Matang: Romanticising the Mangroves (2)

ON FISHERMEN AND THE CHARCOAL FACTORY

A small trawler boat crusing by the mangroves of Matang.

A view of Kuala Sepetang fishing village.

Afternoon sees the placid brown rivers of Matang disturbed by incoming fishing boats. The chugging engines tear the calmness of the air previously dominated by whispers of heated updrafts carrying rounds of white bellied eagles (Haliaeetus leucogaster) high in the sky. Crab and prawn pots can be seen stacked highly on these smallish boats. As their bows swing towards wood-planked berths stretching out into the waters from village and warehouses, workers on the boats pulled out blue drums loaded with the day’s catch. The berths were lined with people readying to pull the drums up with metal hooks and strong muscles. The cued thud of the starboard on the berth signals a synchronised hauling of the catch from the deck to the berth in minutes. Once all catches are landed, the captain reverses the boat and head out once more to the sea. In a small frame of time, the fishing village of Kuala Sepetang laid its hands on another couple of tonnes of crustaceans.

 

The distinctive fishing village jetties of Kuala Sepetang.

A boat heading out to sea.

The livery of Kuala Sepetang’s fishing industry for the last 200 years (1) is an enduring testimony of the importance of ecosystem services provided by the mangroves. Mangroves are major nursery grounds for many fishes that inhabit the open waters of the Straits of Malacca (2). During breeding seasons, commercially important fishes such as groupers (garupa; Epinephelus), catfish (keli; Arius), snappers (ikan merah; Lutjanus) and rays (pari; Neotrigon) head into its murky waters to breed (2). The tangled roots and restrictive channels kept large predators away from the vulnerable young fry while they develop into adults.

 A selection of crustaceans such as flower crabs (Portunus pelagicus), mask crabs (Charybdis feriatus), tiger prawns (Penaeus monodon) and a mantis shrimp (Harpiosquilla sp.) found often near mangroves.

These fishes also share their homes with a myriad of other mangrove residents. The celebrated dried shrimp (Acetes spp.) spreaded on the verandas of village houses, drying under the tropical sun, came from the same habitat as the fishes. The greenish-grey mud crabs (Scylla serrata), bounded and packed in rattan baskets were taken from mud banks in the wake of receding tides.

Roofs of Kuala Sepetang fishing village.

The blood clam (Anadara granosa) is a common mangrove mollusc with characteristic red blood (haemoglobin) which aides in its respiration of dissolved oxygen when the tide is far out from its mudflat habitat (4).

Blood clams (Anadara granosa), an indispensable companion of many Malaysian seafood dishes, clang by their thousands in spinning metal clam-washers. Impurities falling out of the washers form a mound beneath it. This is a mix of spiny murex snails (Murex occa, M. trapa), tiger moon snails (Natica tigrina), rock shells (Thais lacera) and sea cucumbers. The first 3 species are blood clam predators and are also increasingly popular on the menu of seafood lovers. This lot is undeniably a section of the mudflat community, which is a unique ecosystem formed by the deposition of nutrient-rich mud on the seaward side of mangrove coasts.

The well-known charcoal factory near Kuala Sepetang. 

Seafood is not the only major industry in Matang’s mangroves. The continual management of mangroves is motivated by the well-known charcoal industry for centuries. The Khay Hor Charcoal Factory is one of the charcoal producers. A tangy vapour of burning mangrove wood greeted me as I was taken a tour of the factory by veteran charcoal-producer Mr. Chuah Chow Aun. Boats holding mangrove logs from allocated logging plots cruises into a canal and unload their cargo. Here, they are processed into charcoal via slow burning in large traditional clay kilns. In the process, strong vapours emitted from the kiln’s outlets are condensed into tannin acid, commercially used for tightening leather but locally used as mosquito repellent. Mr. Chuah explains that the charcoal produced from Matang’s Rhizophora is dense and odourless, a quality attribute that is reflected by the high demand for his charcoal in Japan.

 

The canal where the unloading of mangrove logs takes place.

The kilns where mangrove logs are traditionally processed into charcoal.

Dark coloured Tannin acid is a byproduct of charcoal production.

The abundance of useful species is an important lifeline for the people of Kuala Sepetang. However, these are but a handful of species in the midst of the thousands of others which are very much ecologically-intertwined with them. Mangroves as a whole are an integral part of the tropical land and seascape. Its presence gave rise to a unique ecosystem which in turn, influenced other seemingly unrelated ecosystems such as coral reefs and seagrass beds (2). At a time when Malaysia is increasingly losing its mangroves (3), it is crucial to ensure that Matang's mangrove ecology and interactions are not destroyed or altered significantly under such intensive resource harvesting.  As any visitors will realise, the cultural and industrial successes of Matang hangs on the ecological balance of its mangroves.

  

Scibbles and numbers probably showing charcoal yields. The future of the charcoal industry, like many others in Matang, depends on a responsible, long-term management of mangroves.

References:

(1) Watson, JG 1928, Malayan Forest Records: Mangrove Forests of the Malay Peninsula, Forest Department, Federated Malay States.

(2) Ronnback, P 1999, 'The ecological basis for economic value of seafood production supported by mangrove ecosystems', Ecological Economics, vol. 29, pp. 235-252. (Available from: http://ecosystems.wcp.muohio.edu/studentresearch/climatechange03/productivity/pdf%27s/Mangroveseafoodproduction.pdf )

(3) Chiew, H 2008, 'Mangrove status in Malaysia', The Star, 10 June. (Available from: http://mangroveactionproject.org/news/current_headlines/mangrove-status-in-malaysia )

(4) Davenport, J and Wong, TM 1986, 'Responses of the blood cockle Anadara granosa (L.) (Bivalvia: Arcidae) to salinity, hypoxia and aerial exposure', Aquaculture, vol. 56, no. 2, pp. 151-162. (Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0044848686900244 )

Matang: Romanticising the Mangroves (1)

Matang is a land of contrasts. It is where numerous mud creeks wind slowly under the endless verdant cover of mangrove stands. A land sheltering clusters of rickety stilt-houses home to generations of fishermen and wood-cutters while serving, at the same time, a refuge for mangrove wildlife. A land whose ecosystem is among the biggest carbon sinks on Earth (1) and yet home to one of the largest charcoal industry in the country (2). Under this paradoxical coexistence, a surprising synergy unveils. This two-part series begins with a visit to the famous mangroves of Matang.

THE MANGROVES

A small river winding among the mangroves of Matang Permeanant Forest Reserve.

The road crossing Matang’s lowlands is peculiarly straight. Lining both sides of the road are the ubiquitous oil palm and the occasional clusters of coconut stands and kampong houses. I strained my eyes to look beyond the blur of passing palms as the car cruises across this unbroken plain, hoping to catch the glitter of mangrove leaves behind the silhouettes of palm fronds, but there were none. At almost 400kmsq, the mangroves of Matang Permanent Forest Reserve are touted as the largest remaining tract of its kind in Peninsular Malaysia (3). But where is it?

 The Matang Permeanant Forest Reserve is an agglomeration of mud-rich estuaries and islands cloaked in mangroves on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia. 

(Picture source: 4)

Turning around the corner at the end of the road, the car came into full view of a metalled lane walled by an unbroken line of tall mangroves and dense undergrowth. The mangroves have been hiding just behind the oil palms all this while, continuing under the uniform shadow of its thick canopy. Standing at around 10 metres, this unusually tall mangrove Rhizophora apiculata has a straight trunk with branches that does not appear until right at the canopy. Its wide-arched prop roots often share the forest with the sturdy buttress roots of the Leggadai, Brugueira parviflora, which resembles the roots of lowland rainforest dipterocarps. Indeed it almost feels like I’m deep in a rainforest as I pulled into the Matang PFR visitor centre.

 

 A 65-years-old Bakau Minyak, Rhizophora apiculata displayed in situ.

The Piai Lasa, Acrostichum speciosum, is a fern highly adapted to life in the mangrove forest. It is one of the fastest-spreading plants in such habitat and hence, often compete with the planted mangrove saplings (5).

Here is the scene of fierce competition between the fast growing Piai Lasa and the planted Rhizophora saplings.

A typical scene in the Matang mangroves.

The entrance signboard to Matang PFR boardwalk.

Contrary to the putrid, mosquito-infested mangrove stereotype, Matang turns out to be exceptionally neat and fresh! A newly build boardwalk brings visitors deep into the mangrove forest heartland. Bird nest ferns and giant bracket fungi hang on the trunks and branches while fallen logs scatter among meadows of mangrove fern Piai Lasa (Acrostichum areum), Jejuru (Acanthus spp.) and mangrove saplings. The ground here, having thick layers of fallen leaves across the seemingly dry forest floor with occasional puddles of water, bears uncanny likeness to the rainforest. A chance encounter with a freshly dug puddle of mud no doubt made by wild boars (Sus scrofa) further enhances such an impression. Only a faint whiff of salty air reminds me that I am still in a mangrove, at least for a while.

Wild boars (Sus scrofa) often dig pits like these for molluscs and crustaceans (content source: 6)

A giant bracket fungi measuring almost half a metre across.

The spike-adorned Nibong, Oncosperma tigillarium, is a common palm in freshwater swamps and lowland rainforests but can also be found in drier parts of the mangrove (Content source: 7).

The Rotan Bakau (mangrove rattan), Calamus erinaceus is another peculiar plant related to the Nibong (8).

Glancing up to the canopy, I was rewarded with another surprising sight-the crown-shyness phenomena, in a mangrove forest! This is the first time I’ve seen this phenomena outside of the dipterocarp rainforest. It turns out that these were the result of abrasion between swaying branches of neighbouring trees brought by strong winds (9).

Upon closer scrutiny, the ground reveals the marine fauna component of this part of the forest. Grazing on the dead leaves are several species of the peculiar Ellobiid snails. These snails are essentially terrestrial (they are pulmonate snails ie. they breathe air through lungs) in adult form but marine in its larval stages. It requires the tides to wash its eggs into the ocean which its larva will develop and eventually settle on suitable lands in adult form. (10)

The Banded Cassidula snail, Cassidula nucleus, is a common resident of mangroves.

The Judas Ear Snail, Ellobium aurisjudae, is another Ellobiid found in mangroves.

A larger ellobiid, the Midas Ear Snail, Ellobium aurismidae.

This Spotted Littorinid snail, Littorina scabra is another well-known mangrove snail commonly found way above the water line on trunks or even leaves! Despite it able to survive above water for a considerable time, it breathes via gills (11).

A small stream winds through the thick mangrove forest.

As I wander further along the boardwalk and towards the river, the undergrowth gradually gets thinner. Eventually, only a few straws of saplings remain amongst the mingling roots of Rhizophora. Here, vivid claws of red, blue, orange and yellow male crabs vey for attention among the drab muddy background. But it is not my attention that they are seeking, as I found out when they scurried straight into their pencil-thin burrows in the ground as I approach them. Upon sensing little threat I pose to them, they eventually return to the surface and waver their oversize claws once again. This time, several drab looking female crabs approaches them. I was witnessing a mating display. 

The unique prop roots of Bakau Kurap, Rhizophora murconata.

The undergrowth grew thinner towards the river banks.

A male Rose Fiddler crab, Uca rosea with its oversized claw.

However, there is one thing about the mangrove forest that is more surprising than others. There are several clearings in the forest and distinct plots with different stages of young Rhizophora, reminding visitors that this is in fact a mangrove silviculture site. Matang PFR has a long history of mangrove forest management stretching back to 1908 and was one of the field sites where benchmark research into mangrove management strategies took place a century ago (4). There are two primary species planted in this heavily-managed ecosystem- Bakau Minyak, Rhizophora apiculata and Bakau Kurap, R.  mucronata. These species are highly sought-after for charcoal production and various structural uses in local communities.

A plot of young Rhizophora trees.

A specific area of the boardwalk built for mangrove sapling planting.

A propagule of the Brugueira. This is the ‘seedling’ which drops from a parent tree after maturing and often ends up lodge in the mud via its projectile-like end. Tidal waters then triggers roots and shoots to sprout into a sapling. (12)

As I rounded a corner and walked alongside the Rhizophora-fringed river, a distant object splashed into the water instantaneously! Adrenalin suddenly surge through me. Thoughts of getting face-to-face with the saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) flashed before my eyes as I scanned desperately around to catch a glimpse of this rare and endangered beast. Knowing that this is the region where crocodiles were prime game in the 19^th Century (13), I am always on the lookout for any of their surviving descendants.  A ripple can be seen on the bank, underneath drooping Nipah (Nypa fruticans) fronds. A reptilian head peeked out from the shadows. Sigh, it was no crocodile but a Water Monitor (Varanus salvator).

The water monitor, Varanus salvator swimming along the river bank. It is an omnipresent resident of many habitats stretching from the coastline right up into the mountains, including certain areas of human settlements.

Thick stands of Rhizophora crowd the banks of the river.

Despite continuous disturbance brought on by the silviculture system, it is the biodiversity component that strikes most awe in me. There is no doubt these disturbances altered the natural ecosystem but the resource that contributed to such disturbances-the Rhizophora mangroves, is paradoxically giving the ecosystem a reason to be conserved and be managed sustainably. Inadvertently, this has also buffered various other flora and fauna from ever-encroaching land uses such as agriculture and aquaculture, which have already consumed and heavily disturbed many stretches of this unique ecosystem that exists between the land and the sea.

References:
 (1) Ong, JE 1993, 'Mangroves-a carbon source and sink', Chemosphere, vol. 27, no. 6, pp. 1097-1107. (Available from: http://mangroveactionproject.org/files/resources/Ong_Mangroves%20A%20Carbon%20Source%20and%20Sink_1993.pdf )

(2) pers. comm. Chuah Chow Aun

(3) MTC 2009, 'Matang Mangroves: A Century of Sustainable Management', Timber Malaysia, vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 6-11. (Available from: http://www.mtc.com.my/info/images/stories/pdf/tm-vol-15-3.pdf)

(4) Giri, C, n.d., Matang Mangrove Forest, Malaysia. (Available from: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=7131)

(5) Watson, JG 1928, Malayan Forest Records: Mangrove Forests of the Malay Peninsula, Forest Department, Federated Malay States.

(6) Baker, N 2012, Eurasian wild pig. (Available from: http://www.ecologyasia.com/verts/mammals/wild_pig.htm)

(7) FAO 2007, Ecocrop: Oncosperma tigillarium. (Available from: http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/cropView?id=8076)

(8) Rattan Species Diversity, 2006. (Available from: http://www.apforgen.org)

(9) Putz, FE, Parker, GG and Archibald, RM 1984, 'Mechanical Abrasion and Intercrown Spacing', American Midland Naturalist, vol. 112, no. 1, pp. 24-28. (Available from: http://www.jstor.org/pss/2425452)

(10) Apley ML 1970, 'Field Studies on Life History, Gonadal Cycle and Reproductive Periodicity in Melampus bidentatus (Pulmonata: Ellobiidae)', Malacologia, vol. 10, no. 2, pp. 381-397. (Available from: http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/pdf2/002934900047355.pdf)

(11) Chapman, MG and Underwood, MJ 1999, Seashores: A Beachcomber's Guide, Univeristy of New South Wales Press, Sydney.

(12) Mangroves, 2009. (Available from: http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/plants/mangrove/mangroves.htm)

(13) Maxwell, WG 1907, In Malay Forests, William Blackwood and Sons, London.

New Snail Species from an Old Rainforest

Rolling hills of verdant rainforests as seen along the East-West Highway which divides the Belum-Temenggor Rainforest into two large, separate portions.

Time and again, we have been reminded of our surprisingly little understanding of and exploration into the natural world. New species kept spewing out from scientific expeditions and personal discoveries while chainsaws and heavy bulldozers raze kilometres of the world's remaining natural ecosystems.

This scenario is no stranger to the Belum-Temenggor Rainforest Complex, which ranges from lowland hill forests in the valleys to tropical montane rainforests up on the cloud-draped highlands. This time, the new species comes in the form of a snail, a not-your-average forest snail.

Morning mists roll up the tree-cloaked hill slopes in Belum-Temenggor's montane forests.

This precious 300 square kilometres (300000 hectares) block of rainforest houses a multitude of ecosystems that very much represents almost the entire cross section of Peninsular Malaysian biosphere save the coastal region. Thus, it comes as no surprise that the last representatives of the Malaysian megafauna seek refuge in its verdure including the highly endangered national icon, the Malayan Tiger (Phantera tigris jacksoni). The same can be said for almost every group of rainforest flora and fauna in the Peninsular. However, it is a cherry-sized snail that particularly surprised Reuben Clements, a researcher of Malaysia's mammals and molluscs, late last year.

Having spent most of his time working under humid tropical rainforest conditions while tracking the elusive Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus), encountering a snail was not something he had on his mind. But what an unusual encounter it was! Clements recalled his team were looking out for fresh elephant faeces when they chanced upon lumps of mud brown globes (their target). Breaking the freshly laid, cellulose-laden "cakes", he scooped and inserted a portion of it into clear plastic bags for analysis back in the team's laboratory. In the process, something gleaming on the surface of the pachyderm droppings caught his attention. It was a white object with a distinctive brown spiral embedded in the sticky brown lump. He instantly recognised it as a snail. A snail fragment, probably. After all, how could a tree snail end up deep in elephant dung if not for it having been through the gnawing of tree leaves and passing around the mighty pachyderm's digestive tract?

Either way, curiosity overcame speculation and Clements decided to remove the snail from the fecal matter for a closer look. It turned out not to be a shell fragment nor an Amphidromus snail (which is often the case for Malaysian tree snails)! In fact, this snail is so out-of-place as far as current malacology is concerned.

Featuring a blunt apex with a fairly tall and convex spire, a rather sharp kneel, a slight depression on the final whorl before the lip, a thick, angled and flared lip, as well as a covered umbilicus, this yet-to-be-named snail is hauntingly similar in many ways to its New Guinean Camaenidae snails (a.k.a. Camaenids). It has a porcelain white background and a yellow-brown periostracum. Furthermore, the narrow brown band that spirals at the periphery for the first 3 upper whorls and the thick maroon band that adorns the periphery of the base as well as a narrow pink inner banding further reinforce its similarity to its New Guinean counterparts.  Such distinct characteristics could hardly be of mainland Southeast Asian origins!

 A dorsal view of the new snail's shell. (Photos courtesy of Reuben Clements)

 A basal view of the new snail's shell. (Photos courtesy of Reuben Clements)

A side view of the shell showing the pronounced kneel and thick, flared lip. 

(photos courtesy of Reuben Clements)

The question now is (or rather, are): Where exactly does this snail fit into the general picture of mainland Southeast Asian's (or more accurately, Sundaland's) molluscan fauna? What is its origins? or if it is as speculated, how did it came to Belum from New Guinea? (or is it the other way around?) What about the assumed migration barrier called the Wallace Line? Are there any similar shells elsewhere in the region? etc. etc. An avalanche of questions began.

Clements suggest that it could be related to the family Acavidae, which stems from Gondwanan ancestors. Gondwana is an ancient supercontinent that split up some 167 million years ago in the mid-Jurassic into fragments that include South America, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica, India and even parts of Thailand and Pulau Langkawi in north-western Peninsular Malaysia. Since the last two locations mentioned are within hours from Belum-Temenggor, this hypothesis does seem plausible. I believe it belongs to the family Camaenidae and its morphology has some resemblance to the genus Ganesella which resides throughout much of Sundaland's highland forests. or could it be a remnant population of a once widespread genus stretching to New Guinea? Perhaps it was stranded during the abrupt climate and sea level changes of the Holocene Epoch (12000 years ago)?

Either way, such specimen warrants attention by not just malacologists but nature lovers and conservationists as well. We are not only dealing with a new species but probably an entirely new genus or even an extension of New Guinean wildlife into mainland Southeast Asia! If one of these speculations turns out to be true, this little snail may be the one of the few (if any) molluscan evidence that links Malaysian flora and fauna to the ancient Gondwanan supercontinent; or place Belum as the only remaining forest holding Southeast Asia's ancient fauna; or bridges Sundaland's molluscs with the Sahul Continental Shelf (Australia and New Guinea).

In the meantime though, Clements is still working on mammals in the Malaysian rainforests. "We need to find a living snail in order to get to the bottom of this mystery," he remarked. Until then, questions will prevail and the snail's future will stumble along with the uncertainty of Belum-Temenggor's rainforests.

References and Further Reading:
1. Gerlach J., 2007. New Terrestrial Gastropoda (Mollusca) from Seychelles. (http://www.islandbiodiversity.com/Phelsuma%2011-4.pdf)

2.Sathiamurthy E. and Voris H. K., 2006. Maps of Holocene Sea Level Transgression and Submerged Lakes on the Sunda Shelf. The Natural History Journal of Chulalongkorn University, Supp. 2:1-44, August 2006. (http://www2.biology.sc.chula.ac.th/web%20of%20NHJCU%20PDF/VorisSupplement.pdf)


3. Wade C. M., Mordan P. B., Clarke B., 2001. A Phylogeny of Land Snails (Gastropoda: Pulmonata). Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B 2001 268, 413-422. (http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/268/1465/413.full.pdf+html)

4.Heads M., 2009. Vicariance. Buffalo Musuem of Science.
(http://www.sciencebuff.org/content/files/science-pdf/Heads/Heads%202009%20Vicariance.pdf)

The Secrets of Gua Kandu: Revealed

"Kinta is a curious valley, walled with abrupt limestone cliffs and pinnacles, and ranges of weird hills full of caves, which gave the landscape the same wild character as those of Moulmein."

-C.M. Enriquez, Malaya: An Account of its People, Flora and Fauna, 1927.

The lush rainforests of Gunung Kandu.

Towering white cliffs draped in lush vegetation overlooking the vast valley below, Gunung Kandu (Kandu Mountain) has remained as it is millions of years ago. It has seen Paleolithic men chasing wild beasts across the bushlands, early Sumatran settlers clearing forests for fruit orchards and colonial era western adventurers wandering into its forests. Now, in its old age, it is inviting a new breed of visitors- tourists. And here I am with them, beating through the belukar (regenerating bushlands) on its foothills.

The forests near the entrance of Gua Kandu.

Minutes later, we emerged from the thick foliage and into a treeless chasm. A large, dark and forbidding gap in the hill signals the entrance to the ancient geological formation of Gua Kandu (Kandu Cave). Spanning 1100m in length with multiple entrance and passageways, it is the 7th longest cave in the Malay Peninsular. Having been shortlisted as one of the ten most important karst conservation sites in Kinta by the Malaysian Nature Society, its hill owns the typical karst title as one of the significantly high endemic wildlife diversity locations in Perak state, Malaysia.

Thus, it takes no time to spot one. I found these ferns, most probably endemics, growing on calcified red guano.

However pristine the cave may be, Gua Kandu has its fair share of vandalism by irresponsible visitor.

Our guide, David of Gopeng Rainforest Resort, made a quick briefing to our motley gruop of thrill-seeking tourists and wildlife enthusiasts. Soon, we were heading into the darkness through a low passage. It seems that Gua Kandu used to be a water cave with a stream running throughit, much like that of Gua Anak Tempurung.

The water stains along the wall of the cave possibly shows water levels of an ancient subterranean stream.

Dried crystals along the cave ceiling may well be growing wet crystals thousands of years ago.

As in many caves in Kinta Valley, Gua Kandu is a communist guerrilla hideout during the Malayan Emergency days. The insurgents made use of the impenetrable darkness of the cave as barrier for their enemies. Therefore, it is no surprise that we found remains of their presence in the form of graffiti (as seen below).

Remnants of a dark past on the walls of one of the cave's chambers.

Walking deeper into the cave, we came across an area with active, wet speleoterms (stalactites and stalagmites).

Various colours of stalactites indicate a rich composition of minerals and dissolved metal oxides.

Beaitiful "pillar" speleoterms displaying rust colours due to high iron contents in the dissolved limestone.

A smaller version of the "cascading" speleoterm can be seen along the cave walls. these are quite rare.

Surprisingly, there are a small number of fungus growing on bits and pieces of plant debris deep in the cave.

45 minutes into the cave, we had to clamber between a narrow sandwich of rock and guano floor before emerging into a larger chamber. The scene here is surreal with large sinkholes across the cave floor and a low ceiling over them.

One of the sinkholes in the low cave chamber.

Coming out of the tunnel, we passed a deep pool of water with steep guano deposits on its side. Roosting bats chattered high above us as our flashlights broke the darkness of the chamber. Larger flow stones can be seen on both sides. Magical "curtain" stalactites soar up into the chasm above.

An otherworldly scene in the cave.

Large curtain stalactite reminiscent of a frozen waterfall.

Another speleoterm resembling a pipe organ bathed in natural light from a cave opening nearby.

The two cave openings that allow some light into the dark recesses of Gua Kandu.

Passing several circular cave openings, we walked across a guano filled platform flanked by walls reaching up to 20m to the end of the passage way. Here, a small cliff gave way to a lower cave floor. We descended down the cliff with assistance of a rope and squeezed through a natural undercut at the cul-de-sac of the lower platform.

A strange composition of a rock vein resembling Statute of Liberty.

The chamber behind this structure was even more impressive with its ceiling almost 30m above us and speleoterms perching up the rocky slopes on both left and right, like guardians of an ancient temple.

The immense size of the chamber with its majestic formations.

A stalagmite with the uncanny appearance of a perching monkey.

Scaling to the top of the slope on the right, we spotted a peculiar shaped rock with the features of a lion head. Bright sunlight floods the area with two large openings facing the North-South Highway. From here, its a long way down a deep algae covered rock valley before climbing back up to the cave opening and out into the forests. However, we chose not to pick that path and descended back into the dark valley we had came out from instead.

The Lion's head is arguably one of Gua Kandu's most famous icon.

The cave opening facing the North-South Highway.

The deep valley between the slope and the cave opening is rugged and tricky to navigate.

A long beam of sunlight can be seen travelling down from the upper part of the cave and illuminating a section of some beautiful "cascade" formations below. It is a truly amazing sight yet surprisingly natural. We followed the path through the lighted area and ascended to the small exit on the other side of the cave. Turning over a sharp bend, we crossed a dried section of some large "cascade" speleoterms before reaching out through an opening and into the bright forest outside. I have found some Brotia costula varicosa (Torschel 1837) freshwater snail shells with their apex removed lying around loose soil at the cave opening. This is definitely a prehistoric food leftover as there are no sign of any water bodies in the immediate vicinity and this location is some 30m above ground level from the valley below.

A large "cascade" formation near the cave opening. It is a highly sought after find for speleologists and cave enthusiasts.

Finally, we were out under the forest canopy. Now, it's a slow descend down slippery moss covered limestone and avoiding pitfalls disguised by fallen leaves all the way to the foothills.

A typical scene of a karsts' forests on the upper elevations- thick beddings of relatively wet leaves interspersed with algae and moss covered rocks, shrubs and gnarled trees.

The strange thorny leaves of a probably limestone-endemic shrub. Most plants living on limestone soil contains high concentrations of calcium in their tissue which serves as a shell-building source for snails.

A perfect way to end the trip- I've found an interesting snail! This is Platyrhaphe lowi (de Morgan 1885). It fuses mud with its calcium rich mucous and glue them onto its shell, blending it into the soil habitat.

(Note: My special thanks to Gopeng Rainforest Resort for their assistance in making this trip successful.)

Reference:

1.Liz Price, 2001 Caves and Karsts of Peninsular Malaysia. Gua Publications, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

2.Khoo Salma Nasution & Abdur-Razzaq Lubis Kinta Valley: Pioneering Malaysia's Modern Development. Perak Academy, 2005