British naturalist A.R.Wallace (1823 - 1913) postulated an imaginary line (named after him-Walace's Line) as the dividing line between Asiatic and Australian fauna. It passes between Bali and Lombok islands between Kalimantan and Sulawesi, then continues south of the Philippines and north of Hawaii. This theory probably explains the presence of species of fauna familiar to both Asia and Australia found in Indonesia. However, there are species indigenous to Indonesia, like the "orang utan" apes of Sumatra and Kalimantan, the giant "Komodo" lizards which are the only ones of their kind in the world today roaming free on the island of Komodo; the one-horned rhinoceros of Java, the wild "Banteng" oxen, tigers and many other species which are now protected in wildlife reserves. The flora of Indonesia ranges from the tiny orchid to the giant "Rafflesia" plant which has a bloom almost a meter (3.2 feet) in diameter - the largest flower in the world - and many other species of plant life which can be seen at the Bogor Botanical Gardens. Indonesia has some of the richest timber resources in the world and the largest concentration of tropical hardwoods. The total area of state-controlled forests is approximately 12.9 million hectares. Meranti constitutes about 56% of the entire timber export. Other varieties include ramin, agathis, teak, pine wood and a range of other timber in smaller quantity, rattan and bamboo.

Kerinci Seblat is a big new reserve, covering a lengthy 345 km. section of the mountainous spine of Sumatra, the Bukit Barisan, of which Gunung Kerinci is the highest peak (3,800m). Most of the reserve is above 400m., cool and pleasant after the heat of the coast. Away from the valleys, there is excellent lowland, hill, montane forest, and alpine vegetation on the highest slopes, with a correspondingly wide variety of animal and bird life. The scenery is beautiful, especially around the crater lake of Gunung Tujuh and Kerinci, a spectacular volcanic cone.

The Ujung Kulon peninsula is the western most extension of Java. The park includes the peninsula, as well as the offshore islands of Peucang and Panaitan. This beautiful peninsula, protected on three sides by the sea and on the east by the Honje mountains, has been a natural refuge for wildlife, now rare in the rest of heavily populated Java, and is the last place in the world where the once common Javan Rhinoceros is found. Ujung Kulon also contains some of the last tracts of undisturbed lowland rain forest to be found in Java. Typical vegetation in Ujung Kulon is dense thickets of palms, ginger's and bamboo's. The islands which surround the 270m. deep sunken caldera some 40 km. from the coast are the remnants of a pre 16th century volcano. The smoking cone you now see is a grandchild of Krakatau, Anak Krakatau, which first appeared in 1929 and has been growing yearly. It was actually the island of Rakata Besar which exploded so dramatically in 1883, losing half its land area, sending tidal waves across the Indian Ocean.

The Gunung Rinjani Reserve includes much of the remaining forested land on the island of Lombok. Most of this is on the steep slopes of the mountain complex of Gunung Rinjani. At 3,726m., Gn. Rinjani is higher than Java’s Gn. Semeru - though well under the altitude of the snow capped mountains of Irian Jaya. More or less in the Reserve’s centre is the big crater lake of Segara Anak. In the lake, a new cone (Gn. Baru) has risen and is still smoking. From the top of Rinjani there are splendid views west to Bali and east to Sumbawa. As in the rest of the Lesser Sundas there are Rusa and Barking Deer, Wild Pig, Long-tailed Macaques and Civets. Lombok is interesting as the western most island where the Sulphur-crested Cockatoo is found; there are also Honey Eaters and Bee-eaters and a Mound Builder.

Komodo National Park includes the islands of Komodo, Padar and Rinca. Isolated and protected by the strong currents of the straits these three islands are home to the famous Komodo dragon, the world’s largest monitor lizard, which is some 3 or 4 metres long. Most of the island is uninhabited, and the upland valleys are filled with deer and pig on which the big lizards prey. Lying in wait, their huge bulk hidden by the long grass, beside their game’s accustomed trails to and from water. Your first encounter with these giant monitor lizards should be an experience you'll always remember. Besides the Dinosaur-throwbacks, we are likely to see screeching cockatoos, wild pig and Timorensis "barking" Deer. Mound building birds nest on southern Rinca and Komodo. The area is also very good for sea and shore birds.

Kalimantan is the Indonesian part of Borneo and covers most of that huge island. Under populated by people, but covered by a mass of trees, Kalimantan is the heartland of the Malesian rain forests. Proliferating mostly on Kalimantan’s vast lowlands, these rain forests are fantastically rich in species of trees, lianas, rattans and orchids.

Tanjung Puting is largely a freshwater swamp forest reserve with some forested dry land in the north. It covers most of the cape of Tanjung Puting, also known as Kotawaringan Sampit, on the coast of western Central Kalimantan between the Kumai and Seruyan Rivers. Kotawaringan, on the river of that name to the west of the Kumai, was the capital of one of the old sultanates of Kalimantan. Travel in the swamps is inevitably a matter of wading, sometimes chest deep, in the peaty tea coloured water or clambering over the roots of trees. The best way to see the wildlife is from a boat on the attractive Sekunir River, or on foot, from the network of trails opened and developed in a 3,500ha. study area for the benefit of the reserve's research station.