FST Open Day: Kembara Hutan Bangi
"Bangi forest reserve (Hutan Simpan Bangi, adjacent to Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) Bangi campus, is a lawland secondary dipterocarp forest with a size of 100 hectares, which provides lush greenary freshness to UKM Bangi campus. Small forest reserve, ponds, swamps and hill slopes can be found in the forest reverse. The forest reserve is accessed via a 2 KM jungle trail for visitors to enjoy the beauty of flora and fauna of the forest reserve. Bukit Rupa is the highest peak of the forest reserve with an altitude of 105 m from sea level. The Fernarium located within the forest reserve is a site for collection of many fern species collected by researchers and scientist at UKM. Also situtated in the forest reverse is Hutan Pendidikan Alam UKM, which is a centre for cocurriculum activities of various UKM organizations. The co-curriculum centre is equipped with halls, bathroom, camp site and other amenities for training. Bangi Forest reverse houses more than 600 plant species and more than 800 faunal species including small mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fishes, insects etc. The richness of flora and fauna, and the various ecosystems have made Bangi Forest reserve an excellent site for teaching, research and recreation in UKM. "
The above description of Hutan Simpan Bangi came from the brochure given at the exhibition booth. In conjunction with FST Open Day, two jungle trekking sessions (10am and 2pm) are offered to visitors for FREE each day. A UKM bus will drop visitors at the Bangi Lama entrance. Then, they will take 1-1.5 hour journey across Hutan Bangi to reach another entrance point near UKM Law Faculty. This short jungle trekking trail is suitable to people to all walk of age. However, you must seek permission before entering this forest reserve.
Route to Bukit Rupa
My labmates and I signed up for the morning session. We were joined by two big groups of secondary school students and teachers. After a brief explanation by the guide, we head into the jungle. The guide stopped us at a number of trees to educate us about its uses. Several valuable species such as Jelutong, Gaharu and Tongkat Ali can be found here. The guide demonstrated burning a piece of Gaharu bark tissue to give off a nice fragance. He also cut down some young Palas leaves to show us that how to harvest Palas leaves used in wrapping ketupat.
Palas or Licuala spinosa
As we trek down the path, I realized the surrounding plants are mainly palm species such as Palas, Bertam, Salak and Rattan. Low species diversity, high density and wide distribution suggested that the forest has been badly damaged in the past. During Japanese occupation (1942-1945), 90% of the forest was cleared. Although reforestration was done, the forest never recover its valuable timbers. Some common indications of reforested areas are presence of lowland ferns and Senduduk (Melastoma malabathricum).
All the information about Hutan Bangi can be found here.
The above description of Hutan Simpan Bangi came from the brochure given at the exhibition booth. In conjunction with FST Open Day, two jungle trekking sessions (10am and 2pm) are offered to visitors for FREE each day. A UKM bus will drop visitors at the Bangi Lama entrance. Then, they will take 1-1.5 hour journey across Hutan Bangi to reach another entrance point near UKM Law Faculty. This short jungle trekking trail is suitable to people to all walk of age. However, you must seek permission before entering this forest reserve.
My labmates and I signed up for the morning session. We were joined by two big groups of secondary school students and teachers. After a brief explanation by the guide, we head into the jungle. The guide stopped us at a number of trees to educate us about its uses. Several valuable species such as Jelutong, Gaharu and Tongkat Ali can be found here. The guide demonstrated burning a piece of Gaharu bark tissue to give off a nice fragance. He also cut down some young Palas leaves to show us that how to harvest Palas leaves used in wrapping ketupat.
As we trek down the path, I realized the surrounding plants are mainly palm species such as Palas, Bertam, Salak and Rattan. Low species diversity, high density and wide distribution suggested that the forest has been badly damaged in the past. During Japanese occupation (1942-1945), 90% of the forest was cleared. Although reforestration was done, the forest never recover its valuable timbers. Some common indications of reforested areas are presence of lowland ferns and Senduduk (Melastoma malabathricum).
All the information about Hutan Bangi can be found here.
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2 comments:
Hi. I'm interested to find out who should I approach to get permission to enter this bangi forest reserve.
I have posted the link http://pkukmweb.ukm.my/~hutan/. Please contact Dr. Choong (cychoong@ukm.my)
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