Few places on Earth have as many globally important freshwater and forest habitats in such close proximity, as the Greater Mekong.
Ecoregions of the Greater Mekong
Greater Annamites jungle
Places of immense biodiversity
Biodiversity is not spread evenly across the Earth, but follows complex patterns determined by climate, geology and the evolutionary history of the planet, these areas are called “ecoregions.”
WWF Greater Mekong Programme focuses its work within the following four ecoregions:
Dry Forests form the largest continuous tract of tropical dry forest on mainland Southeast Asia, sprawling across plateaus and lowland river basins. Historically the dry forests covered areas of Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Thailand. Today, the forests in Cambodia and Laos are relatively healthy compared with those in Thailand and Vietnam. In Cambodia, for example, open woodlands and grasslands provide refuge for Asian elephants, banteng, leopard, Indochinese tiger and the white-shouldered Ibis.
Greater Annamites mountain range stretches along the border between Laos and Vietnam. Situated at the junction of two distinct bio-geographical zones - the temperate north and the tropical south. This ecoregion has one of the highest rates of endemism in a continental setting anywhere in the world. It was in these forests that the Saola, a deer-like species, was discovered in 1992. This was the first of many new species discoveries to come.
Kayah Karen & Tenasserim located on the Thai-Myanmar border, this ecoregion is one of the most significant biodiversity areas in Southeast Asia. Encompassing more than 18,000 km2, this vast wilderness comprises a continuous block of high conservation value forests. This area is ranked as one of the world’s highest priority conservation areas for tigers and Asian elephants.
Mekong River ecoregion comprises the Mekong River Basin, which spans all countries of the Greater Mekong region (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and southern China). Its catchment area is home to more than 60 million people who rely on the Mekong’s fishery for their livelihoods. Swimming the Mekong’s depths are rare Irrawaddy dolphins, Mekong giant catfish and a fish biodiversity rivalled only by the Amazon.
Dry Forests form the largest continuous tract of tropical dry forest on mainland Southeast Asia, sprawling across plateaus and lowland river basins. Historically the dry forests covered areas of Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Thailand. Today, the forests in Cambodia and Laos are relatively healthy compared with those in Thailand and Vietnam. In Cambodia, for example, open woodlands and grasslands provide refuge for Asian elephants, banteng, leopard, Indochinese tiger and the white-shouldered Ibis.
Greater Annamites mountain range stretches along the border between Laos and Vietnam. Situated at the junction of two distinct bio-geographical zones - the temperate north and the tropical south. This ecoregion has one of the highest rates of endemism in a continental setting anywhere in the world. It was in these forests that the Saola, a deer-like species, was discovered in 1992. This was the first of many new species discoveries to come.
Kayah Karen & Tenasserim located on the Thai-Myanmar border, this ecoregion is one of the most significant biodiversity areas in Southeast Asia. Encompassing more than 18,000 km2, this vast wilderness comprises a continuous block of high conservation value forests. This area is ranked as one of the world’s highest priority conservation areas for tigers and Asian elephants.
Mekong River ecoregion comprises the Mekong River Basin, which spans all countries of the Greater Mekong region (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and southern China). Its catchment area is home to more than 60 million people who rely on the Mekong’s fishery for their livelihoods. Swimming the Mekong’s depths are rare Irrawaddy dolphins, Mekong giant catfish and a fish biodiversity rivalled only by the Amazon.
Sarus crane
The Greater Mekong region with WWF's four priority ecoregions: the Mekong River, the Greater Annamites, the Dry Forests, and KKTE.
