Belum-Temenggor is believed to have been in existence for over 130 million years, making it one of the world's oldest rainforests, older than both the
Amazon and the
Congo. In the heart of the forest lies the manmade lake of Tasik Temenggor, covering 15,200 hectares which is dotted with hundreds of islands. The area has been identified as an
Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) Rank 1 under the Malaysian
National Physical Plan and recognized by
Birdlife International as an
Important Bird Area. The Malaysian federal government has labelled the area as a whole as an essential water catchment area and part of
Central Forest Spine and plans to protect the forest under the Malaysian
National Forestry Act. Despite that, between the two, only part of Belum Forest Reserve has been gazetted as a State Park while the rest are production forest open for development. Temenggor in particular is facing considerable deforestation due to logging. Environmental organizations such as
Malaysian Nature Society and the
World Wildlife Fund have been lobbying both the state and the federal government to gazette the area as a park. The state government of Perak, however, has resisted the effort, citing that logging provides the state with more than
RM 30 million in revenue. Nevertheless, the state government gazetted , part of the Belum forest reserve as state park on May 3, 2007. There is a plan to convert the natural forest to plantation forest along the
East-West Highway.
Fauna and flora Belum-Temenggor's relatively untouched forest is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna including 14 of the world's most threatened mammals including the
Malayan tiger,
Indian elephant,
white handed gibbon,
Malaysian sunbear and
tapir. Other animals include
seladang,
wild boars, numerous species of
deer,
pythons and
cobras. As of 2019, due to poaching and the depletion of prey, the number of tigers in Belum-Temengor Forest Reserve has declined about 60 percent over a period of 7-8 years, from approximately 60 to 23. In the forest, one can also find 3,000 species of
flowering plants, including 3 species of
Rafflesia, the world's largest flower. Malaysia is home to a variety of different
insect and
arthropod species. Notable examples would include the
stalk-eyed fly, violin fly,
lantern fly, and a variety of
stick insects. The
Brown marmorated stink bug is native to parts of East Asia and has now become an
invasive species in Europe and North America. Scientists are considering introducing the
parasitoid wasp Trissolcus japonicus, which preys on the eggs of the stink bug. ==See also==