|
Flora and Fauna
 The flora - 'the secrets behind the lush green forest
cover'
Maliau Basin Conservation Area encompasses a diverse
assemblage of forest types, comprising mainly of lower montane
forest, rare montane heath forest and lowland and hill
dipterocarp forest. Dominated by majestic Agathis
trees, the lower montane forest, which also contains oaks,
laurels and conifers such as Dacrydium species, grades
into mossy cloud forest on the northern rim.
  A distinctive feature of the lower montane forest are the many
Dipteris ferns, lining the river banks. The water here
is tea-coloured and acidic, due to the tannins leaching out of
the peaty leaf litter.
The stunted montane heath forest occurs on flatter areas of
the Basin on nutrient poor, acidic soils. Ant plants,
rhododendrons and pitcher plants are common.
Dipterocarp forest is found mostly on the Basin’s outer
flanks and in the interior valley bottoms, and is rich in
fruit trees.
Over 1800 species of plant have so far been identified,
including six species of pitcher plant and at least 80 kinds of orchid,
several of which are new records for Sabah. The rare
Rafflesia tengku-adlinii has also been found in Maliau
Basin, one of only two known localities in Sabah, the other
being near Trus Madi.
The fauna - 'wildlife in the virgin forest'
 Although much of the terrain remains to be explored, Maliau
Basin Conservation Area has already revealed itself to be the
home of some of Sabah’s most rare and endangered species,
including the Asian Elephant, Orang Utan and Proboscis Monkey.
Others among the
82 mammal species so far confirmed include
Clouded Leopard and Malayan Sunbear, while on the
fringes of the Conservation Area, Banteng (tembadau)
and the elusive Bay Cat have been seen.
 An impressive list comprising some
270 bird species has been
recorded, including Bulwer’s Pheasant, Giant Pitta, Bathawk,
Bornean Bristlehead and eight species of hornbills,
together with several rare montane species, otherwise found
only on Mount Kinabalu and Trus Madi.
 While the acidic waters of Maliau Basin are proving to support
relatively few fish species (only three to date), more than 30 species
of amphibian have been found, including a frog which makes its
home in pitcher plants!
Amongst the multitude of invertebrates, at least two species
new to science, a water beetle Neptosternus thiambooni
and a crab Thelphusula hulu, have been discovered.
|
