FORESTS BORNEO

The forests of Borneo are some woods that have the most biodiverse on the planet. According to WWF, the island is estimated to have at least 222 species of mammals (44 of them endemic), 420 birds were settled (37 endemic), 100 amphibians, 394 fish (19 endemic), and 15,000 plants (6,000 endemic) - more than 400 of the have been discovered since 1994. Surveys have found more than 700 species of trees on 10 acres of land - a number equal to the number of trees in Canada and the United States combined.

From end to end of Borneo, found several different ecosystems. This has been discussed in the WWF report "Borneo : Treasure Island at Risk" ( 2005).MangroveMangroves are found in coastal areas and estuaries. WWF estimates that mangroves in Borneo reached 1.2 million hectares, a small fraction - perhaps less than 20 percent - of the existence of the original. In Kalimantan, many mangrove areas opened by loggers and for agriculture.Peat Swamp ForestPeat swamp forests are the dominant form of the remaining lowland forests in Borneo today. These swamp forests appear in areas where dead vegetation and filled with water, too wet to rot, accumulates as peat. Tropical peat lands, formed over hundreds of years  is a giant storehouse for carbon. Drying and / or burn these lands, will release the amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere incredible. Drained areas also become highly flammable. Under dry el Niño conditions of 1997-1998, thousands of fires raging in the peat swamps of Indonesia. Fires in peat swamps are very difficult to extinguish because they can burn for months, and would not be detected in passing from fire in the deeper layers of peat. In 2002, according to Langner and Siegert (2005 ), this peat forests blanketed about 10 million hectares in Borneo.Forest MountainsMontane forests in Borneo are usually found at an altitude of 900 meters to 3,300 meters  The trees in these forests are generally shorter than in lowland forests, consequently canopy is not too dense. Langner and Siegert (2005 ) estimates that in 2002 about 70 percent ( 1.6 million hectares ) of original montane forests in Borneo ( 2.27 million hectares ).Heath ForestHeath forest or keranggas found in areas that are very dry, with a very poor sandy soil nutrients ( " keranggas " is a resident of Iban language for " land that will not grow rice " ) . These forests are characterized by certain tree species tolerant of poor soil conditions , which also contains acid, and so can not be compared to the rainforest in general . Heath forests also have less biodiversity than other tropical plant communities . MacKinnon et al . (1997 ) estimated that Borneo was once had 6.6682 million hectares of forest heath . Today this area is greatly reduced by the World Bank estimates that there will be almost no more heath forest in Borneo in 2010 .Dipterocarp ForestLowland dipterocarp forest in the forest is the most diverse and most threatened inhabitants in Borneo ( 68 % lowland has been cleared in Borneo , 65 % in Malaysia ) . These giant trees , usually higher than 45 meters , is a source of timber most valuable in Borneo and has been heavily logged over 3 decades. Langner and Siegert (2005 ) estimated that only less than 30 million hectares of lowland dipterocarp forest remaining in Borneo in 2002 .The prevalence of this dipterokarpas provide jungles of Borneo very unusual dynamics associated with marine atmospheric phenomenon called El Niño - Southern Oscillation ( ENSO or also known as " El Nino " ) . According to Lisa Curran , a biological spent more than 20 years in Borneo , and is now a leading expert on the natural history of the island , very unlikely reproduction dipterocarp released from El Nino , with 80-93 % of flowering species synchronizing them with weather conditions dry , which usually appear within a period of 4 years. During " dipterocarp year " in Borneo , canopies become colorful , as thousands of dipterocarp trees - each tree may have 4,000 flowers - flowering during the 6 weeks , alternately starve and piling seed eaters , at least in part to seed survived until the time of germination .Mass flowering and fruiting seasons followed - which has been known to be the same in the area of ​​150 million hectares ( 370 million acres ) and involves 1,870 species - is a boon to seed predators , including wild boar, the keystone seed predator in the ecosystem . Seeds and wild boar so prevalent during this period , until local residents saw the arrival of El Nino as times of plenty , when to harvest beans for export illipe or feasting upon the flesh of swine . The relationship has lasted as long as humans have lived in Borneo and is ingrained in the culture of society , ranging from tribal to coastal traders .However , in recent years , this system seems to be breaking due to changes in land use . Dr. . Curran , who was awarded a MacArthur genius award in 2006 for her research in this area , saying that intensive logging has been paid handsomely by the reproductive cycle . Curran found that seed production fell from 175 pounds per acre in 1991 to 16.5 pounds per acre in 1998 , even though it was a period of El Niño years , according to records . It appears that logging has reduced local density and biomass of mature trees below a critical threshold .Furthermore , the introduction of fire in areas that previously had no experience burning , has exacerbated drought stress and caused a radical transformation in forest ecology . Currently , el Nino year is no longer a time of plenty . As Curran said during a visit to California , " El Nino has become the great destroyer , rather than the great provider . " Land use change has ruined what was once a closely related ecosystems .This impact extends to the whole of Borneo , with annual fires cause pollution (often called ' smoke ' ) which could spread to Australia , China , and India . These fires release carbon dioxide amount outstanding , especially when the Borneo peat forests burning . With 518 tons of carbon per hectare - one of the highest levels of biomass on the planet - these ecosystems can contribute up to 2 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere in a few years , making Indonesia the third largest greenhouse gas polluter , despite having only the 22nd largest economy globally . Some scientists worry that fire and climate change is a positive feedback loop that only worsen the condition , creating a drier climate , more and more fires , and higher carbon emissions.
(Source : http://world.mongabay.com/indonesian/borneo.html)