PDA

View Full Version : Several fascinating animal species found in Borneo



Eldritch
04-22-2010, 07:52 AM
Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei: A frog with no lungs, a “ninja” slug firing love darts at its mate, and the world’s longest insect are among new species discovered in the three years since the Heart of Borneo conservation plan was drawn up by the three governments with jurisdiction over the world’s third largest island.

http://assets.panda.org/img/barbourula_kalimantanensis__david_bickford_322870. jpg
Barbourula kalimantanensis

http://assets.panda.org/img/dendrelaphis_kopsteini_3__gernot_vogel_322878.jpg
Dendrelaphis kopsteini

“As the past three years of independent scientific discovery have proven, new forms of life are constantly being discovered in the Heart of Borneo,” said Adam Tomasek, leader of WWF’s HoB Initiative.

Explorers have been visiting the island of Borneo for centuries, but vast tracts of its interior are yet to be biologically explored, he said.

“If this stretch of irreplaceable rainforest can be conserved for our children, the promise of more discoveries must be a tantalising one for the next generation of researchers to contemplate,” he added.

The HoB, an “island within an island” is home to ten species of primate, more than 350 birds, 150 reptiles and amphibians and a staggering 10,000 plants that are found nowhere else in the world, the report says.

The rate of discovery since the foundation of the HoB is more than three new species per month, providing ample justification for the decision to protect the region.

Speaking at the launch of the report during a meeting of the three Heart of Borneo governments, Brunei Darussalam’s Minister of Industry & Primary Resources, the Honourable Pehin Dato Yahya, paid tribute to the dedicated scientists who spent countless hours in challenging conditions to uncover the staggering bio-diversity.

“These amazing new findings highlight the importance of our efforts to implement the HoB Declaration’s bold vision,” he said of the region which also contains the pygmy elephant, orangutan, rhinoceros, and clouded leopard.

With so many new species discovered every month, WWF has made the region a global priority through its Heart of Borneo Initiative. WWF offices in Malaysia and Indonesia support tri-government efforts to conserve and sustainably manage the HoB.

Under the 2007 agreement, the three governments have committed to enhance protected area and trans-boundary management, develop eco-tourism and support sustainable resource management.

“Three years on, the Heart of Borneo Declaration is proving to be an irreplaceable foundation for conservation and sustainable development by establishing a framework for action to protect Borneo’s globally outstanding biodiversity, eco-system services and livelihoods,” WWF’s Tomasek said.

“The discovery of these new species in the Heart of Borneo underlines the incredible diversity of this remarkable area and emphasizes the importance of the commitments already made by Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia and Malaysia to protect it,” he added.

The discoveries also highlight the need to increase financial and technical support to ensure their continued survival, he said.

Link. (http://www.panda.org/?192950/Heart-of-Borneo-emerges-as-home-of-worlds-longest-insect-lungless-frog-and-ninja-slug)


The world’s longest insect
(Phobaeticus chani)

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_N-lLFhD7bxE/S1jzBb4BFiI/AAAAAAAABkc/dIEc-q9MckE/s640/phobaeticus-chani+06_resize.jpg

This enormous stick insect, found near Gunung Kinabalu
Park, Sabah, in the Heart of Borneo measures 56.7cm or
over half a metre in length. Despite its size, very little is
known about its biology and ecology, although it was
described in 2008. It is believed to inhabit the high
rainforest canopy making it especially elusive and
difficult to study. Also known as ‘Chan’s megastick’ after
the scientist that donated this particular specimen to the
Natural History Museum in London, this species is the
current title holder for a number of world records. In
addition to being the world’s longest insect, the species
also wins the insect world record for the longest body,
measuring an impressive 35.7cm.

Only three specimens of this extraordinary creature have
ever been found, all of them from the Heart of Borneo.
Borneo has long been known as an exciting hub for
monster insects, not least the giant cockroaches that
measure 10cm in length and were only discovered in the
Heart of Borneo in 2004.



A flame-coloured snake
(Dendrelaphis kopsteini)

Dendrelaphis kopsteini or Kopstein’s Bronzeback
snake is a beautiful-looking species that can grow
to an impressive 1.5 metres in-length. Discovered in
20073 in lowland to upland rainforest, this
uncommon new species differs from all other
Dendrelaphis species by a bright orange, almost
flame-like, neck colouration that gradually fuses into
an extraordinary iridescent and vivid blue, green and
brown pattern, that extends the entire length of the
snake. The top of the head is deep bronze, a
characteristic of all bronzeback snakes, and a dark
stripe extends from the snout, across the eye, to the
start of the neck.

When threatened, the Kopstein’s bronzeback has the
ability to flare its nape, revealing bright orange
colours. Like most Dendrelaphis species, the
Kopstein’s bronzeback has an aggressive disposition
with a painful bite. In the wild, many inhabit trees
and they hunt frogs and lizards.




A long-tailed slug
(Ibycus rachelae)

Perhaps the rarest of the extensive invertebrate species
group are slugs which, according to scientists, are
infrequently encountered. At great altitudes on Borneo,
several rare and highly endemic species appear to exist,
including one new colourful green and yellow species,
Ibycus rachelae, described from Sabah, Malaysia, in the
Heart of Borneo.

Discovered on leaves in primary
montane forest at altitudes up to 1,900m on Gunung
Kinabalu, the species has a particularly long tail, three
times the length of its head, with a body length of 4cm.
According to scientists, the slug has the habit of wrapping
the long tail around its body when resting.

From the Ariophantidae family, this unusual species
makes use of so-called ‘love darts’ in courtship. Made of
calcium carbonate, the love dart is harpoon-like which
pierces and injects a hormone into a mate, and may play
a role in increasing the chances of reproduction. Many
more new species of slug and land snail have been
collected in the Heart of Borneo recently but await
official scientific description.


A lungless frog
(Barbourula kalimantanensis)

Although not a new species discovery, scientists did
discover something amazing about the Bornean
Flat-headed Frog in 2008. The 7cm-long species is the
world’s first lungless frog. Instead of lungs, this unique
species breathes entirely through its skin.

Other organs can be found in the place lungs would normally be, which
makes the overall appearance of the frog flatter. As well
as a larger surface area with which to absorb more
oxygen, scientists believe this flatter and more
aerodynamic shape allow the frogs to maneouvre more
capably in the fast flowing streams the species inhabits in
the Kalimantan rainforest, in the Heart of Borneo.

Autobahn
04-22-2010, 08:18 AM
There are quite a few endangered species in Borneo, as well.


The Endangered Rain Forests of Borneo

Borneo, in Southeast Asia, is a beautiful country with unique wildlife. It is home to the illusive orangutan, proboscis monkey, Bornean clouded leopard and many other endangered species. It is a wonderful destination for more adventurous travelers, but also accessible from modern luxurious beach resorts at Kota Kinabalu for people who prefer to be pampered.

Unfortunately this beautiful place is being rapidly destroyed as the rain forests are plundered for their valuable wood and replaced with palm oils plantations. Many of the orangutans have nowhere to live and orphans and injured orangutans are looked after and trained for reintroduction into the wild at the wonderful Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre.

Go there while the rain forests are still there.

This article is about my travel experiences in Borneo and some travel advice, tips and recommendations, places to stay etc.

Retrieved From:http://www.squidoo.com/borneomonkeys


http://static.squidoo.com/resize/squidoo_images/-1/lens2063378_1216655392bor10_02_060912_OrangUtan.jp g


Borneo - Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei Darussalam, Kalimantan

Visit Borneo - Your Borneo Guide to travel, accommodation, flights, tours, wildlife, orang utans, national parks, rainforest, culture, maps, weather and more Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei Darussalam and Kalimantan info.

Apart from orang-utans and rhinos, Borneo is home to other endangered species such as the clouded leopard, the Borneo elephant, proboscius monkey, the sun bear and the gibbon.

In order to protect Borneo's wildlife the Heart of Borneo Project has been launched. Other initiatives include the conservation of several areas.

Retrieved From:http://www.visitborneo.com/wildlife.htm


http://www.factzoo.com/sites/all/img/mammals/borneo-pygmy-elephant.jpg

Lulletje Rozewater
04-22-2010, 02:12 PM
Borneo and Flores are full of surprises