Park officials said five of the six juvenile cranes transferred from Thailand in 2025 had adapted well to conditions at the Mekong Delta wetland reserve after more than a year of monitoring.
The cranes, now weighing between 5.4 kilogrammes and 7.2 kilogrammes, have begun pairing for breeding since early 2026, according to the park’s management board.
To support the conservation programme, Tram Chim National Park has upgraded breeding and quarantine facilities, surveillance systems and wastewater treatment infrastructure, while deploying a specialised care team of veterinarians and international experts.
The birds are fed both industrial feed and natural food sources such as fish, crickets, frogs and wild nutgrass tubers to help restore natural behaviours.
Authorities said another six juvenile cranes from Thailand are expected to arrive later this year as part of the next phase of the programme.
Alongside captive breeding efforts, the park has spent more than three years restoring wetland ecosystems and recovering native nutgrass fields, a key food source once abundant in the Dong Thap Muoi wetland region.
The return of several wild red-crowned cranes to Tram Chim in 2024 was considered an encouraging sign for the conservation project.
Tram Chim National Park, covering more than 7,300 hectares, is one of Vietnam’s most important wetland ecosystems and was once home to more than 1,000 red-crowned cranes.
