Indonesia's beautiful nature

A vast archipelago with a total of over 17,000 islands has made Indonesia the home of a large variety of plant and animal life, both terrestrial and aquatic. As the land mass is divided into islands, often mountainous, many terrestrial species are endemic, originating and living in one particular island or part of a larger island. Zoologists divide Indonesia into three zones. Zone 1, nearest the Asian continent, was defined by British Naturalist Alfred Russell Wallace in the 19th century.

The climate of Indonesia did not appear to be the deciding factor. In his theory Wallace postulated that because the islands of Sumatra, Java and Kalimantan were joined to Asia by the now submerged Sunda Shelf, the Indo Malayan fauna had not spread beyond the shelves eastern boundary which came to be known as the Wallace Line. Zone II, is the intermediate zone between the Indo-Malayan zone and Zone III where Australian animal and plant-life predominate. Sulawesi, in particular has an unusually high proportion of endemic species and there is even a marked difference between the flora and avifauna of Zone I and Zone III.

In Zone III, both the fauna and flora are predominantly Australian in character and affinity, as these islands share the same continental shelves, the Sahul Shelves with Australia.

Fauna of Indonesia

Most famous of the rare fauna of Indonesia are the Komodo dragons, the giant lizards which are found only on Komodo and neighboring islands, and believed to be the only one of their kind in the world. The one horned Java rhinoceros is found only on the western tip of Java and under the threat of extinction, but has now grown in number at the Ujung Kulon nature reserve. The Java Tiger is a very rare species, of which only five remain in eastern most Java. Sumatra too has species of rhinoceros and tiger and also elephants can be found, especially at Way Kambas in South Sumatra. One other species that is under the threat of extinction, is the Bali myna of which only seven are left in the wild at Bali Barat national park. This splendid bird has severely suffered from habitat destruction as well as poachers selling the myna's for large sums of money. Efforts to bring Bali myna's from captivity back to the wild are unsuccesful until now.

There are also the orangutan (man of the forest) apes which are found in Kalimantan and Sumatra, the banteng wild ox of Java, the rusa deer, the anoa (dwarf buffalo), babi-rusa (small wild pig with curved tusks) and distinctive civets found in Sulawesi.

Orangutan

In an effort to preserve rare species of the Indonesian fauna and flora, numerous reserves and parks have been established in all the provinces of Indonesia under the administration of the Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Conservation, or better known as PHPA.

Flora of Indonesia

Indonesia lies within the botanical region of Melanesia, covering the Malay peninsula south of the Insthmus of Kra, the Indonesian archipelago, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and Irian Jaya, with the exception of the Solomon islands. For the most part, this region is covered with the luxuriant growth of the characteristic rain forest vegetation, a type of ever-wet vegetation containing a large number of timber species and harboring various kinds of epiphytes, saprophytes and lianas. These characteristic features and the high number of species endemic to this region make the flora of Indonesia different from that of neighboring continental Asia and Australia, as well as from the flora of other tropical areas in the world. The richness of the Melanesian region, of which Indonesia represents a major portion, is reflected in the accommodation of close to 40,000 species of plants, or about 10 to 12 % of the estimated number of plant species of the whole world. Moreover, the flora making up the Indonesian vegetation abounds in timber species.

Approximately 6,000 species of Indonesian plants are used by the people as a source of raw material for the making of traditional herbal medicines or as an indispensable part of traditional rituals and ceremonies.

Natural Reserves of Indonesia

Permits are necessary to visit the nature reserves which can be obtained from the PHPA office in Bogor or local offices. Facilities in the reserves are generally undeveloped and most travel has to be done on foot or horseback.

Parks & Gardens in Indonesia

The most common form of the traditional Indonesian private garden, the so-called "pekarangan", differs considerably from that familiar to the West. Still found in its old form mainly in rural areas, this type of garden usually grows fruit, medical herb and other useful plants such as bamboo. It is often marked off from neighboring lots by low hedges or bamboo fences but seldom entirely enclosed for privacy. Closer to the conventional eastern concept of a garden and of greater interest aesthetically, is the big "pelataran" garden which surrounds the homes of the aristocracy and other members of the social elite in Java. Usually covered with carefully brushed river sand and shaded by tall cinnamon trees, these aristocratic gardens exhume an air of quiet dignity and bear a character all their own. Unlike the small common gardens, which are normally entirely surrounded by high walls to provide complete privacy. Similar in concept to the "pelataran" is the alun-alun, the traditional town square, usually found in front of the ruling royal or princely house, or the highest local government administrator, the Bupati. Western influence has to a certain extent pushed aside the old traditional concept and nowadays most town gardens and all parks apart from the alun-alun are more, or entirely, a realization of the modern western concept. A further development has been the establishment of national and tourist parks for the purpose of conservation, research and recreation in many parts of the country.

Zoos in Indonesia

Jakarta's Ragunan Zoo is the best-landscaped zoo in Indonesia, providing a close-to-native habitat for more than 3,600 animal and bird species, among which are such protected species as the prehistoric giant komodo lizard, the man-like orangutan ape, the babi-rusa and many others. Established in 1965, this zoo occupies an area of 185 hectares (462.5 acres).

The Surabaya zoo in the Wonokromo district is deservedly second in reputation to the Ragunan zoo, and like that of the latter its collection of animals is considered to be among the most complete in Southeast Asia. Of special interest in the Surabaya Zoo is the section on nocturnal animals.

Smaller zoos are found in Yogyakarta, Bukittinggi and Bandung. The first also serves as a botanic garden with species representative of the local flora and those of other parts of Indonesia. The Bukittinggi zoo presents a good sample of the local fauna of the area, although in recent years it has deteriorated and some of the animals aren't looked after like they should.

Volcanoes in Indonesia

Indonesia belongs to one of the most volcanic and seismically active regions in the world, with more than 400 volcanoes in Indonesia, of which 128 are active, with 70 recorded eruptions in historic times. The soil-rejuvenating effect of volcanic eruptions has contributed to the fact that victims of threatened areas have time and again returned to their stricken land. So, the Volcanological Service has drawn hazard maps of volcanic areas so-that early warnings can be issued for the evacuation of the people on time.

Mountaineering clubs have in the past few years sprung up in Jakarta, Bandung and other big cities and university towns.

Among the most popular mountains for mountain climbing are the twin volcanoes Gede and Pangrango in West Java, Semeru and Kelud in East Java, Merapi in Central Java and Rinjani in Lombok. Expeditions have also been made to the perennial snow-covered summit of the Jayawijaya Range Carstensz Top in Irian Jaya.

Indonesia's internationally best-known volcano is perhaps the Krakatau in the Sunda Strait, midway between Java and Sumatera, whose calamitous 1883 eruption was commemorated in 1983.

Mount Bromo and Semeru at central Java.