S. Mahunka szerk.: Folia Entomologica Hungarica 50. (Budapest, 1989)

ROVARTANI KÖZLEMÉNYEK L 1989 p. 81-86 Report on a collecting trip to Vietnam in 1987* I. MATSKÁSI, J. OLÁH and Gy. TOPÁL (Received December 20, 1988) Abstract : Report on a collecting trip to Vietnam in 1987. - Locality data of a study trip to the northern part of Vietnam in May, 1987 are given. Since the unification of the northern and southern parts of the state, the third zoological study trip was organized to Vietnam between 4th and 31st May, 1987, according to the scientific cooperation between the Scientific Research Center of Vietnam and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. The authors already visited Vietnam earlier, partly in 1966 (Topái* and in 1971 (Topái and Matskási) and twice in 1986 (Oláh*. This time they also had the plan to reach the Central Plateau. That trip, however, could not been realized primarily because of the severe financial difficulties of the country and on the other hand due to faults in organizing it. Under these circumstances, relatively few days were utilized for field-work. Out of the total 24, but 12 days were spent (along with the days of local travels* in the country-side as follows. Between 9th and 11th May in and around Tarn Dao, from 15th to 19th May on Island Cat Ba, and between 23rd and 26th May in Province Bac Thai at Thai Nguyen, Phu Luong and chiefly at Quang Chu village. In between, as well as prior to and after these, some collectings were made in and around Hanoi, and of course, time was also used for talks with the leaders of the Scientific Research Center on the perspectives of future cooperation, and preparatory discussions for the trips. During the study tour, attention has been paid to various collecting methods including lamping with Honda generator and a Tungsram 250 W mercury-vapour lamp, netting for terrestrial and aquatic arthropods, singling of invertebrates and vertebrates, shooting, trapping and netting for vertebrates and for instant collectings of their endoparasites, and to some extent, collecting of soil, moss, litter, etc. samples for extraction of arthropods with Berlese and Moczarsky apparatuses. Although one of the authors (Oláh) has already been at Tarn Dao, and other Hungarian biologists (including the botanist, T. Pócs as early as in 1963) also made zoological collectings there, our short visit proved to be interesting and successful. The height of the working sites varied between 800 and 900 m a. s. 1. at diverse streams and on variously exposed slopes with different (partly primary) vegetation. During the days spent there the sky was mostly cloudy, the evenings provided fog, strong wind and high moisture. Cat Ba is one of the most southern islands and it has the second greatest extension (with diameter of about 20 km) on the coast of Vietnam in the Bay of Tongking, east of Hai Phong. Its highest point is at about 300 m a. s.l. The No. 2 National Park of the northern part of the country (after Cue Phuong) was established there. The long-term plans include the setting up of a research institute and a museum there, and the restoration of the original Hungarian zoological studies in Vietnam No. 9.