Leuser Ecosystem - Ecology

Ecology

The ecosystem is home to the largest remaining populations of the Sumatran Tiger, Sumatran Elephant, Sumatran Rhino and the Sumatran Orangutan. There are at least 130 species of mammals within the ecosystem which means that one in 32 of the world's mammals are found there, or one quarter of Indonesia's mammals. Primates residing within the ecosystem include the White-Handed Gibbon, the Siamang, Macaques, the Loris and the Lutung. Leuser is home to as many as seven species of cats including the Clouded Leopard, the Asian Golden Cat, the Spotted Linsang and the Binturong. The Sun Bear is quite common within the boundaries of the ecosystem.

The most common herbivores found in Leuser are the deer which include the Sambar, the Muntjac and the Mouse Deer. Among the largest reptiles found in Leuser are the turtles and tortoises. The most venomous are the snakes which include the King Cobra and Pythons that can reach up to ten meters in length. Monitor Lizards, skinks, geckos and a variety of frogs are also common .At least 325 species of birds have been recorded in the ecosystem with at least eight species endemic to Sumatra. This rich diversity of bird species includes: bee-eaters, flycatchers, flowerpeckers, honeyguides, kingfishers, spiderhunters, woodpeckers, barbets, bablers, broadbills, bulbul, drongos, hornbills, magpies, minvets, myna, orioles, robins,

The Leuser Ecosystem comprises one of the remaining examples of Indo-Malayan (Malesian) vegetation communities with an estimated 45% of the approximately 10 000 recorded plant species. In general the ecosystem can be characterised as a montane rainforest community. However, the typical vegetation type up to an altitude of 600 metres is moist tropical lowland forest characterised by multi-layered stories with emergent trees reaching between 45 and 60 metres in height and high densities of fruit tree species. The large variety of tree species found in Leuser represent virtually all life-strategies of trees, from root flowering and trunk flowering to common twig flowering types. Among the most important and impressive trees are the several species of strangling fig. The largest flower on earth; the parasitic Rafflesia is a relatively common in the ecosystem.