VietNamNet Bridge – Laonastes aenigmamus, a kind of forest rats, which scientists believe was extinct 11 million years ago, turns out to be the daily food for the Ruc minority people in Vietnam.

The forest rats still living
Scientists have announced an interesting discovery: the forest rat which were thought as non-existing in the world, have been discovered in On hamlet of Thuong Hoa commune in Minh Hoa district of Quang Binh province, in the central region of Vietnam.

This proves to be an important discovery for scientists. However, this does not have much significance for the Ruc minority people, who can see the rats every day. Especially, the rats are the favorite food for the local people. They call the rats “Ka Ne Khung”, which means the rat-monkey.

Cao Xuan Chai, a Ruc minority person in the On hamblet, told reporters that last week he just caught a Ka Ne Khung in the place next to a cliff. He related that when he was small and lived together with the parents in a stone cave, he regularly caught Ka Ne Khung.

Tran Xuan Tu, Head of the On Hamlet, affirmed that local residents regularly catch Ka Ne Khung. “We eat Ka Ne Khung as well, because we think this is just a kind of rat,” he said.

“But one day, scientists, after showing us the pictures of the rats which they believed were extinct 11 million years ago, asked us to show them the Ka Ne Khung we catch,” he continued.

When Cao Xuan Yen, a local resident, caught two Ka Ne Khung, they were brought to the scientists, who have affirmed that these are the rats they believed were extinct.

Preserving Laonastes aenigmamus – the urgent task

According to Tu, in the past, it was easiest to trap Ka Ne Khung in July and August of the lunar year. However, the number of caught rats has been decreasing. This shows that these rats have become rare, and if drastic measures are not taken immediately, this kind of rat may become extinct, sooner or later.

“Previously, I did not know about the animal. But now I understand that this is a precious variety of rat that need to be preserved. I will tell the residents in the hamlet not to trap the rats for food any more,” he said.

Phan Hong Thai, Chief Forest Ranger of the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, said that the recognition of the forest rat has confirmed the high biological diversity of the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park. Especially, the existence of the rats provides more information to the scientists who make research on evolution, especially those who follow the theory of "reincarnation” in biology.

“We will persuade Ruc people not to trap the forest rats for food any more,” Thai said.

Currently, a group of Vietnamese scientists headed by Associate Professor Nguyen Xuan Dang, who once discovered the Truong Son parti-colored rabbit, are seeking more Laonastes aenigmamus individuals around the On hamlet. Sources said that the scientists have discovered two more individuals. Therefore, scientists have necessary evidences to say that the animal, which was thought to be extinct 11 million years ago, is still existing.

Dan Viet