| FishBase | Complete | Literature | Reference | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Species | Families | Species | Families | |||
| Marine | 480 | 107 | No | |||
| Freshwater | 470 | 72 | No | 215 | Kottelat, M. and T. Whitten, 1996 | |
| Total | 929 | 148 | No | |||
| Conservation | War has disrupted the environment and all aspects of life in Cambodia, which once had extensive valuable forests and important wetlands. About 75 per cent of its wildlife habitat has been lost, mainly due to deforestation. Logging activities throughout the country and strip mining for gems in the western region along the border with Thailand are also causing a decline in biodiversity. Many of the mangrove swamps crucial to the country’s fisheries and wildlife have been destroyed. A checklist (Kottelat 1985) with 215 species and a recent FAO Field Guide (Rainboth, in press) with 124 species are available. The following information is to be sought: - Existence of conservation plans; - Current major threats to species; - Future potential threats to species; - Contact(s) for further information. |
| Geography and Climate |
Cambodia’s terrain is dominated by a large, low-lying alluvial plain that occupies most of the central part of the country. An undulating plateau region lies east of the plain. On the southwest, mountain ranges fringe the plain; the Chuor Phnum Krâvanh forms a physical barrier along the country’s coast. To the north is the Chuor Phnum Dângrêk range.
Cambodia has a tropical monsoon climate, with the average annual temperature about 27°C. The rainy season extends from mid-April to mid-October. The average annual rainfall is about 1,400 millimeters on the central plains, about 3,800 millimeters in mountain regions, and about 5,080 millimeters along the coast. Ref. Microsoft, 1996 |
| Hydrography |
The Mekong flows from north to south through Cambodia. Tonle Sap (Great Lake) covers an area of about 2,600 square kilometers in the dry season, but as much as 10,400 square kilometers in the rainy season. The outlet of Tonle Sap is a river of the same name that flows south into the Mekong during the dry season. The floodwaters of the Mekong back into the Tonle Sap during the rainy season, inundating the central region of the country.
Freshwater sites of exceptional biodiversity interest are Tonle Sap and the rapids between Khône Falls and Sambor. Ref. Kottelat, M. and T. Whitten, 1996 |