Man drinking coffee in Thủ Đức spots a rare stray oriental pied hornbill
Spotting a large-billed bird perched on a branch, Đặng Minh Thắng tried to shoo it away, but instead of flying off it flew toward him, so he caught it and handed it over to forest rangers. After taking the bird in for rescue, the rangers identified it as an oriental pied hornbill.
The oriental pied hornbill that the Ho Chi Minh City Forest Protection Sub-Department received from Đặng Minh Thắng. (Photo provided by the authorities)
On September 3, the Ho Chi Minh City Forest Protection Sub-Department (Chi cục Kiểm lâm TP.HCM) said it had received and taken in for rescue an oriental pied hornbill voluntarily handed over by Đặng Minh Thắng, a native of Bến Tre province (now part of Vĩnh Long province) in the Mekong Delta.
Speaking to reporters, Thắng said he was having coffee at a café in Hiệp Bình Chánh ward, in the former Thủ Đức city of Ho Chi Minh City, when he heard an animal calling.
He then saw the bird, a species he did not recognize, with a large bill, perched on a branch. Thắng tried to shoo it away, but it would not leave. Thinking the animal might eat fruit, he used a stick to offer it a piece of cucumber.
The bird did not eat it, however. Instead, it swooped down toward where Thắng was sitting and landed on a low ornamental plant. Thắng then caught the bird and contacted the authorities to hand it over.
"Some people offered to buy it, but I didn't sell. I hope the bird will be released back into the wild," Thắng said.
Rangers from the Ho Chi Minh City Forest Protection Sub-Department came to collect the bird and took it in for care and rescue in accordance with regulations.
The rangers identified it as an oriental pied hornbill, scientific name Anthracoceros albirostris, a male weighing about 0.5 kg, listed in Group IIB of Vietnam's list of endangered, precious and rare forest animals. Hunting, trading or keeping protected wildlife such as this hornbill is illegal in Vietnam and can lead to criminal prosecution.
Silvered langur family's orange baby causes a stir at Saigon Zoo
A baby silvered langur with bright orange fur at Ho Chi Minh City's Saigon Zoo has gone viral, sparking jokes that it is a hybrid. The zoo says it is normal.
Up close with the new venomous pit viper discovered in Vietnam
An international team has discovered a new venomous pit viper with yellow eyes and blue lips in the coastal forests of central Vietnam.
Close-up of rare animals in Vietnam's Sao La Nature Reserve
Camera traps in Vietnam's Sao La Nature Reserve have recorded 39 animal species since 2023, many of them rare and critically endangered.
They look like the same red-tailed green pit viper, but there are actually 7 different species
What look like red-tailed green pit vipers are actually seven different species in Vietnam. Here is how to tell them apart.
Things you may not know about the Asian arowana, the 'dragon fish'
The Asian arowana, or dragon fish, is a rare freshwater fish listed in Vietnam's Red Data Book that can grow up to 90 cm, exceptionally 120 cm, long.
Rare Owston's civets successfully bred in captivity in Vietnam
Ten rare Owston's civets have been born naturally at a wildlife conservation center in Cúc Phương National Park, northern Vietnam.
