Archive for the ‘Indonesian Jungle’ Category
Pulau Seribu, the “Thousand Islands”, extend northward from Jakarta in Jakarta Bay. Actually numbering only around 140, they nevertheless offer many points of interest, particularly maritime tourism with white sand beaches, calm waters, and underwater coral formations. Most of the islands lie within the Maritime National Park; only 37 islands are allowed to be used for commercial purposes.
Pulau Rambut (“Hair Island”), also known as Bird Kingdom Island, is one of the closest to the mainland of Java; you can get there in just an hour from Muara Angke harbor. The status of this uninhabited 45-hectare island has recently been upgraded from nature preserve to wildlife preserve, because of the rising level of damage within and around the Pulau Rambut area.
In addition to coastal forest, mangrove forest and mixed secondary forest, the Pulau Rambut Wildlife Preserve is also home to 25 species of water birds, among the 61 bird species found there. These include pecuk ular (oriental darter), kuntul (egret), cangak (heron), bangau (stork), and ibis.
A 20-meter bird observation tower stands near the middle of the island. As well as birds, reptiles also live on the island, including monitor lizards, pythons, and geckos. The only mammals found here are fruit bats. There’s also a great diversity of plant life, with tree species including pidada, mangrove, key lime, and banyan.
Also found on this island is a bird species that migrates from Australia, the milky stork (bangau bluwok, Mycteria cinerea) Read the rest of this entry »
In a recent visit to Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park (TNBBS) in Lampung, southern Sumatra, I and my colleagues from WWF Indonesia saw just a small portion of the assets the park contains, but had a tremendous experience.
We chose this park because it’s not too far from Jakarta and thus fairly easy to get to; it’s just a short hop across the strait from Java, followed by a land journey of about five hours from Bandar Lampung via Pringsewu and Kota Agung. If you’re using public transport, take the bus from Raja Basa terminal toward Kota Agung and stop in front of the TNBBS main office.
Several campgrounds are available for visitors to rent; information is available at the park office. I chose a small but comfortable site called Rhino Camp, operated by the Indonesian Rhinoceros Read the rest of this entry »
Gunung Halimun? Gunung, I know, means “mountain” or “Mount” – but halimun? I open the dictionary: ah, halimun means “fog”. I visualize a mysterious atmosphere: fog descending and enveloping the mountain, the sky turning grey, cold and silent.
A three-hour drive south from Jakarta, a billboard by the side of the road greets us: “Welcome to the largest tropical rainforest mountain ecosystem in Java – Gunung Halimun Salak National Park”. Read the rest of this entry »
East Kalimantan is easily as rich in wild, untamed nature and culture as it is in crude oil. Kalimantan is also one of Indonesian’s most isolated regions. This has helped preserve the traditions of its Dayak culture, and kept the forest at the upper Mahakam River in good condition for visitors.
On arrival in Balikpapan, just beyond the oil storage tanks, lies a forest reserve – visit it straight from the airport for your first high oxygen experience of Kalimantan. After a 40km drive over the inland belt of gentle hills, leave the paved road and get onto a thick and muddy one. Read the rest of this entry »