Borneo montane rain forests | |
---|---|
Ecology | |
Realm | Indomalayan |
Biome | tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests |
Borders | |
Geography | |
Area | 115,078 km2 (44,432 sq mi) |
Countries | |
Conservation | |
Conservation status | Relatively stable/intact, [1] nature could reach half [2] |
Protected | 23.11% [3] |
The Borneo montane rain forests is an ecoregion on the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. It includes montane tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, also known as a cloud forests. The ecoregion is partly in East Malaysia (Sabah and Sarawak states) and Indonesia (Kalimantan). [1]
This ecoregion consists of tropical mountain cloud forest and laurel forest above 1000 meters elevation in the mountains in the centre of Borneo. It covers portions of all three countries – Brunei, Malaysia, and Indonesia – which divide Borneo. These cooler and moister slopes rise above the carpet of thick rainforest that covers the warmer lowlands below, and as well as additional rainfall also derive moisture from low clouds. Soils are poorer and more acidic than the lowlands. [1]
The isolated higher and cooler forests of the island are home to a rich and distinctive set of plants of both Asian and Australasian origin. There are especially large numbers of Nepenthes pitcher plants (>15 species), rhododendrons, and orchids.
Montane forests typically have a closed canopy with single stratum, and the canopy height generally decreases with elevation. Typical trees include species of the plant families Fagaceae and Lauraceae, with conifers increasingly abundant at higher elevations. The lower montane forests have a high diversity of orchid and fern species. Carnivorous plants, including species of Nepenthes, Drosera , and Utricularia , are most abundant in areas with high rainfall and a stunted, open tree canopy. The montane forests are interspersed with areas of graminoid scrub, generally associated with hypermagnesic cambisol soils. [4]
This ecoregion also contains important areas of forest on limestone upland, especially Mount Api which has clear elevational zones of differing vegetation. Long Pasia in the Meligan Range and the Usun Apau Plateau have important areas of high-elevation wetland. [1]
The ultramafic rocks which make up portions of the Crocker Range and Mount Kinabalu create soils rich in certain metallic elements (nickel, cobalt, chromium, and manganese), high cation imbalances (high Mg:Ca molar quotients), and deficiencies of some nutrients including potassium and phosphorus. These soil conditions affect the plant life, and plant communities on ultramafic soils show lower stature and lower biomass, higher levels of endemism, and a distinct species composition compared to typical montane plant communities at similar elevations. [4]
The montane rain forests are home to a distinct fauna, including large numbers of mammals such as civets (such as the rare Hose's civet Diplogale hosei, endemic to these montane forests), tree shrews, squirrels, and rats and primates such as orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus), gibbons, and langurs. Although most of these primates prefer lower elevations there are especially good numbers of the large macaque monkeys and as the forests are less-disturbed at higher elevations larger animals such as orangutans and Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis) have retreated here from the lowlands. [1]
Although there are fewer birds in the Bornean mountains than in the lowlands there is a higher proportion of endemic species, indeed most of Borneo's unique birds live in the montane forests e.g. on Mount Mulu in Sarawak there are 171 different birds in the lowlands and only 12 species at 1300m. Endemic and near-endemic bird species include the crimson-headed partridge (Haematortyx sanguiniceps), fruithunter (Chlamydochaera jefferyi), pygmy white-eye (Heleia squamifrons), Rajah scops owl (Otus brookii), Kinabalu serpent eagle (Spilornis kinabaluensis), Whitehead's trogon (Harpactes whiteheadi), Bornean barbet (Psilopogon eximius), golden-naped barbet (Psilopogon pulcherrimus), Whitehead's spiderhunter (Arachnothera juliae), Hose's broadbill (Calyptomena hosii), Whitehead's broadbill (Calyptomena whiteheadi), black-sided flowerpecker (Dicaeum monticolum), black oriole (Oriolus hosii), Bornean whistler (Pachycephala hypoxantha) friendly bush warbler (Locustella accentor), eyebrowed jungle flycatcher (Vauriella gularis), blue-wattled bulbul (Pycnonotus nieuwenhuisii), Bornean stubtail (Urosphena whiteheadi), bare-headed babbler (Melanocichla calva), chestnut-crested yuhina (Staphida everetti), mountain wren-babbler (Gypsophila crassa), Sunda laughingthrush (Garrulax palliatus), Everett's thrush (Zoothera everetti), black-capped white-eye (Zosterops atricapilla), and mountain blackeye (Zosterops emiliae). [5] [1]
The higher elevations of Borneo are relatively inaccessible, and subject to less logging and conversion to agriculture than the lowland rain forests. The montane forests were less affected by the forest fires of 1997-8 that damaged so much of Borneo's lowland forest. [1] Approximately three-quarters of the montane forests are still relatively intact. [6] 23.11% of the ecoregion is in protected areas. [3] Protected areas include a very large block in Kayan Mentarang National Park, which is home to communities of indigenous people but is threatened by commercial logging and road building. This park and others such as Betung Kerihun National Park are important refuges for wildlife as lowland habitats are being systematically removed. [1] Protected areas include: [3]
Mount Kinabalu is the highest mountain in Borneo and Malaysia. With an elevation of 4,095 metres (13,435 ft), it is third-highest peak of an island on Earth, and 20th most prominent mountain in the world by topographic prominence. The mountain is located in Ranau district, West Coast Division of Sabah, Malaysia. It is protected as Kinabalu Park, a World Heritage Site.
The Madagascar lowland forests or Madagascar humid forests are a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion found on the eastern coast of the island of Madagascar, home to a plant and animal mix that is 80 to 90% endemic, with the forests of the eastern plain being a particularly important location of this endemism. They are included in the Global 200 list of outstanding ecoregions.
The Madagascar subhumid forests are a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion that covers most of the Central Highlands of the island of Madagascar. They are included in the WWF's Global 200 list of outstanding ecoregions. Most of the original habitats have been lost due to human pressure.
The Sundaland heath forests, also known as Kerangas forest, is a type of tropical moist forest found on the island of Borneo, which is divided between Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia, as well as on the Indonesian islands of Belitung and Bangka, which lie to the west of Borneo.
John Whitehead was an English explorer, naturalist and professional collector of natural history specimens in Southeast Asia. He is the first documented person to reach the summit of Mount Kinabalu: this was in 1888, after annual attempts from 1885.
Nepenthes macrovulgaris, or the serpentine pitcher-plant, is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. It is a lowland plant that typically grows at altitudes ranging from 300 to 1200 m in sub-montane forest clearings and mossy forest. Its range is restricted to ultramafic habitats, including Mount Kinabalu, Mount Tambuyukon, the Danum Valley, the Tawai Range, the Meliau Range and Mount Silam, all in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. Pitchers grow to around 25 cm high and range in colour from green to brown, with the speckled form being the most common.
The Udzungwa Mountains are a mountain range in south-central Tanzania. The mountains are mostly within Iringa Region, south of Tanzania's capital Dodoma. The Udzungwa Mountains are part of the Eastern Arc Mountains, and are home to a biodiverse community of flora and fauna with large numbers of endemic species.
The Borneo peat swamp forests ecoregion, within the tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests biome, are on the island of Borneo, which is divided between Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.
The Bornean stubtail is a species of bird in the cettiid warbler family Cettiidae. It is endemic to the island of Borneo, where it inhabits forest floors and undergrowth in montane forests at elevations of 750–3,150 m (2,460–10,330 ft). It is a small, short-tailed warbler, measuring 9.5–10 cm (3.7–3.9 in) in length and having an average mass of 10.4 g (0.37 oz). The tops of the head and the upperparts are brown, with whitish underparts that turn grey at the sides of the breast and the flanks. The supercilium is long and buffish-brown, with an equally long dark grey eyestripe and a thin yellow eye-ring. Both sexes are similar.
Betung Kerihun National Park is a national park located in the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan, on the island of Borneo. The park was established in 1995, and has a total area of 8,000 km2 (3,100 sq mi) or about 5.5 percent of West Kalimantan Province area. Together with the 2,000 km2 (800 sq mi) Lanjak Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary in Malaysia, it has been proposed to form a World Heritage Site named the "Transborder Rainforest Heritage of Borneo".
The Borneo lowland rain forests is an ecoregion, within the tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests biome, of the large island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. It supports approximately 15,000 plant species, 380 bird species and several mammal species. The Borneo lowland rain forests is diminishing due to logging, hunting and conversion to commercial land use.
The Meratus Mountains is a mountain range in the Indonesian province of South Kalimantan; it is located on Borneo island. The mountains run in a north-south arc that divides South Kalimantan province into two almost equal parts. Its highest peak is Mount Besar at 1,901 metres elevation.
The Central Range montane rain forests is a tropical moist forest ecoregion on the island of New Guinea. The ecoregion covers the Central Range of the New Guinea Highlands, which extends along the spine of the island. The montane rain forests of the ecoregion are distinct from the surrounding lowland forests, and are home to many endemic plants and animals.
The Central Range sub-alpine grasslands is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion on the island of New Guinea. The ecoregion covers the highest-elevation portions of the New Guinea Highlands, which extend along the spine of the island. The high elevations support rare tropical sub-alpine and alpine habitats, including many endemic plants and animals.
The Kinabalu shrew is a species in the family Soricidae. It is endemic to the mountain Mount Kinabalu on Borneo, and its sister peak, Mount Tambuyukon.
The Sunda Shelf mangroves ecoregion, in the mangrove biome, are on the coasts of the islands of Borneo and eastern Sumatra in Malaysia and Indonesia. They are home to the proboscis monkey.
The Heart of Borneo is a conservation agreement initiated by the World Wide Fund for Nature to protect a 220,000 km² forested region on Borneo island. The agreement was signed by the governments of Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia in Bali on 12 February 2007 to support the initiative. The region provides habitat to 10 endemic species of primates, more than 350 birds, 150 reptiles and amphibians and 10,000 plants. From 2007 to 2010 a total of 123 new species have been recorded in the region. A status report from 2012 found that the lowland rain forest within the area is deteriorating and under threat. The Bornean rhinoceros was the most threatened fauna, in 2015 three captive individuals remained in Sabah.
The Sumatran montane rain forests ecoregion covers the mountainous elevations of the Barisan Mountains Range that runs the length of the southwestern side of the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. The ecoregion is almost completely surrounded by the lower elevation Sumatran lowland rain forests. The area is one of very high biodiversity - because of the relative isolation, and variety of forest types, there are 7 endemic species of mammals and eight endemic species of birds.
The Palawan rain forests ecoregion covers the Palawan Island Archipelago, centered on Palawan Island, the sixth largest island in the Philippines. The islands act as an ecological bridge between Borneo and the main islands of the Philippines, even though there were channels between the islands through the last ice age when sea levels were low. Biodiversity is high in the islands, with many endemic species, and with many genera shared with Borneo to the south. Pressure from logging is a concern for the forests of this region.
The Yapen rain forests is a tropical moist forest ecoregion in Indonesia. The ecoregion covers the island of Yapen and smaller neighboring islands which lie north of New Guinea.