Kutai National Park
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Summary
- Northeast Bornean Orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus morio) are present in Kutai National Park.
- It has been estimated that 1,700 individuals occur in the site.
- The orangutan population trend is decreasing.
- The site has a total size of 1,927 km².
- Key threats to orangutans are habitat destruction due to agricultural expansion, logging and fires, and poaching.
- Conservation activities have focused on reforestation, habitat restoration, running ecotourism projects and research.
Site characteristics
Kutai National Park was first established in 1934 as a 2 million ha nature reserve. In 1995 the site was declared a National Park, but its area was reduced in size to 198,629 ha (Lee et al. 2019). In 2014 the area was reduced again to 192,709 ha due to human settlement within the park (Lee et al. 2019). The forests of Kutai National Park are extremely rich in tree diversity and represent one of the last intact canopies of East Kalimantan, Borneo. The park is also home to at least 80 mammal, 369 bird and 1,287 plant species (Lee et al. 2019). In addition to orangutans, the park is important for the protection of proboscis monkeys (Nasalis larvatus), Malayan sunbears (Helarctos malayanus) and the Javan banteng (Bos javanicus). Kutai National Park also plays an important role in regulating water supply to nearby towns, attracting tourists, and its forests serve as a valuable carbon sink (Lee et al. 2015)
Table 1. Basic site information for Kutai National Park
| Species | 'Pongo pygmaeus morio |
| Area | 1,927 km² |
| Coordinates | Lat: 0.376863 , Lon: 117.458969 |
| Type of site | Protected area (National Park) |
| Habitat types | Subtropical/tropical moist lowland forest, Subtropical/tropical swamp forest, Subtropical/tropical heavily degraded former forest |
| Type of governance |
IUCN habitat categories Site designations
Ape status
With an estimated 1,700 orangutans (PHVA 2017), the park is likely to hold East Kalimantan's largest population of Northeast Bornean orangutans (Lee et al. 2015). Between 1999 and 2015, the orangutan population across Borneo decreased by more than 100,000 individuals (Voigt et al. 2018).
Table 2. Ape population estimates reported for Kutai National Park
| 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 |
Threats
Key threats to orangutans in Kutai National Park include forest clearing for small scale and industrial agriculture, coal mining, fires, and poaching (PHVA 2017, Lee et al. 2015). Climate change has recently been identified as an important emerging threat; higher temperatures are likely to exacerbate drought conditions, which lead to wildfires and a range of other negative impacts on wildlife in the park (Lee et al. 2015). In general, the orangutan population in Borneo has sharply declined due to the impacts of logging, deforestation, poaching and industrialized plantations (Voigt et al. 2018).
Table 3. Threats to apes reported for Kutai National Park
| Category | Specific threats | Threat level | Description | Year of threat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 Geological events | Absent | |||
| 12 Other threat | Absent | |||
| 2 Agriculture & aquaculture | 2.1 Annual & perennial non-timber crops | High (more than 70% of population affected) | Encroachment by small scale agriculture as well as habitat conversion for industrial agriculture (Lee et al. 2019). | Ongoing (2019) |
| 7 Natural system modifications | 7.1 Fire & fire suppression | High (more than 70% of population affected) | Fires in 1982-1983 destroyed most of the orangutans’ known major food sources. Humans have been responsible for some fires (Lee et al. 2019). | Ongoing (2019) |
| 3 Energy production & mining | 3.2 Mining & quarrying | Present (unknown severity) | Coal and oil deposits inside the park; status of permits for coal exploration remains unclear (Limberg et al. 2009). | Ongoing (2009) |
| 4 Transportation & service corridors | 4.1 Roads & railroads | Present (unknown severity) | A public road runs close, along the opposite side of the Sangata River. Local people clear and settle on the land between the road and the river. Such easy access to this part of the park leaves the area very vulnerable to illegal entry (Lee et al. 2019). | Ongoing (2019) |
| 5 Biological resource use | 5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals | Present (unknown severity) | Poaching and killings as a result of human-orangutan conflict when orangutans raid crops (Lee et al. 2019). | Ongoing (2019) |
| 5 Biological resource use | 5.3 Logging & wood harvesting | Present (unknown severity) | Illegal logging (Lee et al. 2019). | Ongoing (2019) |
| 11 Climate change & severe weather | 12.1 Other threat | Present (unknown severity) | Effects of ENSO events, which resulted in severe drought and fire damage. ENSO is a major driver of the very high variation in food availability that orangutans face (Lee et al. 2019). | 1982-83, 1997-98, Ongoing (2019) |
| 1 Residential & commercial development | Unknown | |||
| 6 Human intrusions & disturbance | Unknown | |||
| 8 Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseases | Unknown | |||
| 9 Pollution | Unknown |
Conservation activities
The management of the park created a partnership called Mitra Taman Nasional Kutai (Friends of Kutai National Park) with several companies situated next to the park (Lee et al. 2019). The park authorities also collaborate with local coal mining companies for habitat restoration work in the park. Research activities are conducted in collaboration with different research institutions and universities (Lee et al. 2019).
Table 4. Conservation activities reported for Kutai National Park
| Category | Specific activity | Description | Implementing organization(s) | Year of activity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Protection & restoration | 5.2 Legally protect ape habitat | The site was designated a National Park in 1995. | Ongoing (2021) | |
| 8 Permanent presence | 8.2 Run tourist projects and ensure permanent human presence at site | Tourists can view wildlife at three ecotourism sites: Bontang Mangrove Park, which focuses on promoting mangrove conservation; Sangkima, a visitor centre on the Sangatta road with boardwalk and canopy-bridge and bird-hide where education is focused on biodiversity; and Prevab, a ranger station that hosts tourists and researchers (Lee et al. 2019). | Ongoing (2019) |
Conservation activities list (Junker et al. 2017)
Challenges
The national park protection status has not prevented illegal activities from happening, such as logging, wildlife poaching, forest clearing for small scale agriculture, and constant encroachment of people, especially along the eastern boundary of the park (Limberg et al. 2009).
Table 5. Challenges reported for Kutai National Park
| Challenges | Specific challenges | Source | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Institutional support | 4.1 Lack of law enforcement | Lee et al. 2019 | |
| 2 Resources and capacity | 2.3 General lack of funding | Lee et al. 2019 |
Enablers
Table 6. Enablers reported for Kutai National Park
| 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
The ‘national park’ protection status does not impede illegal activities from happening, such as logging, wildlife poaching, forest clearing for small scale agriculture, and constant encroachment of people, especially along the eastern boundary of the park (Limberg et al. 2009).
Documented behaviours
Table 7. Behaviours documented for Kutai National Park
| Behavior | Source |
|---|---|
| Not reported |
Exposure to climate change impacts
External links
Orangutan Conservancy - Kutai National Park
Relevant datasets
References
Russon, A.E., Kuncoro, P. and Ferisa, A. (2015). Orangutan behavior in Kutai National Park after drought and fire damage: Adjustments to short‐ and long‐term natural forest regeneration. Am. J. Primatol., 77: 1276-1289. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.22480
Lee, A.T.K., Carr, J.A., Ahmad, B., Arbainsyah, Ferisa, A., Handoko, Y., Harsono, R., Graham, L.L.B., Kabangnga, L., Kurniawan, N.P, Keßler, P.J.A., Kuncoro, P., Prayunita, D., Priadiati, A., Purwanto, E., Russon, A.E., Sheil, D., Sylva, N., Wahyudi, A. and Foden, W.B (2019). Reforesting for the climate of tomorrow: Recommendations for strengthening orangutan conservation and climate change resilience in Kutai National Park, Indonesia. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN. viii + 70pp.
Limberg, G.A., Moeliono, M., Indriatmoko, Y., Iwan, R., Utomo, N.A., Purwanto, E., & Mulyana, A. (2009). Incentives to conserve or convert? Can conservation compete with coal in Kutai National Park, Indonesia?, International Journal of Biodiversity Science & Management, 5:4, 190-198, DOI: 10.1080/17451590903525226
PHVA (ed.) (2017). Orangutan Population and Habitat Viability Assessment: Final Report. Apple Valley, MN: IUCN/SSC Conservation Breeding Specialist Group.
Voigt, M., Wich, S.A., Ancrenaz, M., Meijaard, E., Abram, N., Banes, G.L., Campbell-Smith, G., d’Arcy, L.J., Delgado, R.A., Erman, A., Gaveau, D., Goossens, B., Heinicke, S., Houghton, M., Husson, S.J., Leiman, A., Sanchez, K.L., Makinuddin, N., Marshall, A.J., Meididit, A., Miettinen, J., Mundry, R., Musnanda, Nardiyono, Nurcahyo, A., Odom, K., Panda, A., Prasetyo, D., Priadjati, A., Purnomo, Rafiastanto, A., Russon, A.E., Santika, T., Sihite, J., Spehar, S., Struebig, M., Sulbaran-Romero, E., Tjiu, A., Wells, J., Wilson, K.A. and Kühl, H.S. (2018). Global demand for natural resources eliminated more than 100,000 Bornean Orangutans. Current Biology 10.1016/j.cub.2018.01.053.
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