VietNamNet Bridge – Starting his business research career with the studies on mice, Dr. Nguyen Thai Tu has risen to fame with the findings of freshwater fishes for Vietnam and the world.

When passing the university entrance exams to the Hanoi University, Tu decided to enroll himself in the Natural History Faculty and start the studies on mice and rodents in Vietnam.

Everyday, Tu “worked” with the mice in the capital city’s food storehouses, collected samples and made research on the rodent.

One day, Tu caught a sewer rat and then put it into a cage before he left home. However, the rat was found escaped from the cage through a hole which was much smaller than the rat itself. Then Tu discovered the mice capability of shrink themselves which allows them to save energy when digging mouse holes.

With the discovery, Tu, the student from Nghe An province, was accepted as the pet student by the former leading zoology professor Dao Van Tien.

Tu continued the studies about mice when he finished school and worked at the Vinh City Pedagogical School.

However, in 1974, when the country met big difficulties, people lacked food, Tu did not have money to buy iron traps to continue his studies about mice, and he began a new way of studying.

The university lecturer Nguyen Thai Tu then decided to begin studying about freshwater fishes, a new topic at that time. After a hard working period, Tu and associates released a valuable scientific research work on the freshwater fishes on Lam River.

In 1992, Professor Nguyen Van Hieu, a well-known Vietnamese scientist, initiated the program on making scientific research in natural sciences, Tu joined the program as the chair of the state-level research work on the North Truong Son mountain biodiversity protection which last 14 years.

Within the framework of the research work, Tu released the study about the freshwater fishes in Phong Nha – Ke Bang natural heritage. He also published many other scientific research works, including the biodiversity protection of the Phong Nha – Ke Bang limestone mountain, the fish protection in Vu Quang, Ha Tinh province…

The scientific research works by Tu were then recognized largely in the world. A lot of foreign scientists contacted Tu at the Vinh City University, asking for cooperation. In 1992, when Tu was in a fact-finding trip with Dr John Mackinnon from WWF, he rejoiced greatly when seeing a fish in pink color caught in the net. Tu then affirmed that this was a new species of fish in the world amid the doubts of the foreign scientist.

Tu then spent three years to prove that this was a new fish species which had not been discovered before by anyone in the world. During the three times, Tu sent documents to relevant organizations to prove that La Giang fish he found in the central region of Vietnam was a new species.

The foreign professor then highly appreciated the talent of Tu and asked for Tu’s cooperation in conducting international research works. La Giang fish was later added into the world’s red book under the name "Parazacco vuquangensis, Tu, 1995".

Tu said he and his associates made big discoveries during the days of eating rice balls, sleeping in the forest with terrestrial leeches, mosquitoes and cold in Phong Nha – Ke Bang area. There Tu found tens of new fish species in the world, including the carp called Cyprimus Hieni, or Mai Quang Binh fish. Tu’s discoveries then caught the special attention of the world.

Of the 500 freshwater fish species found in Vietnam, 162 species were found by Tu in Phong Nha – Ke Bang.

VNE