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July 2009

A close encounter with a sun bear family

Malayan sun bear

 I was thrilled when, whilst walking a regular mammal survey transect line, rustling in some undergrowth turned out to be an adult female Malayan sun bear. I was even more excited when a few moments later, the bear’s young cub came sliding down a nearby macaranga tree, pausing long enough for me to get some great photos before joining his mother and disappearing into the forest.

Indigenous children with an opportunity to learn

Classroom We are currently celebrating the achievements of Harapan Rainforest’s mobile school. Twenty-one children between seven and 13 from the indigenous Bathin Sembilan community currently attend the school. They learn literacy and numeracy skills, and are introduced to ideas related to nature conservation. The school is popular with the government’s education department, which is currently validating it so that the pupils can leave with recognised qualifications.

First phase of tree surveys completed

It is very important for us to know how Harapan Rainforest is regenerating. To do that we need to know what it is like now. I’ve been running the inventory teams that have just finished the first phase of that work, covering just over half of Harapan Rainforest. It was a marathon effort, with 374 plots measured, taking nearly a year with six teams of eight people involved full-time.