Betung Kerihun National Park in Indonesia
Rating: 8,1/10 (1481 votes)  Betung Kerihun National Park is located on the Indonesian island of Borneo, in the province of West Kalimantan. The total area of the park is about 8000 km2; the terrain is mainly hilly and mountainous, the maximum heights are Mount Lavit and Kerikhun, 1767 m and 1790 m, respectively. Betung Kerihun lands belong to two ecological regions: Bornean Plains and Bornean Mountain Rain Forests. It must be said that together with the neighboring reserves of Lanjak-Entimau, Betung Kerihun forms a huge protected area under the general name Transborder Rainforest Heritage of Borneo, included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The flora of the national park is represented by the family of dipterocarp, chestnut , as well as oaks and palms, and, for example, the number of palm species reaches 49. The diversity of the animal world is amazing: 54 species of mammals, 162 species of fish, 300 species of birds (25 species of them are endemic and are not found, except here, nowhere on the globe). Many of the park's plants and animals are extremely rare or are on the verge of extinction. These include the Bornean orangutan, the bare-headed beetle, the cynomolgus monkey, the hornbill and the Malay bear. The history of the national park began in 1982 with six hundred hectares of protected land. In the future, the territory expanded, and soon Betung Kerihun became known to biologists around the world as a place with unique natural diversity. Despite its high status, it is not so easy to protect the huge territory of the park: the two most important problems are illegal logging and poaching. According to statistics, an average of 150 orangutans enter Indonesian markets a year. Tourists usually visit Betung Kerihun between September and December, during which weather conditions are favorable for travel. In addition to observing the natural beauties of the park, climbing the Betung and Kerihun mountains, rafting on the Tekelan, Sibau and Mendalam rivers by canoe and kayaking, as well as visiting the Batang Pilung and Sedik waterfalls are popular. In addition, in the western part of the park are the Tanjung Lokang limestone caves, also accessible to the public.    We also recommend reading Wasur National Park in Indonesia Topic: Betung Kerihun National Park in Indonesia. |
