Welcome to the Kalimantan Bat Conservation Project, a series of research expeditions studying the conservation status and basic ecology of bats in Indonesian Borneo.

Bats are an extremely diverse animal group and form a valuable component of Asian landscapes through their roles in controlling insect populations, seed dispersal and pollination. There are over 90 bat species in Borneo - an island renowned for its exceptional biodiversity. Despite this, we know very little about these animals. Our limited knowledge arises from surveys of the Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak. The diversity and distribution of species over Kalimantan, which is over half Borneo’s area, are largely unknown.

Increasing habitat loss in Indonesia has led the IUCN Bat Specialist Group to recommend further research in this region. An understanding of the basic ecology of bat species is needed so that we can make meaningful plans for their conservation.

Survey work began in 2002 by Matt Struebig in the peatswamp forests of Central Kalimantan. This was followed by a bat research in Tanjung Puting National Park and the Sangkulirang Peninsula in 2004. During 2005 rapid surveys and training events continued in protected forest areas in East Kalimantan, and a research expedition to Barito in the interior of Borneo was later conducted by a University of Palangkaraya team led by Dorothea Pio. The KBCP acts as a common theme for these and future expeditions for which the principal aims of the projects are to contribute toward the effective conservation information available for bats of Borneo. Our findings are being added to a growing database of bat records for the whole of the island, which will be used to predict priority areas for Bornean bat conservation.

The KBCP was created to promote conservation and further research of bats in Borneo in the hope that future research projects will share data to identify conservation priorities for these fascinating animals. Following support from Bat Conservation International we have compiled our experiences into a training manual written in Bahasa Indonesian aimed at students and NGO researchers. To find out more about the status of bat species in Borneo, or to obtain materials follow the links in this site or contact Matt Struebig at Queen Mary, University of London.