Upgraded from a Nature Reserve to a National Park in 1998, Tram Chim has a total area
of 7,588 ha, centred on a core zone of 6,889 ha, with a surrounding 60 km network of manmade
canals. A remnant of the Plain of Reeds ecosystem and a mixture of seasonally flooded
grasslands, as well as an important site for wild rice, the National Park was established to
conserve the natural landscape and environment of Dong Thap Muoi, the cajuput forest
ecosystem and its wildlife and aquatic species, including the critically-endangered Redheaded
crane. No-one lives within the boundaries of the National Park, but outside the dikes
there is a population of 32,000, most of whom are farmers