Taman Negara National Park, Malaysia Photograph by © WWF-Canon/Paul S. SOCHACZEWSKI   Southeastern Asia: Malaysia and the Kepulauan Anambas Islands in Indonesia Tropical and Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests   48,500 square miles (125,500 square kilometers) -- about twice the size of West Virginia Vulnerable

· A Life-Packed Peninsula
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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A Life-Packed Peninsula

Bring a poncho and waterproof boots if you plan to explore the rain forests of peninsular Malaysia and southern Thailand. And then be prepared to see some extraordinary plants and animals. These forests are home to more mammals than any other region in the Indo-Pacific--193 species, to be exact. Among the many creatures you have a chance of seeing are elephants, tigers, Sumatran rhinos, clouded leopards, and sun bears!

Special Features

Rain is plentiful in this warm, leafy region. Two monsoon seasons deliver extra doses of rain each year. From October to March, monsoon rains come to the eastern side of the ecoregion. And from April to August they drench the western side. Occurring in this ecoregion are karsts--areas of limestone formations where more than 1,000 species of vascular plants grow, including at least 129 that are restricted to these habitats alone.

	Malaysian tapir have stripes that may help them blend in with the dappled forest light.

Wild Side

If you enter the Peninsular Malaysia Rain Forests, you may encounter up to 6,000 different species of trees—the tallest of which is the tualang. Orchids and ferns grow right on the branches. All of the region's populations of large mammals have dwindled in size in recent years due to poaching and habitat loss, but you still have a chance of seeing them. The Malayan tapir--the largest species of tapir--is shy but can sometimes be seen lumbering through the underbrush. The two-horned Sumatran rhino--the world's smallest rhino--can sometimes be spotted wallowing in a water hole. Asian elephants range over vast tracts of land in search of food. Wild cattle, known as gaurs or seladangs, browse on vegetation. Squirrels, deer, otters, civets, primates, and bats make their home in and around the trees. And nearly 450 species of birds--including crestless fireback pheasants, Malay peacock pheasants, great argus pheasants, hornbills, barbets, woodpeckers, pigeons, and babblers--sing, strut, and fly within this region.

Cause for Concern

Only about one-fifth of the original forest of this ecoregion remains. Most of the forests have been converted to rice fields, rubber and oil palm plantations, and orchards, making clearing for agriculture a major threat to the region. Other threats include hydro projects for power and irrigation, mining and associated road building, and quarrying around limestone areas. Expansion of urban areas also threatens some of the last remnants of coastal dipterocarp forest.

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