Champasak Province Research Articles

Prevalence of Helminthic Infections among Inhabitants of Lao PDR

The prevalence of helminthic infections was surveyed on a total of 6,178 residents (males 2,549 and females 3,629) in 102 villages of 9 provinces in Lao PDR between 2007 and 2011 under the project of Korea-Laos Collaborative Project for Control of Foodborne Trematode Infections in Lao PDR. Fecal specimens were collected and examined by the Kato-Katz thick smear and Stoll's egg counting techniques. The overall liver/intestinal helminth egg positive rate was 71.9% with a single or mixed infections with Opisthorchis viverrini and minute intestinal flukes (Ov/MIF), Ascaris lumbricoides, hookworms, Trichuris trichiura, Trichostrongylus sp., echinostomes, Taenia spp., and others. Ov/MIF revealed the highest prevalence (55.6%) followed by hookworms (27.8%) and T. trichiura (6.5%). The endemic regions with the highest prevalence of Ov/MIF were Savannakhet, Khammouane, Vientiane (Nam Ngum), Champasak (Khong Island), and Saravane Province. High prevalences of A. lumbricoides (33.8%), hookworms (47.8%), and T. trichiura (32.6%) were observed in Phongsaly, Luang Prabang, and Vientiane (Nam Ngum) areas, respectively. The results of this study highlight helminth parasites of current public health significance in different areas of Lao PDR.

Salmonella prevalence in meat at retail markets in Pakse, Champasak Province, Laos, and antimicrobial susceptibility of isolates.

Non-typhoidal Salmonella is one of the most common causes of human gastroenteritis worldwide and most human outbreaks are associated with the consumption of contaminated food. However, there are no reports on Salmonella contamination in market meat in Laos. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of Salmonella in meat samples in Pakse, Champasak Province, Laos, as well as the antimicrobial susceptibility of isolates. The prevalence of Salmonella was 82% in beef, 93% in pork and 80% in buffalo meat. In total, 80 isolates and 11 serovars were found, including serovars Stanley (n=15), Anatum (n=14), Derby (n=11), Rissen (n=9) and Amsterdam (n=7). The drug susceptibility of 60 strains against 10 antimicrobial agents was tested. The 60 isolates examined were sensitive to ciprofloxacin (100% susceptible), norfloxacin (100%), cefotaxime (95%), nalidixic acid (90%) and chloramphenicol (88%), but were resistant to streptomycin (67% resistant), tetracycline (67%) and ampicillin (63%). Of the isolates, 73% were multidrug-resistant. These findings indicate a high Salmonella prevalence in market meat in Pakse. Therefore, programmes to control Salmonella contamination are needed.

Hyperendemicity of Haplorchis taichui Infection among Riparian People in Saravane and Champasak Province, Lao PDR

In this study, we found that Haplorchis taichui, a heterophyid intestinal fluke, is highly prevalent, with heavy worm loads, among riparian people in Saravane and Champasak province, Lao PDR. Fecal specimens were collected from 1,460 people (717 men and 743 women) in 12 riparian (Mekong river) districts and were examined by the Kato-Katz fecal smear technique. The overall helminth egg positive rate was 78.8% and 66.4% in Saravane and Champasak province, respectively. The positive rate for small trematode eggs (STE), which included H. taichui and other heterophyids, Opisthorchis viverrini, and lecithodendriids, was 69.9% and 46.3% in Saravane and Champasak province, respectively. To obtain adult flukes, 30 STE-positive people were treated with 40 mg/kg praziquantel and then purged. Whole diarrheic stools were collected 4-5 times for each person and searched for fluke specimens using a stereomicroscope. Mixed infections with various species of trematodes (H. taichui, Haplorchis pumilio, O. viverrini, Prosthodendrium molenkampi, Centrocestus formosanus, and Echinochasmus japonicus) and a species of cestode (Taenia saginata) were found. However, the worm load was exceptionally high for H. taichui compared with other trematode species, with an average of 21,565 and 12,079 specimens per infected person in Saravane and Champasak province, respectively, followed by H. pumilio (41.9 and 22.5, respectively) and O. viverrini (9.4 and 1.5, respectively). These results show that diverse species of intestinal and liver flukes are prevalent among riparian people in Saravane and Champasak province, Lao PDR, with H. taichui being the exceptionally dominant species.

Helminth communities in murid rodents from southern and northern localities in Lao PDR: the role of habitat and season

The helminth communities of wild murid rodents were investigated in Luang Prabang and Champasak province, Lao PDR. Thirteen species of rodents (404 individuals) were infected by 19 species of parasites (2 trematode, 3 cestode, 14 nematode species). Four of the recorded helminth species (Echinostoma malayanum, Raillietina sp., Hymenolepis diminuta and H. nana) are known to cause potential zoonotic helminthiases of medical importance in the South-East Asian region. Individual helminth infection was significantly higher in the wet season. Habitat significantly influenced individual helminth species richness and individual helminth abudance, with a decrease of individual helminth species richness and individual helminth abundance from forest habitat to agricultural and human settlement habitats. The reduction of helminth diversity and abundance is discussed in relation to the ongoing increase of human influence on habitats in Lao PDR.

Anapidae (Arachnida: Araneae), a spider family newly recorded from Laos

The spider family Anapidae is reported from Laos for the first time. One new species is described: Pseudanapis namkhan n. sp. from Nam Khan Valley, Luang Prabang Province. Another species is recorded for the first time from Champasak Province, Laos and the following new synonymy is proposed: Sinanapis thaleri Ono 2009 = Sinanapis crassitarsus Wunderlich & Song 1995 n. syn. Morphological descriptions, diagnoses and comparative illustrations are provided for the two species.

Pseudoscorpions from Laos: Description of a new species and new records (Arachnida: Pseudoscorpiones)

Pseudoscorpions collected from southern Laos, Champasak Province, are described. One new species of the family Chthoniidae Daday 1888 is identified and illustrated under the name of Tyrannochthonius etu sp. nov. Five species belonging to five family are reported from Laos for the first time: Apocheiridium pelagicum (Redikorzev, 1938), Lagynochthonius tonkinensis (Beier, 1951), Geogarypus longidigitatus (Rainbow, 1897), Nhatrangia dawydoffi Redikorzev, 1938, Indolpium funebrum (Redikorzev, 1938).

New species of the spider genus Olios Walckenaer, 1837 (Araneae: Sparassidae: Sparassinae) from Laos

Three new species of the spider genus Olios Walckenaer, 1837 are described from Laos: Olios diao spec. nov. (male) from Bolikhamsay Province, Nam Kading National Protected Area, Olios jaenicke spec. nov. (male) from Champasak Province, Pakse, and Olios suung spec. nov. (male) from Luang Prabang Province, Phou Khoun.

First Record of the GenusHeradion(Araneae, Zodariidae) from Laos, with Description of a New Species

Summary A new spider species, Heradion depressum n. sp., is described from primary evergreen and secondary forests of Champasak Province, Laos. The genus is recorded from Laos for the first time.

CURRENT SUPPLY CHAINS OF CABBAGE IN LAO PDR

Domestic and export supply chains for cabbages produced in Pakxong District, Champasak Province, the leading production area in Lao PDR, were mapped through on-site visits and key informant interviews. The domestic supply chain route from Pakxong to the capital city of Vientiane (750 km distance or 14 hours travel) involved farmers and collectors in Pakxong and wholesalers and retailers in Vientiane. Farmers transported unpacked cabbages to the collectors’ house using tractor-driven cart. Cabbages were then trimmed, packed in 20 kg plastic bags, and transported to Vientiane by public bus. The wholesalers brought the cabbages to Nongteng Vegetable Wholesale Market for disposal to retailers. On the other hand, the export supply chain route from Pakxong to Ubon Lathsathani Province, Thailand (about 190 km distance or 4 hours travel) involved farmers and collectors in Pakxong and Thai collectors who were also wholesalers and retailers. Untrimmed and unpacked cabbages were loaded to collectors’ trucks at six tons per load for transport to Songmaek Market, a border trading center at the Lao side of the Lao-Thai border. The Thai collectors bought the cabbages, which were then trimmed, packed in 10-kg plastic bags, and transported in 10-wheeler trucks or pick-up cars to their shops at Chaleansy Market in Ubon Lathsathani. Upon arrival, cabbages were re-trimmed before retail or re-packed in 7-kg plastic bags for disposal to other wholesalers and retailers in the market and other provinces. Asymmetry in product price along the chain was very pronounced; in the domestic supply chain, the collectors’ selling price to wholesalers was almost three times higher than farmgate price (0.08 USD/kg) due to the high transport cost while in the export supply chain, the Thai collectors’ selling price (0.32 USD/kg) was more than three-fold higher than the farmgate price (0.072 USD/kg) and collectors’ selling price (0.09 USD/kg) due to the added value of trimming, packing and transport. Product losses also contributed to price changes along the chain, except for losses incurred by farmers (30-34% in both chains). In the domestic supply chain, wholesalers incurred much higher loss (9.6%) than collectors (3%) and retailers (3-5%). In the export supply chain, Thai collectors had higher loss (14%) than the Lao collectors (8%). Major causes of loss in both chains were physical damage and bacterial soft rot, which could be effectively addressed through appropriate technical interventions.

Uses of trees in paddy fields in Champasak Province, southern Lao PDR

The species and uses of trees located in paddy fields were investigated in three villages in Champasak Province, Lao PDR. The villages were different in their distance from Pakse City, the capital of the province, and age since foundation. A total of 71 species were recorded, and most were used by local people. The most frequent use was for fruit, firewood, and medicine, though most trees also offered shade for cattle and people. Species composition differed among villages. The youngest paddy supported more trees, remnants of the original forest, for timber. Older paddies supported fewer trees for timber but more for fruit and firewood. The introduced species increased according to the age of the paddy. Products other than timber obtained from the trees were common among villages. The significance of trees in rice cultivation in Laos was compared with that in the Satoyama landscape of Japan.

Analysis of the effectiveness of control measures against Schistosoma mekongi using an intra- and inter-village model in Champasak Province, Lao PDR

Schistosomiasis mekongi is prevalent in the Khong district of Lao PDR, made up of one big island, Khong, and numerous small islands in the Mekong River. Schistosoma mekongi is spread by Neotricula aperta as the intermediate host along the Mekong River. Therefore, even if an epidemic of S. mekongi were stamped out in a certain village, infection may recur if the source of infection is a village located in the upper reaches of the Mekong River. The purpose of this study was to construct a mathematical model for the transmission of S. mekongi among villages from the upper to lower Mekong River to estimate the effect of control measures against it. The chief characteristic of the present model is competence in dealing with the spread of infection among villages through the Mekong River in consideration of the reduction in longevity of cercariae and miracidia and their diffusion in the river. The model also takes into account seasonal fluctuation in the water level of the Mekong River, which affects human behavior in terms of water contact. The results of simulations indicated that the prevalence of schistosomiasis mekongi would be suppressed to a low level for a long time in a village further downstream when universal mass treatment is performed in villages further upstream simultaneously.

THE DON SAHONG DAM

Plans are underway to construct twelve large hydropower projects on the un-dammed lower and middle mainstream Mekong River in Laos, Thailand, and Cambodia. One of the planned projects is a 30–32 meter–high hydroelectric dam with an expected 240 MW installed generating capacity to be built on the Hou Sahong Channel, less than one kilometer north of the Laos–Cambodia border, in the Khone Falls area of Khong District, Champasak Province, southern Laos. The project's objective is to generate revenue by exporting electricity to Thailand or Cambodia. Concerns have been raised about the Don SahongDam(DSD), however. The main ones relate to potential repercussions on aquatic resources, and especially wild-capture fisheries dependent on migratory fish. This article examines the regional implications of the DSD, including possible impacts on food security, nutrition, and poverty alleviation. Fisheries losses in the Mekong Region from the DSD would negatively affect the nutrition of hundreds of thousands or even millions of people, especially in parts of Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand where nutritional standards are already low. Mekong fisheries are integral to food security in the region, and the DSD would make it difficult for governments, especially in Laos and Cambodia, to reach their health-related United Nations Millennium Development Goals and their objectives for reducing poverty.

Mapping forest functions using GIS at plateau area, Laos

Deforestation and forest degradation has continuously increased by natural processes and also by human activities in Laos. Sustainable management of forest watershed is an important policy of Laos government for keeping forest area from deforestation and forest degradation. Forest function is an important key for forest management. This study present process of classify forest function for improving forestry agriculture, and livelihood standard in Champasak province, Bolivian plateau area. It is arable land supporting agriculture and protecting watershed. Geographic Information System (GIS) was used to classify and map three functions namely conservation forest, protection forest and production forest. These functions will be then linked for planning watershed management, improving forestry, agriculture and water supply system in rural forest areas.

ADDITIONS TO THE SNAKE FAUNA OF SOUTHERN LAOS, WITH THE SECOND LAOTIAN SPECIMEN OF Naja siamensis (LAURENTI, 1768) AND THE FIRST COUNTRY RECORD OF Oligodon taeniatus (GÜNTHER, 1861) (SQUAMATA, SERPENTES)

A small, recent collection of reptiles from Pakse and from Xepian National Biodiversity and Conservation Area, Champasak Province, southern Laos, contains the second Laotian specimen of the Indochinese spitting Cobra, Naja siamensis (Laurenti, 1768). This species was previously known from this country from a single specimen observed in Savannakhet Province, in the north of Central Laos. This second specimen, the first one to have been preserved for this country, is described in details. It shows a pattern slightly different from the first Laotian specimen. This new specimen confirms the occurrence of this medically important species in different parts of the Mekong valley. A juvenile specimen of Oligodon taeniatus (Gunther, 1861) proves the first voucher specimen of this species recorded from Laos. Specimens previously cited from the Vientiane area as Oligodon taeniatus proved to belong either to Oligodon mouhoti (Boulenger, 1914) or to an unidentified taxon. The list of snake species known from Champasak Province is updated; it currently includes 37 snake species.

Probarbus jullieni and Probarbus labeamajor: the management and conservation of two of the largest fish species in the Mekong River in southern Laos

Abstract Probarbus jullieni and Probarbus labeamajor are two of the largest carps in the Mekong River Basin, each reaching a maximum weight of about 70 kg. P. jullieni is listed in Appendix 1 of the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species, and both are listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, the first as ‘endangered’ and the second as ‘data deficient’. Six years of quantitative monitoring of a large‐meshed gill net fishery for Probarbus just below the Khone Falls in Khong district, Champasak province, in southern Laos shows that 78% of the overall catch is comprised of Probarbus, with P. jullieni making up 65% of landings. Over the 6‐year period catches of Probarbus declined significantly. However, catch‐per‐unit effort statistics do not indicate that the fishery is in decline, although fishers are convinced that real stock reductions are a large part of the reason for catch declines and decreases in fishing effort. A number of ecological and social factors are affecting the number and quality of gill nets in use, the length of fishing seasons, and gill net efficiency, making it difficult to compare catch‐per‐unit effort between years. There has been a shift from using large‐meshed gill nets for catching Probarbus to targeting smaller species using gill nets with smaller mesh‐sizes. This is an example of the ‘fishing down’ of a Mekong fish community, in which large long‐lived species are the first to be affected by heavy fishing pressure. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Strength in diversity: fish sanctuaries and deep‐water pools in Lao PDR

Abstract Fish sanctuaries are types of aquatic protected areas common throughout the landlocked country of Lao PDR. The key to their successful implementation in Laos appears to be local support. Therefore, they fit well within the context of community‐based fisheries/co‐management programmes. Fish sanctuaries are almost always established in deep‐water pools, which serve as important dry season refuges for fish. The best‐known fish sanctuaries in Laos are known as Fish Conservation Zones (FCZs), and are found in the mainstream Mekong River in Khong district, Champasak province, southern Laos. In Khong, there is increasing evidence that FCZs established by villagers, but with government support, are important places of concentration for various fish species. FCZs can benefit fish stocks, especially relatively sedentary species, but also highly migratory ones. FCZs are not panaceas for solving all the fisheries problems in Laos or the Mekong River Basin, but they represent important management tools that should not be overlooked.

Mekong River Fish Conservation Zones in Southern Laos: Assessing Effectiveness Using Local Ecological Knowledge

Small-scale fisheries are important in Laos, where rural people heavily depend upon Mekong River and tributary fish stocks for their livelihoods. Increasing pressures from human exploitation and habitat disturbance, however, have raised serious concerns about the potential depletion of various species. This has led to the establishment of large numbers of Fish Conservation Zones (FCZs) or "no-take" fish sanctuaries in southern Laos based on a "community-based fisheries co-management" framework. This study uses the local ecological knowledge (LEK) of fishers to assess the effectiveness of village-managed FCZs in enhancing fish stocks in the mainstream Mekong River in Khong District, Champasak Province. Focus group interviews about species that are believed to have benefited from different FCZs are compared with parameters such as FCZ area, age, depth, localized gradient, water velocity, and the presence of wetland forests nearby. The results suggest that no one aspect is likely to account for variations in fish stocks; rather, it is the interaction between numerous factors that has the largest impact. Secondly, the results indicate that microhabitat diversity and protection are critical for maintaining and enhancing Mekong fisheries. Deep-water pools are particularly important as dry season refuges for many fish species, and FCZ depth may be the single most important environmental factor affecting the success of FCZs in the Mekong River. FCZs have the most potential to benefit relatively sedentary species, but may also benefit highly migratory species, given the right conditions. This study shows that integrated approaches to stock assessment that employ LEK and scientific fisheries management have considerable potential for improving Mekong capture-fisheries management.

Scales and Sales: Changing Social and Spatial Fish Trading Networks in the Siiphandone Fishery, Lao PDR

AbstractThe Siiphandone wetland in Khong district, Champasak province, Lao PDR, is one of the most important fisheries in the Mekong River basin. The resource, situated along the Laos‐Cambodia border, supports the livelihoods of around 65,000 inhabitants, mainly semi‐subsistence rice farmers or fishers. In January 2000, the provincial authority was given a special dispensation by the Lao government to allow the importation of Cambodian fish through Khong district, for export to Thailand. Previously, in large part due to the government's policy of food self‐sufficiency, the export of Lao fish was illegal. This paper examines how the implementation of this law has influenced existing legal and illegal trade networks from the Siiphandone fishery by comparing the findings of two studies, one conducted before and the other after the change in the law. In doing so, the transition of the fishery from a local, food‐important resource to an increasingly regional, market‐oriented resource is examined. Conclusions are drawn as to the impact this change has had on the livelihoods of fishers and traders involved in the fishery.