Kulamba Wildlife Reserve
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Summary
- Northeast Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus morio) are present in Kulamba Wildlife Reserve.
- It has been estimated that 361 (CI: 223–488) individuals occur in the site.
- The orangutan population trend is decreasing.
- The site has a total size of 387 km².
- Key threats to orangutans are habitat fragmentation mainly due to land conversion for agriculture and plantations, and hunting.
- Conservation activities are not documented.
Site characteristics
Kulamba was gazetted in 1984 as a Wildlife Reserve. The reserve is located in Malaysia, Borneo, in the eastern part of Sabah. The site is mostly swampy and flat, with isolated, locally steep hills measuring up to 70 m above sea level . The reserve's contiguity with the Kinabatangan floodplains provides an important habitat for several resident and migrant globally threatened waterbirds (BirdLife International 2021). In addition to Bornean orangutans, banteng, or tembandau (a species of wild cattle) also inhabits the site, along with proboscis monkeys, marble cats, Bornean gibbons, long-tailed macaques, and Malayan sun bears (BirdLife International 2021).
Table 1. Basic site information for Kulamba Wildlife Reserve
| Species | Pongo pygmaeus morio |
| Area | 387 km² |
| Coordinates | Lat: 5.510043 , Lon: 118.664234 |
| Type of site | Protected area (Wildlife Reserve) |
| Habitat types | Subtropical/tropical swamp forest |
| Type of governance |
Types of sites Governance types Habitat types
Ape status
The orangutan population in Kulamba declined by 30% in 15 years, between 2002 and 2017 (Simon, Davis & Ancrenaz 2019).
Table 2. Ape population estimates reported for Kulamba Wildlife Reserve
| Species | Year | Occurrence | Encounter or vistation rate (nests/km; ind/day) | Density estimate [ind./ km²] (95% CI) | Abundance estimate (95% CI) | Survey area | Sampling method | Analytical framework | Source | Comments | A.P.E.S. database ID |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pongo pygmaeus morio | 2017 | 0.93 (0.67-1.48) | 361 (223-488) | Kulamba | Aerial (drones/plane/helicopter) | Simon, Davis & Ancrenaz 2019 | |||||
| Pongo pygmaeus morio | 2002-2003 | 2.50 (0.91-6.85) | 500 (182-1369) | Kulamba | Aerial (drones/plane/helicopter) | Simon, Davis & Ancrenaz 2019 |
Sampling methods Analytical frameworks
Threats
Oil palm, coconut, rubber and rattan plantations are being developed at a fast rate to the south and west of the reserve (BirdLife International 2021). Habitat fragmentation is a major threat in the region where the site is found. In 2013 a palm oil plantation was planned adjacent to the reserve (Hance 2013).
Table 3. Threats to apes reported for Kulamba Wildlife Reserve
| Category | Specific threats | Threat level | Description | Year of threat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Agriculture & aquaculture | 2.1 Annual & perennial non-timber crops | High (more than 70% of population affected) | Deforestation due to expansion of plantations, especially palm oil plantations (SWD 2020, Voigt et al. 2018). | 2018-Ongoing (2020) |
| 2 Agriculture & aquaculture | 2.2 Wood & pulp plantations | Present (unknown severity) | Rattan plantations (BirdLife International 2021). | Ongoing (2021) |
| 5 Biological resource use | 5.1.5 Persecution/human wildlife conflict | High (more than 70% of population affected) | Orangutans are hunted to mitigate conflicts or for meat consumption (SWD 2020). | Ongoing (2020) |
Conservation activities
Challenges
Table 5. Challenges reported for Kulamba Wildlife Reserve
| Challenges | Specific challenges | Source | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Not reported |
Enablers
Table 6. Enablers reported for Kulamba Wildlife Reserve
| Enablers | Specific enablers | Source | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Site management | |||
| 2 Resources and capacity | |||
| 3 Engaged community | |||
| 4 Institutional support | |||
| 5 Ecological context | |||
| 6 Safety and stability |
Research activities
Documented behaviours
Table 7. Behaviours documented for Kulamba Wildlife Reserve
| Category | Behavior | Observation type | Prevalence | Observation dates | Source | Habituation | Species | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not reported |
Exposure to climate change impacts
External links
References
BirdLife International. (2021). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Kulamba Wildlife Reserve. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 19/11/2021.
Hance, J. (2013). New palm oil concession imperils orangutan population in Borneo. Mongabay. Online: https://news.mongabay.com/2013/01/new-palm-oil-concession-imperils-orangutan-population-in-borneo/
Sabah Wildlife Department (SWD). (2020). Orangutan Action Plan for Sabah 2020–2029. Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.
Simon, D., Davies, G., & Ancrenaz, M. (2019). Changes to Sabah’s orangutan population in recent times: 2002–2017. PLOS ONE, 14(7), e0218819. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0218819
Voigt, M., Wich, S. A., Ancrenaz, M., Meijaard, E., Abram, N., Banes, G. L., ... & Kühl, H. S. (2018). Global demand for natural resources eliminated more than 100,000 Bornean orangutans. Current Biology, 28(5), 761–769.
Page created by: APES Atlas Team Date: 2021-11-22