Upon reading "The Kingdom and People of Siam" by Sir John Bowring in 1857, Mouhot decided to travel to Indochina to conduct a series of botanical expeditions for the collection of new zoological specimens.
Efter at have læst The Kingdom and People of Siam af Sir James Bowring i 1857, besluttede Mouhot at rejse til Indokina for at foretage en serie af botaniske ekspeditioner for at indsamle nye zoologiske eksemplarer.