Seram Island, Indonesia Photograph by Anasia-Cruise   Southeastern Asia: Island of Seram in Indonesia Tropical and Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests   7,500 square miles (19,400 square kilometers) -- about the size of New Jersey Relatively Stable/Intact

· Islands of the Cassowary
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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Islands of the Cassowary

Seram is one of the most distinctive islands in the Indonesian island chain known as the Moluccas. Sixteen of Seram’s 200+ bird species are endemic. This ecoregion also is home to the Moluccas’ largest bird, the two-wattled cassowary.

Special Features

At the center of Seram is a cluster of mountain ranges, with several peaks reaching more than 3,280 feet (1,000 m). This ecoregion contains tropical lowland evergreen, semi-evergreen, and montane forest types. Rattans (climbing palms) that exceed 328 feet (100 m) in height can be found in mature forests, with sedges and large ferns present as well. At the highest elevations, an open scrubby woodland or grassland dominates.

	The male cassowary has an important role to play in rearing a family: It alone incubates the eggs and stays with the young birds until they are about nine months old.

Wild Side

The two-wattled cassowary is a large, black, flightless bird, named for the two fleshy wattles (flaps of skin) on its neck. Its best-known cousin is the Australian emu. Although cassowaries are active during the day and sleep at night, strong moonlight will cause them to wake and become active. Five bird species on Seram are considered threatened: the Moluccan scrubfowl, black-chinned monarch, salmon-crested cockatoo, purple-naped lory, and lazuli kingfisher. No less than 37 mammal species live in these moist forests as well, including several species of melomys rat, the spiny Seram rat, and the Ambon flying fox (a bat).

Cause for Concern

Nearly a fifth of this ecoregion’s native forests has been cleared, with logging continuing to pose a serious threat. The local commercial wildlife trade, which targets parrots in particular, poses another risk to Seram’s biodiversity. The island’s remoteness, while promoting conservation in many ways, also prohibits conservation employees from conducting biological surveys and protecting the boundaries of protected areas. These threats aside, this ecoregion still contains large areas of contiguous, intact forest.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.