The Laotian rock rat or kha-nyou, sometimes called the "rat-squirrel", is a species of rodent found in the Khammouan region of Laos. The species was first described in a 2005 article by Paulina Jenkins and coauthors, who considered the animal to be so distinct from all living rodents, they placed it in a new family, Laonastidae. It is in the monotypic genus Laonastes.
A National Biodiversity Conservation Area (NBCA) is an environmentally protected area in Laos. There are all together 21 different NBCAs in Laos, protecting 29,775 square kilometers. Another 10 NBCAs have been proposed, many of them being treated by authorities as though they were already officially protected.
Hin Namno National Park is in Boualapha District, Khammouane Province, Laos. The park borders Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park of Vietnam to the east and Nakai-Nam Theun National Park of Laos to the north. Hin Namno National Park was created by prime ministerial decree in January 2020. It is managed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF).
Nakai-Nam Theun National Park in Nakai District, Khammouane Province, Laos, is one of the last remaining wildernesses in Southeast Asia. Nakai-Nam Theun covers approximately 4,270 km2 of the Annamite Range and the adjacent Nakai Plateau in Khammouane and Bolikhamsai Provinces. It was designated a national park on 15 February 2019 by Prime Ministerial Decree No. 36, 15 February 2019. It is managed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF). It is adjacent to the Vu Quang National Park of Vietnam.
Nam Poui National Biodiversity Conservation Area is a protected area in the Sayaboury Province of the Lao P.D.R. It is named after Nam Poui village, also known as "Muang Pieng" and is one of the 21 National Biodiversity Conservation Areas (NBCA) established by the Lao government. The NBCA is located in the forested mountains of the Luang Prabang Range and shares a border with Thailand and three other national parks. It is part of the Luang Prabang montane rain forests ecoregion.
The Xe Kaman is a river in southeastern Laos. It flows through the Dong Ampham National Biodiversity Conservation Area of Attapeu Province. The river is known to have populations of dolphins. The area is being destroyed by a dam being built on the river. The village of Ban Hin Dam lies on the river and is where boat trips are launched.
Saxatilomys paulinae is a species of murid rodent native to central Laos and Vietnam, separated to a monotypic genus Saxatilomys. It was first discovered in the Khammouan Limestone National Biodiversity Conservation Area in Khammouan Province, Laos, and also been found in the Vietnamese province of Quang Bình. It is the only known species in the genus Saxatilomys. The genus name is derived from the Latin saxatilis, meaning "among the rocks" and the Greek mys, meaning mouse or rat.
Attapeu is a province of Laos in the southeast of the country. It has five districts: Samakkixay, Xaysetha, Sanamxay, Sanxay, and Phouvong, covering an area of 10,320 square kilometres (3,980 sq mi) with a population of 127,285. Its capital city lies at Attapeu.
Bolikhamsai is a province of Laos. Pakxan, Thaphabat, Pakkading, Borikhane, Viengthong, and Khamkeut are its districts and Pakxan is its capital city. The province is the site of the Nam Theun 2 Dam, the country's largest hydroelectric project.
Houaphanh province is a province in eastern Laos. Its capital is Xam Neua.
Sekong is a province of Laos in the southeast of the country.
Khammouane province (Khammouan) is a province in the center of Laos. Its capital lies at Thakhek.
Salavan is a province of Laos, located in the south of the country. Its earlier name was Saravan which was changed by Thai to Salavan in 1828. It was part of the Champasak Kingdom in an area known as Muang Mang inhabited by minorities of Mon-Khmer groups.
Luang Namtha is a province of Laos in the country's north. From 1966 to 1976 it formed, together with Bokeo, the province of Houakhong. Luang Namtha province covers an area of 9,325 square kilometres (3,600 sq mi). Its provincial capital is Luang Namtha. The province borders Yunnan, China to the north, Oudomxai province to the east and southeast, Bokeo province to the southwest, and Shan State, Myanmar to the northwest.
Phongsaly province, also spelled Phôngsali, is a province of Laos in the extreme north of the country. The capital of the province is the city of Phôngsali. Phongsaly is between Yunnan (China), and Điện Biên province in Vietnam. Its culture has thus been historically heavily influenced by China.
Protected areas in Laos include:
Nam Kading National Protected Area is a national protected area in Bolikhamsai Province in central Laos. This rugged and largely inaccessible park, cut through by its namesake Nam Kading river, is home to a wide variety of plant and animal species, some endangered. Due to its ruggedness, the park lacks any significant human settlement.
Phou Den Din National Protected Area or National Biodiversity Conservation Area (NBCA) is a protected area in northern Laos, covering 2,200 km2 in Phongsaly Province. It was designated a National Biodiversity Conservation Area in 1993. The name is also spelt Phou Dene Dinh and Phou Daen Din. The conservation area borders Vietnam, and its terrain is hilly, rising to over 2,000 meters. Among the animals found in the area are elephants, gibbons, macaques, gaurs, bantengs, Asiatic black bears, sun bears, leopards, and tigers. It also has a high density of lesser fish eagles and crested kingfishers. The area is not easily accessible, but can be reached by boat or on foot.
The shield-nosed leaf-nosed bat or shield-nosed roundleaf bat is a bat from Laos and Vietnam.
The Northern Annamites rain forests ecoregion covers the rugged and relatively unexplored northern Annamite Mountains of central Laos and Vietnam. There are high numbers of endemic plant species, and the relative remoteness and isolation of the area supports many rare and endangered animals. Rainfall is somewhat less than the lowland rainforest of the lower elevations in Vietnam, and the temperatures slightly cooler due to the higher elevation.
