Tarsius Tarsiers in Bantimurung Bulusaurung National Park

The history of Bantimurung Bulusaraung National Park began when Alfred Russel Wallace went on an expedition in 1857. A few years later, he published The Malay Archipelago which invited further research. This area has been designated as a conservation area since the 70s to 80s. In 1989, the Regional Office of the Ministry of Forestry of South Sulawesi proposed it as a Hasanuddin national park. Even so, its status as a candidate for a national park lasted quite a long time.

Finally, in 2004 the Minister of Forestry issued a decree (SK.398/Menhut-II/2004) dated October 18, 2004 concerning about changes in the function of forest areas in the Bantimurung-Bulusaraung Forest Group covering an area of 43,750 hectares.

The Bantimurung Bulusaraung National Park conservatory is dedicated to saving Sulawesi endemic animals including  a unique nocturnal primate, the Tarsius Tarsiers. Tarsiers have a very limited geographic range. They can only be found in the islands of Southeast Asia, including the Philippines, Borneo, and Sumatra.

As I have specifically chosen to write about the Tarsius Tarsiers, the classification of Tarsius Tarsiers are as follows :

 

 

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class:Mammal

Order:Primate

Family: Tarsiidae

Genus: Tarsier

Species : Tarsius Tarsier

 

 

Currently, the Sulawesi tarsiers are included in the red list of endangered species as announced by the IUCN. The exploitation of habitat and illegal wildlife trade that occurred at the end of this decade resulted in a mass decline in the tarsier population in Sumatra and other islands. For this reason, it is necessary to conduct a field survey regarding the population, taxonomic, genetic diversity and problem mapping. Tarsier protection and preservation must be done immediately; this is a very urgent matter before this species disappears from the earth of Sumatra. 

Not many people know this Sulawesi endemic animal, let alone have seen it firsthand. Apart from the fact that these animals are quite hard to find, there are no ex-situ conservation efforts. The scientific name of this animal is Tarsius fuscus. This species is only found in South Sulawesi. In other areas, for example in North Sulawesi, the species of tarsiers to be found there are different. There are 11 types of Tarsier species in the world and 9 of them can be found in Sulawesi. 

Tarsiers are always spending time in trees, and so they live in forested areas. They are able to live in rainforests, scrub forests, mangroves, and agricultural areas. They are most commonly found in forests that were cut down or damaged, but have re-grown back into complete forests.

Difficulties in conserving tarsiers include their specific feeding habits and specific needs for their habitat, another major difficulty is lack of study for the specific knowledge for each different type of tarsiers.

As there are not a lot of other tarsier conservatories to compare to, I will just mention the improvements to be made in the conservatory to increase the life quality and chances of saving the tarsier population. Tarsiers are very sensitive and get easily stressed when we touch them or hold them in captivity, they will bump their heads as a response which will lead them to their death because their heads will crack due to their thin cranium, for this reason, I think it’s best if we give tarsiers wide amounts of space, and avoid letting visitors of the conservatory to come near, for the tarsiers to feel safe.

My ideas for preserving Indonesia's biodiversity:

I think we can help make the ecosystem better for endangered animals by adding an Artificial Ecosystem to ex-situ and in-situ conservation to replace damaged ecosystems or to better replicate the ecosystem from which the ex-situ animals are taken from, to let them feel safe and comfortable with man-made surroundings similar to their former home.

Lastly as students, we must learn about Indonesia’s endangered endemic animals and spread the word about them to bring more attention to the matter. We can also join campaigns, so we can help them stay alive through educating people about the wonderful creatures that live in our country.