The Saola or Vu Quang bovid (Pseudoryx nghetinhensis), one of the world's rarest mammals, is a forest-dwelling bovine found only in in Vietnam (Vu Quang Nature Reserve ) and on the Vietnam-Laotian border. Its name Saola means spindle-horn. The scientific ephithet nghetinhensis refers to the 2 Vietnamese provinces of Nghe An and Ha Tinh while Pseudoryx reminds the animal's similarities with the Arabian or African oryx.

Saolas were only discovered in 1992, when several pairs of strange horns were discovered in Vietnam. Chromosomic analysis has then revealed that this is a new animal genus, related to cows, anoas, kudus or elands. It is still unsure as to whether they are cattle, antelope or goat. It is not known how many of this species exist, as only 11 have been recorded alive.

Habitat and distribution

The saola occurs in the Annamite Range moist forests and the Eastern Indochina Dry and Monsoon Forests. For now, they have been spotted in steep river valleys at about 300 to 1800 m above sea level. These regions are distant from human settlements, with evergreen or semidecidous woodlands around. The species seems to prefer edge zones of the forests.

Saolas stay in montane forests during the wet seasons, when water in streams and river is abundant, and moves down to the lowlands in winter. They are shy and never enter cultivated fields or in the villages' proximity. Until now, all captivated saolas have all eventually died, which leads to think that this species is cannot live in captivation.

Description

The saola stands about 85 cm at the shoulder and weighs approximately 90 kg. The coat is a dark brown with a black stripe along the back. Its legs are darkish and there are white patches on the feet, and white stripes vertically across the cheeks, on the eyebrows and splotches on the nose and chin. All saolas have slightly backward-curved horns, which grow to half a metre in length.

Local populations report having seen saolas traveling in packs of 2 or 3, rarely more.

Diet

They are reported to eat small leafy plants - especially fig leaves, stems and all along riverside. Saolas live in small groups, generally of less than 5 animals. The animal seems to have a browsing diet, considering its small incisors.

Threat

The major threat is hunting - the species meat being highly appreciated by local people - and degradation of its forest habitats in the region.

See also

Other rarely seen big mammals of the Indochina peninsula:

• Muntiacus putaoensis
• Muntiacus truongsonensis
• Muntiacus vuquangensis
• Pygathrix nemaeus