The Tangkoko Batuangus Nature Reserve

Located in the northern part of Sulawesi island, Tangkoko Batuangus Nature Reserve also known as Tangkoko-Batuangus Dua Saudara is the first conservation area. It was established in 1919 cover an area of 8,718 hectares which includes Mount Tangkoko (1,109 meters), Mount Dua Saudara (1,361 meters) and Mount Batuangus (450 meters).

Tangkoko Batuangus Nature Reserve protects around 127 mammal, 233 bird and 104 reptile and amphibian species. Of these 79 mammal, 103 bird and 29 reptile and amphibian species are endemic to the island.[ The Tarsius tarsier (the world’s smallest primate), black tailless monkeys, and wild pigs and kuskus (marsupials) are some of many residents of the reserve.

What you should know

There are two climatic zones in North Sulawesi based on the ratio between dry and wet periods. The eastern part of North Sulawesi has ten to twelve months of wet months and less than two dry months, while the western part shows more seasonality with seven to nine consecutive wet months and three or less consecutive dry months. Rainfall is higher between November and May when the winds are from the north. During this period, monthly rainfall averages 314 mm. The period from May to November is characterized by hot and dry conditions as a result of southeasterly monsoon winds. Temperatures often reach as high as 35 C and rainfall is low with a monthly rainfall of 72 mm.

  • Wear comfortable shoes
  • Bring along some insect repellent. Tangkoko is brimming with microscopic mites called 'gonone' which love to squirm past your clothes and onto your body, especially the warmer parts. Spray or apply generous amounts of insect repellent onto places where there is little ventilation such as armpits, underneath your sock, belt lining, and crotch.
  • Do not wear sandals and shorts; the mosquitoes and thorny plants will gleefully attack you.
  • A pair of binoculars
  • Rain jacket
  • A large bottle of water
  • Snacks (such as fruit or candy bars)
  • Notebook and pen for note taking
  • Do not enter the reserve unless accompanied by an official guide. Once you have paid your admission fee, the ticket guard will call a guide for you.
  • Do not throw trash in the forest. Please try to pack out what you packed in. Not only is it unsightly, but also rubbish left by people presents a health hazard for animals.
  • Do not attempt to rouse an animal by throwing objects or making noises at it.
  • Do not get too close (< 5 m) to macaques or feed them. Macaques carry viruses known to be fatal to humans.
  • When viewing tarsiers, do not get too close to the tree (no more than 5 m from the tree), crowd around the tree (no more than 5 people around the tree), nor shine torches/flashlights at the animals (they have sensitive eyes which can be damaged by powerful light). Ask for your tour guide to provide a red or yellow colored cellophane cover for your torch/flashlight).
  • Do not enter designated research areas (i.e. research station Pos 3 and areas indicated either by flagging tapes or posted signs).
  • Stick to the trails and do not go trotting off by yourself, even with your guide close by.

The Mammals

(Macaca nigra) is the most conspicuous mammal species in the reserve. It is endemic to the forests of North. Older adult males sometimes have slightly grey backs, like silverback mountain gorilla males. Adult females are easily recognized by their inflated red behind which indicates that they are in estrus (sexual swelling). When their behind looks like a big red balloon, it means they are at the peak of estrus--around tow weeks after beginning their menstrual cycle. Newborn babies up to two months old have thin sparse fur and cling to their mothers.

(Tarsius spectrum) is a Sulawesi endemic species, comprised of four subspecies, that is distributed throughout Sulawesi but whose population is found in pockets in North, Central, and South Sulawesi. They are called tarsiers because of their elongated tarsal region in which their tibia and fibula bones are fused thus allowing their great leaping ability. Tiny animals with head and body length at approximately 10 cm weighing approximately little over 100 g).

The ears and eyes are enormous. The tail is much longer than the body and nearly naked except for the last third portion of the tail that is tufted. They have nails like humans except for the 'toilet claws' on the second and third digits of their feet. These toilet claws are used for grooming. The tarsier is a nocturnal animal (i.e. animal whose activities take place mostly at night and early mornings before dawn), hunting for insects like katydids (i.e. long-horned grasshoppers), crickets, and roaches.

They often cling to a tree trunk and use their highly sensitive eyes and mobile ears to detect their prey. Once the prey is located, thou pounce upon them with their grasping hands. Their social group is made up of a mated pairs and their infant. Tarsiers occur mostly in lower elevations in scrub and lowland rainforest habitats. In the evening you will hear the vocal duets and choruses in early evening and before dawn.

(Ailurops ursinus) is one of two endemic cuscus species belong to the Phalangeridae family that occur on Sulawesi.It s a marsupial (females lacking a complete placenta, and most species having females with an abdominal pouch in which the infant is carried). It's body and head length measures 56 cm and the tail which is prehensile (i.e. grasping) measures 54 cm, and can weigh up to 8 kg. The body is mostly dark brown and grey with the upper chest cream colored. It has the tiny ears and dark brown eyes. Bear cuscus occupy the high strata of the forest structure feeding on leaves and fruits. The social group is comprised of only the mother and her infant (up to 8 months). Otherwise, the adult males and females are solitary except for mating.

(Strigocuscus celebensis). For night viewing, you can take your flashlight/torch to look for them along the beach trail and in gardens along the Batuputih roads. As with the Bear Cuscus, they are marsupials. The head and body measures 30-4- cm, the tail approximately 35 cm, and it weighs 1.5-2 kg. It has orangish brown fur on its back and a black stripe across the top of the head and neck. Its underside is cream colored. It has tiny ears and blue eyes with black pupils. Unlike the Bear Cuscus, the Dwarf Cuscus is primarily frugivorous. Little information is available on which fruits they feed on, but they are known to raid crops to feed on bananas, mangoes, and papaya. Its social grouping is though to be a mated pair.

Sulawesi is the home to 22 species, including many rare and peculiar formsThe two commonest species are :

Sulawesi Rousette (Rousettus celebensis) and Lesser Dog-faced Fruit Bat (Cynopterus brachyotis) and one occasionally catches sight of them in a spotlight beam. The rousette is the larger species with a wingpsan of some 50 cm and is dark brown in color; it roosts in caves along the coast from Pos 3. The Lesser Dog-faced Fruit Bat is smaller with a wingspan of about 40 cm, and has a ruff of bright orange fur which is particularly striking in males. This species makes its roost in trees and small groups of 5-10 bats can be found hanging under the large leaves of palm trees and, in scrub forest, banana plants.

There are two types of squirrel that are commonly seen in the forest, both of which are endemic to Sulawesi. The first species, the Northern Dwarf Squirrel (Prosciurillus murinus) is a small, has brown fur and a gray belly. It is very common at Tangkoko and can often be seen running on the ground or racing up tree trunks. Pale Dwarf Squirrel (Prosciurillus leucomus) is also brown with a grayish belly but has a very obvious band of silver-gray fur on the back of the head extending on to the ears. Both squirrels are very noisy and their repetitive, high pitched chatterings are a common sound at Tangkoko.

 (Sus celebensis) measures 90-150 cm. Coloration varies between dark gray to black. The body is covered with thick long bristles with the tail covered with short hairs. They are mostly found in closed canopy forests traveling in groups of 2-5. They feed mostly on fallen fruits, roots rhizomes, and tubers, but also go after agricultural crops. The best chance of seeing them in on the Puncak trail.

(Babyrousa babyrussa) is one of the most bizarre looking animals in Sulawesi. The head and body measures 85-100 cm and the tail measures 25-30 cm, and weighs up to 100 kg. Its skin is rough with virtually no hair, and is grayish in color. Its most striking feature is its tusks--the upper tusks grow through the top of the muzzle and then curve back toward the eyes. Some researchers have suggested that these tusks can be hooked over the lower tusks of the opponent. Babirusa travel in small groups and vocalize by giving out low grunting moans. Unlike other pigs, babirusa females give birth to only one or two infants.

Babirusa are thought to be primarily nocturnal although they travel and forage during daytime. They do not root like other pigs do but eat fruit and break open dead wood to obtain beetle larvae. Babirusas are extremely rare in Tangkoko. Only three have been spotted between the early 1980s and mid 1990s. Their decline at Tangkoko is most likely due to the intense hunting that took place during this period.

(Cervus timorensis) is thought to be an introduced species from Java and Bali. The head and body length is 1.4-1.8 m and the tail length is approximately 20 cm, and it weighs around 70 kg in males and 50 kg in females. The antlers are lyre like and have three tines. The coat is dull brown in color. They are quite rare in the reserve; the last sighting of a large deer group was a few years ago of twelve animals along the alang-alang grass fields past Pos 1.

They also occur along the coastal edges where they feed on shoots, grasses that come up after a fire has occurred, and the charred debris of sodium. The also feed on herbs and shrubs, and have been reported to drink seawater. Breeding occurs throughout the year with a mating peak June to August and a birth peak around March to April.

Wildlife  Photography

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