense bush areas and rocky outcrops of mainland Southeast Asia and southern China. It is one of the five species in the genus Panthera and a member of the Felidae family. It stands 60 to 80 centimeters high at the shoulder and weighs between 40 and 90 kilograms. The fur on the leopard’s back is almost rusty-red in color, but paler at the sides with small dots that are so close together that they look dark.

The mythic black leopard is the melanistic color variant of the big cat species, something quite common in dense tropical forest habitats, which gives them a selective advantage for ambush. The ancient Greeks believed the panther was one of the favored mounts of the god Dionysus, and the Greek word for “panther” could be interpreted as “every wild beast” – evoking the idea of a composite creature believed to be a hybrid of a lion and a panther. In Germany, the panther is frequently depicted in heraldry as a creature with four horns, cow’s ears, and a fiery red tongue. In some African cultures, the leopard is considered the king of animals, and it is often used as an attribute of leaders. The secret society Aniota is generally considered to be the source of legends about leopard men that are similar to Western werewolves.

The Indochinese leopard is incredibly adaptable, but it is also among the most persecuted big cats in the world. Small populations remain only in Cambodia, southern China, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Thailand. It is functionally extinct in Laos and Vietnam, with no viable populations remaining in the wild, and is suspected to have been eradicated in Singapore. The largest populations currently exist in peninsular Malaysia and the Northern Tenasserim Forest Complex on the border between Myanmar and Thailand, with smaller groups in eastern Cambodia. The species is threatened by rampant bushmeat poaching, conflicts with locals, poorly managed trophy hunting, and illegal killing for their skins and other body parts used for ceremonial regalia.

Leopards are listed as “Vulnerable” on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. It is classified as “Endangered” in Central Asia and Sri Lanka, and “Critically Endangered” in the Middle East, Russia, and on the Indonesian island of Java. Long-term solutions to save the Indochinese leopard could include eco-tourism in the remaining habitats to generate alternative income for local people and education programs highlighting the importance and benefits of protecting the local wildlife
 

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The Swintonia floribunda, also known as the Riol of the Cau Maa and the Muon of the Vietnamese, belongs to the Anacardiaceae family. On the Indochinese peninsula, the Riol is found in the Andaman Islands, Malaysia and Sumatra. In Vietnam, it is found primarily in the middle basin of the Dong Nai river (Daa’ Dööng) and in the provinces of Dong Nai and Lam Dong province, the heart of ancient Cau Maa’ country.

The Riol is a medium-sized tree, reaching around 40 meters with a diameter of five meters. It grows mainly on high wooded ridges, in schist and basalt terrain. It is also recognizable by its trunk, which can have steep plank buttresses up to two meters high.

The Riol loses its leaves after the last festivities of the agrarian cycle in January, and then immediately is covered with buds. After a month, its young foliage is resplendent in shades of red, pink, and ochre before turning green once again. The season of the Riol’s new leaves is reputed to be among the most beautiful of the year