BUKIT LAWANG
Located 86 km from Medan, the third largest city in Indonesia and the biggest city in island of Sumatra, Bukit Lawang is name of a village located on the edge of the Gunung
Leuser National Park. “Gunung” means “mountain”, “Bukit” means “hill”
and “Lawang” means “door”, therefore, Bukit Lawang means The hill which
is the gateway to the mountain. Bukit Lawang is one of the entrance to
Gunung Leuser National Park, the last sanctuary of the Sumatran Orangutan.
Bukit
Lawang, from 1972-2001, was the site of an orangutan rehabilitation
project, with 229 ex-captive orangutans rescued from the pet trade
having passed through the program. Nowadays, Bukit Lawang is considered
one of the best gateways unto experiencing the many marvels of the Gunung Leuser National Park.
Although no longer a center for active rehabilitation and release, the
forests surrounding Bukit Lawang still offer many opportunities to
observe orangutans and many other amazing species of fauna and flora
Uphill
is the orangutan resort, a feeding center for semi wild Sumatran
Orangutan. It’s about half hour climb from the hostel. The resort is
open to visitors twice a day, at 8 o’clock in the morning and at 3
o’clock in the afternoon. The boatman or keeper used to bring you over
the river in a small canoe.
Gunung Leuser National Park
Gunung Leuser National Park is one of
the largest protected forested areas in southeast asia, this national
park encompasses a range of environments from coastal lowland to
volcanic peaks. Most Sumatran wildlife species are represented in the
ares, though tigers, elephants and rhinos are in evidence mainly through
mud tracks, trumpet calls and rustling bushes than actual sightings.
The Alas river, which traverses much of the park’s length, is often the
best vantage point for viewing the park’s flora and fauna. Ecologically
sensitive river rafting operation are a good option for visitors,
combining whitewater excitement with river-level views of forest life
and just outside the park boundaries, daily activities at river
settlements. The Bohorok wildlife research station and orangutan
rehabilitation center lies at the park outskirts.
The
Gunung Leuser National Park (Gunung Leuser National Park) is located in
northern Sumatra, Indonesia, covers approximately 1,094,692 hectares
(ha) (1 ha is about the size of a football pitch), and straddles the
borders of the two provinces of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam and North
Sumatra. The Gunung Leuser National Park
takes its name from the towering Mount Leuser, whose peak stretches to
3,404m. The park was originally established as a 142,800 ha Indonesian
Nature Reserve in 1934 (ZB No. 317/35), and after a series of additions
and classification changes was formally established as a National Park
in 1980 (811/Kpts/Um/II/1980).
Together with Bukit Barisan Selatan and Kerinci Seblat National Parks, the Gunung Leuser National ParkASEAN Heritage Park
in 1984. Here exists a complex, amazingly species rich and fragile
environment, with a delicately balanced network of animal and plant l
forms the Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra UNESCO World
Heritage Site (TRHS). The World Heritage status was inscribed in 2004,
along with the previously attributed status of being recognized as a
Biosphere Reserve in 1981 and an ife. The Gunung
Leuser National Park is the core of many endangered species’
remaining habitat. The area is considered to be of huge environmental
importance, and the unique flora and fauna are in critical need of
conservation and protection. The Gunung
Leuser National Park is also part of one of the WWF’s 200 Global
Ecoregions of conservation importance for world biodiversity.
The Gunung Leuser National Park
lies within the 2,634,874 ha Leuser Ecosystem (LE). This region was
established after comprehensive research conducted in the 1980s and 90s,
which showed that the borders of the national park were insufficient to
maintain the requirements of the rich biodiversity present in northern Sumatra.
Thus, in 1995, the LE was legally recognized through a Ministry of
Forestry Decree (No. 227/KPTS-II/1995), and also a Presidential Decree
in 1998 (No. 33/1998). In 2008, it was established as a national
strategic area by a government regulation (No. 26/2008).
Flora of Gunung Leuser National Park
Approximately
8,500 plant species grow in the beach, swamp, lowland, mountain and
alpine ecosystems of the Leuser Ecosystem, with no less than 4,000 of
these growing in the Gunung Leuser National Park itself. The region
represents one of the best remaining expanses of lowland dipterocarp
forest across Indonesia.
The trees reach 40-70m in height and are home to a great number of
plant and animal species. The dipterocarp trees tend to produce
exceptionally large amounts of fruit at the same time every two to five
years. This is known as mast fruiting. During these years there is a
vast surplus of edible fruits available for forest animals, much of
which remains untouched. In normal fruiting seasons there is far less
fruit than in masting periods, meaning that fruit dependent animals,
such as orangutans, have to cover large distances to find enough food to
survive.
The forests are home to
an enormous variety of plant species, due to the soil diversity and
differences in altitude. The rafflesia flower (Rafflesia arnoldii) is
the world’s largest individual flower, and is found only on Sumatra and
the neighbouring island of Borneo.
The rafflesia flower can weigh as much as 11kg when fully grown, with
its dark pink and red petals growing up to 1m long and 2.5cm thick. It
is a parasitic plant and lacks any leaves, stems or roots, instead
obtaining nutrients from host plants to which it attaches itself. Its
rather morbid common name is the ‘corpse flower’ as it is said to emit a
very pungent smell, used to attract pollinating insects within the
dense forest. Casuarinas trees, wild nutmeg, camphor, nibung palms,
rotan, mangrove trees, and pandan plants can all be found in the beach
and swamp forests, and along the rivers grow exotic species such as
Pometia pinnata. In the lowland forests, trees such as meranti, keruing,
camphor and damar, along with several wild fruit trees such as durian,
mango, wild banana, citrus fruit and wild jack fruit growing in
abundance. The mountain and alpine woods are home to several species of
moss and wild flowers such as gentians, primulas, strawberries, herbs,
and wild orchids. The rafflesia flower can also be found in these
forest.
The damar tree (Agathis
sp.) is particularly useful to people, as it grows to great heights
(greater than 20m) and can be harvested for its resin. The resin can be
burned and used for starting fires and as a pleasant smelling incense.
The wood of the tree is also very valuable, and timber sales can
generate important revenue for local people. It also plays an important
role in the local ecosystem, supporting the growth of a certain type of
strangling fig. During fruiting season there can be four to five
orangutans, along with several gibbons, Thomas leaf monkeys, macaques,
squirrels and rhinoceros hornbills feeding in a single tree at the same
time!
Fauna of Gunung Leuser National Park
Approximately
350 bird species are known to live in the Gunung Leuser National Park,
with 36 of the known 50 species endemic to Sundaland (a biodiversity
hotspot area comprised of the western half of the Indo-Malayan
archipelago) being found in the park. 194 species of reptiles and
amphibians and 129 of the 205 species of mammals of Sumatra live in the Gunung Leuser National Park.
The forests are thought of as the last stronghold for a number of
highly endangered mammals, supporting quite possibly the last remaining
viable populations of Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii), Sumatran tiger
(Panthera tigris sumatrae), Sumatran elephant (Elephas maximus
sumatranus) and Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis
sumatrensis).
The Leuser
Ecosystem is the only place on earth where these Critically Endangered
species coexist and loss of this habitat will almost undoubtedly result
in their extinction in the wild. Besides the orangutan, there are a
number of other primate species frequently sighted throughout the Gunung Leuser National Park:
the lar gibbon (Hylobates lar), the siamang (Symphalangus syndactylus),
the Thomas leaf monkey (Presbytis thomasi), the long-tailed macaque
(Macaca fascicularis) and the pig-tailed macaque (M. nemestrina).
One
may also be lucky enough to catch a night-time glimpse of the elusive
greater slow loris (Nycticebus coucang), an endangered and little known
primate relying on the integrity of the Gunung Leuser National Park
for its survival. Other fascinating mammals include the Malayan sunbear
(Helarctos malayanus) which roams the forest in search of figs and
honey, and perhaps the most easily identifiable bird in the park, the
hornbill (Family Bucerotidae). Hornbills fly amongst the canopy and can
sometimes be seen sharing a tree with orangutans 
