This is the first time Google has put one of Vietnam's rarest wild animals on its list of AR delights.
The information was announced by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Vietnam on July 9 to celebrate World Saola Day.
Accordingly, when users type the name Saola into Google search on phones and tablets, they can see a 3D near-photo-realistic animation of the animal. By tapping ‘View in 3D’, viewers can interact with the 3D result in AR, and they can also choose to see the animal in their space.
The move was part of a campaign jointly held by Google and WWF Vietnam with the aim of saveingthe Saola by raising public awareness and calling for joint action in conservation work.
The project will be carried out in two phases with the first focusing on introducing interesting information on the Saola and clearing up common misunderstandings about the animal.
The second phase will feature online interactive activities to help the public better understand how their daily consumption behavior can directly and indirectly affect the lives of the Saola and other animals as well as nature in general, thus being able to make changes or adjustments to contribute to saving the Saola and preserving Vietnam's precious biodiversity.
The Saola, one of the world’s rarest large mammals, was identified following a discovery of remains in 1992 in Vu Quang Nature Reserve in Vietnam’s Ha Tinh province. The Saola is listed as Critically Endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species and Vietnam's Red Book of Endangered Species.
