Borneo Pygmy Elephant

Borneon Pygmy Elephant When the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) carried out a DNA analysis in the year 2003 on the pygmy elephants, it was proven that pygmy elephants are distinct from elephants in other parts of Asia and therefore was recognized as a subspecies. However, scientists are still doubting if the Borneo Pygmy elephant is an animal endemic to Borneo island. They made a speculation that these elephants could originate from Java which they believed was abandoned by the Sultan Sulu in the seventeen century. The Javan elephants has long been extinct on the island of Java. Borneo...

Tarsier, the Unique Nocturnal Primate

Lad, seen here eating insects - picture via Bernama

A palm sized male tarsier (Tarsius Syrichta), a nocturnal primate, was rescued early last month, (March 7). It was found in a new oil palm plantation, on the land owned by villagers who live in the Gomantong (Sandakan district) area.

Saroto Payar, who is the Danau Girang Field Centre (DGFC) field research assistant brought the tarsier to the centre. In order to learn about its home range, it was fitted with a radio collar.

Cardiff University student Alice Miles, who is the head of a project on the ecology of tarsier and slow loris at the DGFC, said the rescued animal was placed in a cage for a day and was given insects before it was set free into the jungle.

“We fitted him with a radio-collar and put him back into the wild. We call him Lad which is short for “ladang” or plantation in Bahasa Melayu, and which also means male in English."

“The next night, we returned to the forest and searched for him with the help of our telemetry equipment."

“Lad was seen at about 150 to 200 metres from where he was freed, looking for food on the ground”, Miles said."

Dr Benoit Goossens, the director of DGFC, said knowing the habitat needs, diet and social organisation of tarsiers is critical to developing conservation policies for tarsiers.

“We have so far, besides Lad, collared another four tarsiers in the area of the field centre in Lot 6 of the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary."

“A short while ago, two females were fitted with radio collars allowing us to discover their sleeping sites and map their home range. We hope that Lad will meet one of these two females in the near future,” Goossens said.

He said the nocturnal primate project at DGFC is funded by three American zoos — Columbus, Cleveland and Phoenix.

Source: http://www.theborneopost.com/2012/03/12/rescued-tarsier-to-provide-info-on-home-range/#ixzz1sMdynITQ

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Try Deep Sea Fishing in Sabah

  Third Place in the Sabah International Fishing Tournament There are many fishing spots in Sabah but one that is near to Kota Kinabalu and is a favourite spot for many anglers here is the sea near Pulau Mengalum, also called the "Mysterious Island". It is called a mysterious island because not many locals have been to that place and the sea there is said to be always calm. I have interviewed one of the KK anglers. His name is Liborius Kasun and currently works full time helping his family supervise their family-owned rubber plantation at Kimanis, Papar....

The King's Enthronement

Malaysia's New King Installation

Last Wednesday, 11 April 2012 was declared a public holiday for Malaysia. On that historical day, the country celebrated the enthronement of its new king. The ceremony was done lavishly, rich in centuries-old royal traditions.

Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah who is now 84, was also the King in the 1970s. He is the first King to hold the position twice under the country's rotating monarchy.

The "Yang di-Pertuan Agong" (meaning "He Who Is Made Lord") a name given based on his rank, is the normal and respectful way  to address the king in this country. 

The King officially took his oath in a public ceremony in the yellow carpet throne room of the National Palace at the hilltop in Kuala Lumpur.

The King who studied at Oxford University, is a great fan of jazz, football, polo and golf.

He was proclaimed as the fourteenth King by Malaysia's Prime Minister and before an audience of other sultans, ministers and foreign dignitaries.

For the ceremony, the monarch was dressed in black and yellow royal regalia, made of wool and embroidered with gold threads. He was presented with a Koran and then with "Keris Panjang Diraja", the royal long dagger.

It is known that in the Malay history and among the Malay rulers, these two things signify symbols of power and authority. The King drew out the dagger and kissed it. The country's sultan lineage can be traced back to the 15th century, since Parameswara's settlement in Malacca.

Government offices in the country must show respect to their king and queen by hanging potraits of them both on the wall where it can be easily seen by the public. The king is also the symbolic head of Islam in the nation, as well as the nominal chief of the military.

The country has had an elected monarchy since independence from Britain in 1957. In a unique arrangement, the throne rotates every five years among the rulers of the nine Malaysian states still headed by royalty.

Visit Kinabalu National Park, A World Heritage Site

Mt Kinabalu In December 2000, at the World Heritage Conference in Cairn Australia, an announcement was made that Kinabalu Park had been chosen as one of the World Heritage Sites in the natural site category. It is also Malaysia’s very first world heritage site. Kinabalu had attained two criteria which warranted for inscription Criteria (ix) and (x): The site has a various biota and substantial endemism. The altitudinal and climatic gradient from tropical forest to alpine conditions  blend together with precipitous topography, diverse geology and frequent climate oscillations to give conditions suitable for the growth of the rare...

Kipandi Butterly Park, A Great Place For the Nature Lovers

Kipandi Butterfly Park The Kipandi Butterfly Park is located in the Crocker Range which is a complex of high altitude hills, up to 1500m, extending southward from this summit. These hills are mostly covered with primary forest in which at least 8000 species of  plants including 2500 species of trees have been recorded and this area is one of the most important sanctuary for the biodiversity in the world. The entomological fauna of this area is one of the richest in the world. Kipandi Butterfly Park is situated in Moyog, in the district of Penampang and lies at...