Saola Foundation’s Winter Seminar Series 2025
The Mystery Monkey: What it Takes to Reveal Yet Another New Species in the Annamite Mountains
Join us on Saturday 22nd February as the Saola Foundation team members, Souksamlan (Toun) Laladeth and Phonesouk (Hamnoy) Chanthalavong, along with Dr. Daosavanh Sanamxay from the University of Laos, present the story of how they obtained the first photographic evidence of what they believe is a new species of leaf monkey in the Annamite Mountains.
They will provide an introduction to the limestone karst landscape, describing the challenges of conducting the survey, including logistical difficulties, weather conditions, and the teamwork required to achieve their goal. They will also discuss the team’s emotions upon finally discovering the monkey, the potential threats it faces, and the next steps in their research.
The talk is free, but registration is required, which you can do here. Local times for the talk are listed below.
Meet the Speakers
Souksamlan (Toun) Laladeth
Media Lead at the Saola Foundation
Souksamlan Laladeth is a nature photographer. He is fascinated by science and the thinking behind the sustainability of human life, understanding flora and fauna, and human relationships with habitat. He spends half of every year in Lao nature reserves. His self-taught skills and experience taught him much about flora and fauna and helped uniquely chronicle Laos. For over a decade, Souksamlan has had the opportunity to use photography, video, and audio equipment in various locations all over Laos, including the Annamite Range. This experience increased his passion for such media as a means to record Laos’ incredible and diverse natural heritage.
Phonesouk (Hamnoy) Chanthalavong
Technical Field Team Leader at the Saola Foundation
Phonesouk Chanthalavong is the Technical Field Team Leader at the Saola Foundation. Since finding his mentors and spending years conducting field research in various locations with different experts, he has gained experience that has significantly increased his confidence in field research. His commitment began when he decided to lead a field research team in the Annamite Mountains, which required working with people from different villages and regions. Over the past decade, his experiences have given him a deep understanding of grassroots conservation and effective team management. To protect flora and fauna, it is essential to first understand what exists—which requires learning how to discover them and how to conserve them.
Dr. Daosavanh Sanamxay
Lecturer at the University of Laos
Daosavanh Sanamxay has been a lecturer at the Faculty of Environmental Sciences, National University of Laos, since 2013, where he currently serves as the Vice Head of the Postgraduate Studies Division. His academic background includes a Ph.D. in Systematic Zoology from Kyoto University (2020), an M.Sc. in Ecology from Prince of Songkla University, Thailand (2013), and a B.Sc. in Environmental Science from the National University of Laos (2010). He is a biologist, and his work focuses on the taxonomy of rodents, ecology, conservation, and zoonotic diseases. Since 2011, Daosavanh has collected small mammals throughout the country to create a zoology collection.
Seminar local times on Saturday 22nd February:
07:00 am US Pacific
08:00 am US Mountain
09:00 am US Central
10:00 am US Eastern
14:00 London
15:00 most of continental Europe
21:00 Vientiane/Hanoi/Bangkok
22:00: Singapore/Beijing/Hong Kong/Taipei
Don’t forget to register!
REGISTER HERE
Warm regards,
The Saola Foundation Team
