Mount Halimun Salak National Park is a 400 km² conservation area in the

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...

n province of

West Java West Java ( id, Jawa Barat, su, ᮏᮝ ᮊᮥᮜᮧᮔ᮪, romanized ''Jawa Kulon'') is a province of Indonesia on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten ...

on the island of

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mo ...

. Established in 1992, the park comprises two mountains,

Mount Salak Mount Salak ( id, Gunung Salak, su, Gunung Salak) is an eroded volcano in West Java, Indonesia. It has several satellite cones on its southeast flank and the northern foot, along with two additional craters at the summit. Mount Salak has been ev ...

and Mount Halimun with an 11-kilometer forest corridor. It is located near the better known

Mount Gede Pangrango National Park Mount Gede Pangrango National Park is a national park in West Java, Indonesia. The park is centred on two volcanoes—Mount Gede and Mount Pangrango—and is 150 km² in area. It evolved from already existing conservation areas, such as C ...

, but the national park should be accessed from

Sukabumi , nickname = id, Kota Santri en, City of Learners , image_map = Map of West Java highlighting Sukabumi City.svg , map_caption = Location within West Java , mapsize = , pushpin_map = In ...

, 2 hours drive to the administration post and then 2 hours drive (30 kilometers) again to Cikaniki post gate. The park contains water catchment areas shielded from urban populations and agricultural areas to the north, as well as several endangered animals and rare birds.

Geography

Its mountain tops reach 1,929 metres and are often mist-shrouded, while its valleys are thought to hide much that remains to be discovered.

is a critical water catchment area for its very high rainfall. The park is an amalgamation of two important ecosystems at Halimun and Mount Salak, which are connected by an 11-kilometer forest corridor.

Communities in the park

The Kesepuhan traditional community is a group of around 5,300 people who live in the southern part of the park. Their main village is

Ciptagelar Ciptagelar is a traditional Sundanese hamlet in Sukabumi Regency, West Java. Founded in 1368, the hamlet is the largest village of the '' Kasepuhan'' community which retains traditional Sundanese social structure and strictly adheres to ''adat'' ...

Ecology

The lower zones hold secure populations of the endangered

West Javan gibbon West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

(''Hylobates moloch moloch'') - a sub-species of the

silvery gibbon The silvery gibbon (''Hylobates moloch''), also known as the Javan gibbon, is a primate in the gibbon family Hylobatidae. It is endemic to the Indonesian island of Java, where it inhabits undisturbed rainforests up to an altitude of . It is liste ...

. Mount Halimun is its most secure habitat, but its range is restricted to a thin ring around the park as the species is not found above 1,200 metres.

Javan lutung The East Javan langur (''Trachypithecus auratus''), also known as the ebony lutung, Javan langur or Javan lutung, is an Old World monkey from the Colobinae subfamily. It is most commonly glossy black with a brownish tinge to its legs, sides, and ...

(''Trachypithecus auratus''), and other

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

species are evident; about half its 145 known bird species are rarely seen elsewhere in Java. Chevron Pacific Indonesia which has 10,000 hectares geothermal concession, used 3 percent of its area for its power station facilities, has been involved in some conservation activities such as set camera traps.CSR Outreach: Chevron restores ecology in Mt. Halimun Salak
24 July 2012, ''The Jakarta Post''. 3 animals are known to breed: * Silvery gibbon rose from 54 in 2008 to 61 in 2013 *

Javan hawk eagle The Javan hawk-eagle (''Nisaetus bartelsi'') is a medium-sized, dark brown raptor in the family Accipitridae. It is the national bird of Indonesia, where it is commonly referred to as Garuda, from the bird-like creatures in Hindu and Buddhist my ...

rose from 10 in 2008 to 16 in 2011, but declined to 11 in 2013 *

Javan leopard The Javan leopard (''Panthera pardus melas'') is a leopard subspecies confined to the Indonesian island of Java. It has been listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2021. The population is estimated at 188–571 mature individuals in 22 f ...

rose significantly from 6 in 2008 to 18 in mid-2014

References

External links

*
Mount Halimun Salak National Park Official Website
{{authority control National parks of Indonesia Geography of West Java Protected areas established in 1992 1992 establishments in Indonesia Tourist attractions in West Java