Borneo, the Oldest Rainforest in the World

Borneo or Kalimantan, is one of the largest island in Indonesia and the world. The island is divided among three countries: Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia. Approximately 73% of the island is Indonesian territory. The Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak in the north occupy about 26% of the island. The sovereign state of Brunei, located on the north coast, comprises about 1% of Borneo's land area. Borneo is home to one of the oldest rainforests in the world.

The Borneo rainforest is 130 million years old, making it the oldest rainforest in the world and 70 million years older than the Amazon rainforest. Borneo is very rich in biodiversity compared to many other areas. There are about 15,000 species of flowering plants with 3,000 species of trees (267 species are dipterocarps), 221 species of terrestrial mammals and 420 species of resident birds in Borneo. It is also the centre of evolution and radiation of many endemic species of plants and animals. Subject to mass deforestation, the remaining Borneo rainforest is one of the only remaining natural habitats for the endangered Bornean Orangutan. It is also an important refuge for many endemic forest species, as the Asian Elephant, the Sumatran Rhinoceros, the Bornean Clouded Leopard, the rare Hose's Civet and the Dayak Fruit Bat. An important reserve for elephants and rhinos is Tabin Wildlife Reserve in the northeastern corner of Borneo.

Even it is called as the oldest rainforest, the popularity of Amazon in Brazil is still better than it is. Since the size is decreasing from massive deforestation, there is still a lot to discover in this Borneo rainforest. The forest itself, the rivers, and the hill surround it.