11 images Created 24 Nov 2013
Borneo - Kinabatangan River
The Kinabatangan River is the second longest river in Malaysia, with a length of 560 km from its headwaters in the Crocker Range in the SW of Sabah, to its outlet at the Sulu Sea. It sustains one of the world’s richest ecosystems, particularly in the less disturbed lower basin. The surrounding areas along the river consist of five distinct habitats – diptocarp or dry forests, waterlogged and limestone forests, and freshwater and saline swamps. The lower basin is the largest forest covered floodplain in Malaysia and has the largest concentration of wildlife in the SE Asia region. Each year the monsoon rain causes the river to swell and create a vast floodplain teeming with wildlife. As well as being home to orang-utans and the endemic proboscis monkey, the surrounding forest is one of only two known places in the world where 10 species of primates are found. All the eight species of hornbill found in Borneo are found along the river.
The Kinabatangan River is one of the most popular eco-tourism destinations in Borneo because there is such a high probability of observing a variety of primates, elephants, many species of birds, lizards, snakes and crocodiles. But from what I could see that is evidently due to the fact that so much of the surrounding forest has been replaced with oil palm plantations and most of the displaced wildlife has been squeezed into a narrow corridor along the river. In some places the plantations are visible from the river. The Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary is only 26,103 ha in size and within this tiny area there is a great variety of flora and fauna, some endemic to Borneo and some endemic to the area itself. The biodiversity of this area is phenomenal with 1000 recorded plant species, 50 mammal species, 250 bird species and 90 fish species crammed into this narrow corridor. Repeated efforts to have the area declared a national park have been opposed by oil palm plantation owners seeking to expand their cultivated land.
The Kinabatangan River is one of the most popular eco-tourism destinations in Borneo because there is such a high probability of observing a variety of primates, elephants, many species of birds, lizards, snakes and crocodiles. But from what I could see that is evidently due to the fact that so much of the surrounding forest has been replaced with oil palm plantations and most of the displaced wildlife has been squeezed into a narrow corridor along the river. In some places the plantations are visible from the river. The Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary is only 26,103 ha in size and within this tiny area there is a great variety of flora and fauna, some endemic to Borneo and some endemic to the area itself. The biodiversity of this area is phenomenal with 1000 recorded plant species, 50 mammal species, 250 bird species and 90 fish species crammed into this narrow corridor. Repeated efforts to have the area declared a national park have been opposed by oil palm plantation owners seeking to expand their cultivated land.
