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Wildlife
Birds
excite particular interest not surprising when you consider more than half of
Java's bird fauna, including all but a couple of the island's twenty or so
"endemics", can be seen
here.
The park's most famous bird is the Javan Hawk Eagle. Less spectacular in
appearance is the crater swift let, a bird which likes to live dangerously as it
has only ever been recorded from three active Javan volcanoes. Even the humble
chestnut-belled part-ridge, frequently seen running across the paths in family
groups, is endemic to the western half of the island.
Alas,
the Javan tiger and the rhino roam no more, but a surprising array of mammals
can still be found. The most dramatic being the leopard. Leopards take an array
of food including mousedeer, barking deer, wild pig and monkeys and will even
have a go at Javan porcupines and pangolins. The other cat to occur is the
leopard cat. It looks gentle enough but is actually more aggressive than its
larger namesake. Keeping to the remote area of the peaks is the Asian wild dog.
Listed by IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of
Nature) also
vulnerable it is perhaps the rarest of the park's larger predators.
Out
of the Gede Pangrango's four species of primate three are endemic to Indonesia.
The rather scruffy ebony leaf monkey fortunately is still quite common. The
Javan leaf monkey,
by contrast, is a real aristocrat: gray on its back, with
white underside and possessing a very slender looking body and limbs. As with
the gibbon, this species is endemic to western half of Java. The park's most
well known primate, the Javan Gibbon, has the dubious distinction of been the
world's most endangered gibbon, of which around 100 live in the National Park.
Often
the rich diversity of Gede Pangrango's smaller animals is overlooked. The park
has a healthy population of small-clawed otters, considered by IUCN as
"insufficiently know" but probably at risk. At least 19 species of
frog have been recorded in the park ranging from a tiny brown species able to
jump almost a meter, to several species of medium to large tree frog.
Animal
Watching
Tropical
forest are the world's most rich ecosystems, but on first entering a forest you
may wonder where all the animals are. If you want to see forest animals, you
must be prepared
to spend time looking for them, particularly in the stillness
of montane forest; a rich variety of diverse creatures is all around you.
Bird-watchers, armed with both binoculars and determination, observe the
behavior of manny different animals including monkeys, tree shrews and flying
squirrels. Dawn and dusk often prove the best times to see active animals.
Night-time "spotting" with a torch can yield birds such as nightjars
and the rare Javan scops-owl, as well as nocturnal mammals including otters and
stink badgers, not to forget a array of frogs; but for safety's sake, keep to
the path when out at night.
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