Wild Indonesia: The Wildlife and Scenery of the Indonesian Archipelago

The Indonesian Archipelago consists of over 13,000 islands forming a grand link between Asia and Australia. This single country contains a wondrous diversity of natural features - vast rainforests and swamps, huge and savannahs, the largest collection of active volcanoes on earth, coral reefs, and even glaciers - and a rich variety of plant and animal life, including many species found nowhere else.

Wild Indonesia introduces the natural wealth of this remarkable land. Its comprehensive text was written by two naturalists who have spent many years studying and writing about the country's ecology, while its 400 stunning photographs were taken especially for the book by one of the world's leading natural history photographers.

The text starts with an overview of the land and people of Indonesia and an introduction to its particular conservation problems. It then focuses in turn on each of the country's regions: Sumatra, Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo), Java and Bali, Sulawesi, the Moluccas and Lesser Sundas, and Irian Jaya (Indonesian New Guinea). Special attention is given to natural parks and reserves. Each region is described in detail, and the text is accompanied by maps and illustrations of landscapes, mammals, birds, reptiles, insects, and the country's exquisite flora, including its fabulous orchids. Species are all shown in their natural habitat, emphasizing clearly the interdependence of all forms of life.

Tony and Jane Whitten have spent much of the last sixteen years in Indonesia. They are currently based in Bali and working on a detailed study of the ecology of Java and Bali; their previous books include ecological studies of Sumatra and Sulawesi, Asian Animals in Danger, The Gibbons of Siberut, and The Freshwater Fishes of Sumatra, Borneo, Java, and Sulawesi. Gerald Cubitt provided all of the photographs for Wild Indonesia, as he has for the companion volumes Wild Malaysia and Wild India.