Mount Kinabalu
Encyclopedia
Mount Kinabalu is a prominent mountain
on the island of Borneo
in Southeast Asia
. It is located in the East Malaysia
n state of Sabah
and is protected as Kinabalu National Park
, a World Heritage Site
. Kinabalu is the tallest peak in Borneo's Crocker Range
and is the tallest mountain in the Malay Archipelago
. Mount Kinabalu is also the 20th most prominent mountain in the world by topographic prominence
.
In 1997, a re-survey using satellite technology established its summit (known as Low’s Peak) height at 4095 metres (13,435 ft) above sea level, which is some 6 metres (20 ft) less than the previously thought and hitherto published figure of 4101 metres (13,455 ft).
Mount Kinabalu includes the Kinabalu montane alpine meadows ecoregion
in the montane grasslands and shrublands
biome
. The mountain and its surroundings are among the most important biological sites in the world, with over 4500 species of plant, 326 species of bird
s, and 100 mammalian species identified. Among this rich collection of wildlife are famous species such as the gigantic Rafflesia
plants and the orangutan
. Mount Kinabalu has been accorded UNESCO
World Heritage status.
Low's Peak can be climbed quite easily by a person in good physical condition and there is no need for mountaineering
equipment at any point on the main route. Other peaks along the massif
, however, require rock climbing
skills.
species
biodiversity
with plants of Himalayan, Australasia
n, and Indomalaya
n origin. A recent botanical survey of the mountain estimated a staggering 5,000 to 6,000 plant species (excluding mosses and liverworts but including ferns), which is more than all of Europe and North America (excluding tropical regions of Mexico) combined. It is therefore one of the world's most important biological sites.
trees and insectivorous pitcher plants. Then between 2600 to 3200 m (8,530.2 to 10,498.7 ft) is a layer of short trees such the conifer Dacrydium gibbsiae
and dwarf shrubs, mosses, lichens, liverworts, and ferns. Finally many of the world's richest variety of orchids are found on the high rockier slopes.
These plants have high levels of endemism (i.e. species which are found only within Kinabalu Park and are not found anywhere else in the world). The orchids are the best-known example with over 800 species including some of the highly-valued Paphiopedilum
slipper orchids, but there are also over 600 species of fern
s (more than the whole of Africa’s 500 species) of which 50 are found nowhere else, and the richest collection in the world for the Nepenthes pitcher plants (five of the thirteen are found nowhere else on earth) which reach spectacular proportions (the largest-pitchered in the world being the endemic Nepenthes rajah
). The parasitic Rafflesia
plant, which has the largest single flower in the world, is also found in Kinabalu (particularly Rafflesia keithii
whose flower grows to 94 centimetres (37 in) in diameter), though it should be noted that blooms of the flower are rare and difficult to find. Meanwhile another Rafflesia species, Rafflesia tengku-adlinii
, can be found on the neighbouring Mount Trus Madi
and the nearby Maliau Basin
.
Its incredible biodiversity
in plant life is due to a combination of several unique factors: its setting in one of the richest plant regions of the world (the tropical biogeographical region known as western Malesia
which comprises the island of Sumatra
, the Malay Peninsula
, and the island of Borneo
), the fact that the mountain covers a wide climatic range from near sea level to freezing ground conditions near the summit, the jagged terrain and diversity of rocks and soils, the high levels of rainfall (averaging about 2700 millimetres (106.3 in) a year at park HQ), and the climatic instability caused by periods of glaciation and catastrophic droughts which result in evolution
and speciation
. This diversity is greatest in the lowland regions (consisting of lowland dipterocarp forests, so called because the tree family
Dipterocarpaceae
are dominant). However, most of Kinabalu’s endemic species are found in the mountain forests, particularly on ultramafic soils (i.e. soils which are low in phosphates and high in iron and metals poisonous to many plants; this high toxic content gave rise to the development of distinctive plant species found nowhere else).
, Mountain Serpent-eagle, Dulit Frogmouth
, Eyebrowed Jungle Flycatcher, and Bare-headed Laughingthrush
. Twenty-four birds are mainly found on the mountain and one, the Bornean Spiderhunter
, is a pure endemic. The mountain is home to some 100 mammalian species mostly living high in th trees, including one of the four great apes, the orangutan
(though sightings of these are uncommon; estimates of its numbers in the park range from 25 to 120). Other mammals include three kinds of deer, the Malayan Weasel
(Mustela nudipes), Oriental Small-clawed Otter
(Aonyx cinerea), and Leopard Cat
(Felis bengalensis). Endemic mammals include the Black Shrew
(Suncus ater) and Bornean Ferret-badger (Melogale everetti).
Endemic annelids number less than a dozen known species but include the Kinabalu giant red leech
that preys on various earthworms, including the Kinabalu giant earthworm
.
in 1984. However even national park status does not guarantee full protection, as logging permits were granted on Trus Madi in 1984.
formed from granodiorite
which is intrusive into sedimentary
and ultrabasic rocks, and forms the central part, or core, of the Kinabalu massif. The granodiorite is intrusive into strongly folded strata, probably of Eocene
to Miocene
age, and associated ultrabasic and basic igneous rock
s. It was pushed up from the earth’s crust as molten rock millions of years ago. In geological terms, it is a very young mountain as the granodiorite cooled and hardened only about 10 million years ago. The present landform is considered to be a mid-Pliocene
peneplain, arched and deeply dissected, through which the Kinabalu granodiorite body has risen in isostatic adjustment. It is still pushing up at the rate of 5 mm per annum. During the Pleistocene
Epoch of about 100,000 years ago, the massive mountain was covered by huge sheets of ice and glaciers which flowed down its slopes, scouring its surface in the process and creating the 1800 metres (5,905.5 ft) deep Low's Gully (named after Hugh Low
) on its north side. Its granite composition and the glacial formative processes are readily apparent when viewing its craggy rocky peaks.
made the first recorded ascent of Mount Kinabalu's summit plateau in March 1851. Low did not scale the mountain's highest peak, however, considering it "inaccessible to any but winged animals". In April and July 1858, Low was accompanied on two further ascents by Spenser St. John, the British Consul in Brunei. The highest point of Mount Kinabalu was finally reached in 1888 by zoologist John Whitehead
. British botanist Lilian Gibbs
became the first woman and the first botanist to summit Mount Kinabalu in February 1910.
Botanist E. J. H. Corner
led two important expeditions of the Royal Society of Great Britain to the mountain in 1961 and 1964. Kinabalu National Park
was established in 1964. The park was designated a natural World Heritage Site
in 2000.
Accommodation is available inside the park or outside near the headquarters. Sabah Parks has privatized Mount Kinabalu activities to an organization called Sutera Sanctuary Lodges (also known as Sutera Harbour). The mountain may be climbed on a single day drip, or hikers may (usually) stay one night at Laban Rata Resthouse at 3270 metres (10,728.3 ft) in order to complete the climb in 2 days, finishing the ascent and descending on the second day. The majority of climbers begin the ascent on day one of a two day hike from Timpohon gate at 1866 metres (6,122 ft), reaching this location either by minibus or by walking, and then walk to Laban Rata. Most people accomplish this part of the climb in 3 to 6 hours. Since there are no roads, the supplies for the Laban Rata Resthouse are carried by porters, who bring up to 30 kilograms of supplies on their backs. Hot food and beverages, hot showers and heated rooms are available at Laban Rata. The last 2 kilometres (6,561.7 ft), from the Laban Rata Resthouse at 3270 metres (10,728.3 ft) to Low's Peak (summit) at 4095.2 metres (13,435.7 ft), takes between 2 and 4 hours. The last part of the climb is on naked granite rock.
Given the high altitude, some people may suffer from altitude sickness
and should return immediately to the bottom of the mountain, as breathing and any further movement becomes increasingly difficult.
The first derivation of the word Kinabalu is extracted from the short form for the Kadazan Dusun word 'Aki Nabalu', meaning "the revered place of the dead".
The second source states that the name "Kinabalu" actually means "Cina Balu" (which would fully mean "A Chinese
Widow"). Due to the lingual influence
among the Kadazan Dusun of Sabah
, the pronunciation
for the word "cina" (chee-na) was changed to "Kina" (kee-na).
It was told that a Chinese prince, was cast away to Borneo
when his ship sank in the middle of the South China Sea
. He was subsequently rescued by the natives from a nearby village. As he recovered, he was slowly accepted as one of the people of the village. Eventually, he fell in love with a local woman, and married her. Years went by, and he started to feel homesick. So he asked permission from his newly-found family to go back to China to visit his parents (the Emperor and Empress of China). To his wife, he promised that as soon as he was done with his family duties in China, he would come back to Borneo to take her and their children back to China.
When he made his return to China, he was given a grand welcome by his family. However, to his dismay, his parents disagreed with him about taking his Bornean wife back to China. Worse, they told him that he was already betrothed to a princess of a neighbouring kingdom. Having no choice (due to high respect towards his parents
), he obeyed with a heavy heart.
Meanwhile, back in Borneo, his wife grew more and more anxious. Eventually, she decided that she will wait for her husband's ship. However, since the village was situated far away from the coast, she couldn't afford to come to the shore and wait for him daily. Instead she decided to climb to the top of the highest mountain near her village, so that she could have a better view of the ships sailing in the South China Sea. Thus, she was then seen climbing up the mountain at every sunrise, returning only at night to attend to her growing children.
Eventually her efforts took their toll. She fell ill, and died at the top of the cold mountain while waiting for her husband. The spirit of the mountain, having observed her for years, was extremely touched by her loyalty towards her husband. Out of admiration for this woman, the spirit of the mountain turned her into a stone. Her face was made to face the South China Sea, so that she could wait forever for her dear husband's return.
The people in her hometown who heard about this were also gravely touched by this. Thus, they decided to name the mountain "Kinabalu" in remembrance of her. To them, the mountain is a symbol of the everlasting love and loyalty that should be taken as a good example by women.
Local legend among the people of Ranau, a district in Sabah, has it that St. John's Peak was the stone which her body was turned into.
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
on the island of Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
in Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
. It is located in the East Malaysia
East Malaysia
East Malaysia, also known as Malaysian Borneo, is the part of Malaysia located on the island of Borneo. It consists of the Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak, and the Federal Territory of Labuan. It lies to the east from Peninsular Malaysia , which is located on the Malay Peninsula. The two are...
n state of Sabah
Sabah
Sabah is one of 13 member states of Malaysia. It is located on the northern portion of the island of Borneo. It is the second largest state in the country after Sarawak, which it borders on its southwest. It also shares a border with the province of East Kalimantan of Indonesia in the south...
and is protected as Kinabalu National Park
Kinabalu National Park
Kinabalu National Park or Taman Negara Kinabalu in Malay, established as one of the first national parks of Malaysia in 1964, is Malaysia's first World Heritage Site designated by UNESCO in December 2000 for its "outstanding universal values" and the role as one of the most important biological...
, a World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
. Kinabalu is the tallest peak in Borneo's Crocker Range
Crocker Range
Crocker Range , is a mountain range on the island of Borneo. Politically, it is within the boundary of the Malaysian state of Sabah, located in the northern half of Borneo. The mountain range separates the east coast and west coast of Sabah. At an average height of 1800m, it is the highest mountain...
and is the tallest mountain in the Malay Archipelago
Malay Archipelago
The Malay Archipelago refers to the archipelago between mainland Southeastern Asia and Australia. The name was derived from the anachronistic concept of a Malay race....
. Mount Kinabalu is also the 20th most prominent mountain in the world by topographic prominence
Topographic prominence
In topography, prominence, also known as autonomous height, relative height, shoulder drop , or prime factor , categorizes the height of the mountain's or hill's summit by the elevation between it and the lowest contour line encircling it and no higher summit...
.
In 1997, a re-survey using satellite technology established its summit (known as Low’s Peak) height at 4095 metres (13,435 ft) above sea level, which is some 6 metres (20 ft) less than the previously thought and hitherto published figure of 4101 metres (13,455 ft).
Mount Kinabalu includes the Kinabalu montane alpine meadows ecoregion
Ecoregion
An ecoregion , sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than an ecozone and larger than an ecosystem. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural...
in the montane grasslands and shrublands
Montane grasslands and shrublands
Montane grasslands and shrublands is a biome defined by the World Wildlife Fund. The biome includes high altitude grasslands and shrublands around the world....
biome
Biome
Biomes are climatically and geographically defined as similar climatic conditions on the Earth, such as communities of plants, animals, and soil organisms, and are often referred to as ecosystems. Some parts of the earth have more or less the same kind of abiotic and biotic factors spread over a...
. The mountain and its surroundings are among the most important biological sites in the world, with over 4500 species of plant, 326 species of bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s, and 100 mammalian species identified. Among this rich collection of wildlife are famous species such as the gigantic Rafflesia
Rafflesia
Rafflesia is a genus of parasitic flowering plants. It contains approximately 28 species , all found in southeastern Asia, on the Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra, Thailand and the Philippines.Rafflesia was found in the Indonesian rain forest by an Indonesian guide working for Dr...
plants and the orangutan
Orangutan
Orangutans are the only exclusively Asian genus of extant great ape. The largest living arboreal animals, they have proportionally longer arms than the other, more terrestrial, great apes. They are among the most intelligent primates and use a variety of sophisticated tools, also making sleeping...
. Mount Kinabalu has been accorded UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
World Heritage status.
Low's Peak can be climbed quite easily by a person in good physical condition and there is no need for mountaineering
Mountaineering
Mountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...
equipment at any point on the main route. Other peaks along the massif
Massif
In geology, a massif is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole...
, however, require rock climbing
Rock climbing
Rock climbing also lightly called 'The Gravity Game', is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a pre-defined route without falling...
skills.
Biology
Significantly, Mount Kinabalu along with other upland areas of the Crocker Range is well-known worldwide for its tremendous botanical and biologicalBiology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
biodiversity
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet. Biodiversity is a measure of the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity is in part a function of climate. In terrestrial habitats, tropical regions are typically rich whereas polar regions...
with plants of Himalayan, Australasia
Australasia
Australasia is a region of Oceania comprising Australia, New Zealand, the island of New Guinea, and neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term was coined by Charles de Brosses in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes...
n, and Indomalaya
Indomalaya
The Indomalaya ecozone is one of the eight ecozones that cover the planet's land surface. It extends across most of South and Southeast Asia and into the southern parts of East Asia....
n origin. A recent botanical survey of the mountain estimated a staggering 5,000 to 6,000 plant species (excluding mosses and liverworts but including ferns), which is more than all of Europe and North America (excluding tropical regions of Mexico) combined. It is therefore one of the world's most important biological sites.
Flora
The flora covers the mountain in zones of different types of habitat as one climbs up, beginning with a lowland belt of figCommon fig
The Common fig is a deciduous tree growing to heights of up to 6 m in the genus Ficus from the family Moraceae known as Common fig tree. It is a temperate species native to the Middle East.-Description:...
trees and insectivorous pitcher plants. Then between 2600 to 3200 m (8,530.2 to 10,498.7 ft) is a layer of short trees such the conifer Dacrydium gibbsiae
Dacrydium gibbsiae
Dacrydium gibbsiae is a conifer species native to Malaysia. It grows on Mount Kinabalu on ultramafic soil and is notable for being able to tolerate the high levels of toxic metal compounds present in these soils....
and dwarf shrubs, mosses, lichens, liverworts, and ferns. Finally many of the world's richest variety of orchids are found on the high rockier slopes.
Paphiopedilum
The paphiopedilums – often abbreviated Paph and colloquially known as paphs in horticulture – are flowering plants in the orchid family . It contains about 80 accepted species nowadays, some of which are natural hybrids...
slipper orchids, but there are also over 600 species of fern
Fern
A fern is any one of a group of about 12,000 species of plants belonging to the botanical group known as Pteridophyta. Unlike mosses, they have xylem and phloem . They have stems, leaves, and roots like other vascular plants...
s (more than the whole of Africa’s 500 species) of which 50 are found nowhere else, and the richest collection in the world for the Nepenthes pitcher plants (five of the thirteen are found nowhere else on earth) which reach spectacular proportions (the largest-pitchered in the world being the endemic Nepenthes rajah
Nepenthes rajah
Nepenthes rajah is an insectivorous pitcher plant species of the Nepenthaceae family. It is endemic to Mount Kinabalu and neighbouring Mount Tambuyukon in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. Nepenthes rajah grows exclusively on serpentine substrates, particularly in areas of seeping ground water where the...
). The parasitic Rafflesia
Rafflesia
Rafflesia is a genus of parasitic flowering plants. It contains approximately 28 species , all found in southeastern Asia, on the Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra, Thailand and the Philippines.Rafflesia was found in the Indonesian rain forest by an Indonesian guide working for Dr...
plant, which has the largest single flower in the world, is also found in Kinabalu (particularly Rafflesia keithii
Rafflesia keithii
Rafflesia keithii is a parasitic flowering plant in the genus Rafflesia endemic to Sabah in Borneo. The flowers can grow up to one metre in diameter. It is named after Henry George Keith, former Conservator of Forests in North Borneo .-External links:*...
whose flower grows to 94 centimetres (37 in) in diameter), though it should be noted that blooms of the flower are rare and difficult to find. Meanwhile another Rafflesia species, Rafflesia tengku-adlinii
Rafflesia tengku-adlinii
Rafflesia tengku-adlinii is a parasitic plant species of the genus Rafflesia. It was discovered on Mount Trus Madi, Sabah, Malaysia in 1987....
, can be found on the neighbouring Mount Trus Madi
Mount Trus Madi
Mount Trus Madi or Trusmadi is Malaysia's second highest mountain at . It lies in the state of Sabah, close to Mount Kinabalu. The mountain supports a wide range of unique flora and fauna, perhaps most notably Nepenthes macrophylla, a species of pitcher plant.The natural hybrid Nepenthes ×...
and the nearby Maliau Basin
Maliau Basin
Maliau Basin or also Maliau Basin Conservation Area, is a region in Sabah, Malaysia, which represents a geological catchment surrounding the Maliau River. Located around the center of Sabah in the Sandakan Division, it was designated as a conservation area by the Sabah Foundation in 1981...
.
Its incredible biodiversity
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet. Biodiversity is a measure of the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity is in part a function of climate. In terrestrial habitats, tropical regions are typically rich whereas polar regions...
in plant life is due to a combination of several unique factors: its setting in one of the richest plant regions of the world (the tropical biogeographical region known as western Malesia
Malesia
Malesia is a biogeographical region straddling the boundaries of the Indomalaya ecozone and Australasia ecozone, and also a phytogeographical floristic region in the Paleotropical Kingdom.-Floristic province:...
which comprises the island of Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
, the Malay Peninsula
Malay Peninsula
The Malay Peninsula or Thai-Malay Peninsula is a peninsula in Southeast Asia. The land mass runs approximately north-south and, at its terminus, is the southern-most point of the Asian mainland...
, and the island of Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
), the fact that the mountain covers a wide climatic range from near sea level to freezing ground conditions near the summit, the jagged terrain and diversity of rocks and soils, the high levels of rainfall (averaging about 2700 millimetres (106.3 in) a year at park HQ), and the climatic instability caused by periods of glaciation and catastrophic droughts which result in evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
and speciation
Speciation
Speciation is the evolutionary process by which new biological species arise. The biologist Orator F. Cook seems to have been the first to coin the term 'speciation' for the splitting of lineages or 'cladogenesis,' as opposed to 'anagenesis' or 'phyletic evolution' occurring within lineages...
. This diversity is greatest in the lowland regions (consisting of lowland dipterocarp forests, so called because the tree family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Dipterocarpaceae
Dipterocarpaceae
Dipterocarpaceae is a family of 17 genera and approximately 500 species of mainly tropical lowland rainforest trees. The family name, from the type genus Dipterocarpus, is derived from Greek and refers to the two-winged fruit...
are dominant). However, most of Kinabalu’s endemic species are found in the mountain forests, particularly on ultramafic soils (i.e. soils which are low in phosphates and high in iron and metals poisonous to many plants; this high toxic content gave rise to the development of distinctive plant species found nowhere else).
Fauna
The variety of plant life is also habitat for a great variety of birds and animals. There are some 326 species of birds in Kinabalu Park, including the spectacular Rhinoceros HornbillRhinoceros Hornbill
The Rhinoceros Hornbill, Buceros rhinoceros, is one of the largest hornbills, adults being approximately the size of a swan, 110-127 cm long and weighing 2-3 kg . The Rhinoceros Hornbill lives in captivity for up to 35 years...
, Mountain Serpent-eagle, Dulit Frogmouth
Dulit Frogmouth
The Dulit Frogmouth is a little-known species of bird in the Podargidae, or frogmouth, family, with a patchily recorded distribution in the mountain forests of northern and central Borneo...
, Eyebrowed Jungle Flycatcher, and Bare-headed Laughingthrush
Bare-headed Laughingthrush
The Bare-headed Laughingthrush is a species of bird in the Timaliidae family. It is endemic to highland forests in northern Borneo. It was formerly considered a subspecies of the Black Laughingthrush.-References:...
. Twenty-four birds are mainly found on the mountain and one, the Bornean Spiderhunter
Bornean Spiderhunter
The Bornean Spiderhunter is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family. The scientific name commemorates British colonial administrator and zoological collector Alfred Hart Everett.-Distribution and habitat:...
, is a pure endemic. The mountain is home to some 100 mammalian species mostly living high in th trees, including one of the four great apes, the orangutan
Orangutan
Orangutans are the only exclusively Asian genus of extant great ape. The largest living arboreal animals, they have proportionally longer arms than the other, more terrestrial, great apes. They are among the most intelligent primates and use a variety of sophisticated tools, also making sleeping...
(though sightings of these are uncommon; estimates of its numbers in the park range from 25 to 120). Other mammals include three kinds of deer, the Malayan Weasel
Malayan Weasel
The Malayan weasel is a species of weasel. It lives in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. It is rated "Least Concern" by the IUCN Red List. Malayan weasels have a body length of 12-14 inches and a tail length of 9.4 to 10.2 inches. The body is reddish-brown to grayish-white. The head is a...
(Mustela nudipes), Oriental Small-clawed Otter
Oriental Small-clawed Otter
The oriental small-clawed otter , also known as Asian small-clawed otter, is the smallest otter species in the world, weighing less than 5 kg. It lives in mangrove swamps and freshwater wetlands of Bangladesh, Burma, India, southern China, Taiwan, Laos, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines,...
(Aonyx cinerea), and Leopard Cat
Leopard Cat
The leopard cat is a small wild cat of South and East Asia. Since 2002 it has been listed as Least Concern by IUCN as it is widely distributed but threatened by habitat loss and hunting in parts of its range...
(Felis bengalensis). Endemic mammals include the Black Shrew
Black Shrew
The Black Shrew is a white-toothed shrew only known from Mount Kinabalu in the Malaysian state of Sabah on the island of Borneo. It is listed as a critically endangered species due to habitat loss and a restricted range. It is the smallest shrew of its kind and lives in parts of middle Asia....
(Suncus ater) and Bornean Ferret-badger (Melogale everetti).
Endemic annelids number less than a dozen known species but include the Kinabalu giant red leech
Kinabalu giant red leech
The Kinabalu giant red leech is a large bright orange-red coloured leech that is endemic to Mount Kinabalu, Borneo. Very little is known about this animal although it has been identified as Mimobdella buettikoferi Blanchard, 1897....
that preys on various earthworms, including the Kinabalu giant earthworm
Kinabalu giant earthworm
The Kinabalu giant earthworm, Pheretima darnleiensis, is a grey-blue coloured peregrine annelid native to Mount Kinabalu, Borneo and surrounding islands as well as New Guinea. On Mount Kinabalu, the animal grows to a length of approximately 70 cm and lives in burrows in the soft and thick soils...
.
Threats and preservation
The steep mountainsides with poor soil are not suitable for farming or for the timber industry so the habitats and animal life of Kinabalu remain largely intact, with about a third of the original habitat now degraded. Kinabalu Park was established in 1964 and the nearby mountains were protected as the Crocker Range National ParkCrocker Range National Park
Crocker Range National Park was established in 1984, although the area had previously been under protection as a forest reserve. It covers the north-south Crocker Range, of 1200-1800 meter mountains in Sabah, east Malaysia on the island of Borneo, which separate the western coastal plain with the...
in 1984. However even national park status does not guarantee full protection, as logging permits were granted on Trus Madi in 1984.
Geology
Mount Kinabalu is essentially a massive plutonPluton
A pluton in geology is a body of intrusive igneous rock that crystallized from magma slowly cooling below the surface of the Earth. Plutons include batholiths, dikes, sills, laccoliths, lopoliths, and other igneous bodies...
formed from granodiorite
Granodiorite
Granodiorite is an intrusive igneous rock similar to granite, but containing more plagioclase than orthoclase-type feldspar. Officially, it is defined as a phaneritic igneous rock with greater than 20% quartz by volume where at least 65% of the feldspar is plagioclase. It usually contains abundant...
which is intrusive into sedimentary
Sedimentary rock
Sedimentary rock are types of rock that are formed by the deposition of material at the Earth's surface and within bodies of water. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause mineral and/or organic particles to settle and accumulate or minerals to precipitate from a solution....
and ultrabasic rocks, and forms the central part, or core, of the Kinabalu massif. The granodiorite is intrusive into strongly folded strata, probably of Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
to Miocene
Miocene
The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...
age, and associated ultrabasic and basic igneous rock
Igneous rock
Igneous rock is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic rock. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or lava...
s. It was pushed up from the earth’s crust as molten rock millions of years ago. In geological terms, it is a very young mountain as the granodiorite cooled and hardened only about 10 million years ago. The present landform is considered to be a mid-Pliocene
Pliocene
The Pliocene Epoch is the period in the geologic timescale that extends from 5.332 million to 2.588 million years before present. It is the second and youngest epoch of the Neogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Pliocene follows the Miocene Epoch and is followed by the Pleistocene Epoch...
peneplain, arched and deeply dissected, through which the Kinabalu granodiorite body has risen in isostatic adjustment. It is still pushing up at the rate of 5 mm per annum. During the Pleistocene
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
Epoch of about 100,000 years ago, the massive mountain was covered by huge sheets of ice and glaciers which flowed down its slopes, scouring its surface in the process and creating the 1800 metres (5,905.5 ft) deep Low's Gully (named after Hugh Low
Hugh Low
Sir Hugh Low, GCMG was a British colonial administrator and naturalist. After a long residence in various colonial roles in Labuan, he became the first successful British administrator in the Malay Peninsula. His methods became models for future administrators. He made the first documented ascent...
) on its north side. Its granite composition and the glacial formative processes are readily apparent when viewing its craggy rocky peaks.
History
British colonial administrator Hugh LowHugh Low
Sir Hugh Low, GCMG was a British colonial administrator and naturalist. After a long residence in various colonial roles in Labuan, he became the first successful British administrator in the Malay Peninsula. His methods became models for future administrators. He made the first documented ascent...
made the first recorded ascent of Mount Kinabalu's summit plateau in March 1851. Low did not scale the mountain's highest peak, however, considering it "inaccessible to any but winged animals". In April and July 1858, Low was accompanied on two further ascents by Spenser St. John, the British Consul in Brunei. The highest point of Mount Kinabalu was finally reached in 1888 by zoologist John Whitehead
John Whitehead (explorer)
John Whitehead was an English explorer, naturalist and professional collector of bird specimens.Whitehead travelled in Malacca, North Borneo, Java, and Palawan between 1885 and 1888, where he collected a number of zoological specimens new to science, including Whitehead's Broadbill , writing up...
. British botanist Lilian Gibbs
Lilian Gibbs
Lilian Suzette Gibbs was a British botanist who worked for the British Museum in London. She was the first woman and the first botanist to ascend Mount Kinabalu in February 1910. Gibbs collected many plants new to science, several of which are named in her honour .-References:* Vickery, R. ....
became the first woman and the first botanist to summit Mount Kinabalu in February 1910.
Botanist E. J. H. Corner
E. J. H. Corner
Edred John Henry Corner FRS was a botanist who occupied the posts of assistant director at the Singapore Botanic Gardens and Professor of Tropical Botany at the University of Cambridge...
led two important expeditions of the Royal Society of Great Britain to the mountain in 1961 and 1964. Kinabalu National Park
Kinabalu National Park
Kinabalu National Park or Taman Negara Kinabalu in Malay, established as one of the first national parks of Malaysia in 1964, is Malaysia's first World Heritage Site designated by UNESCO in December 2000 for its "outstanding universal values" and the role as one of the most important biological...
was established in 1964. The park was designated a natural World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
in 2000.
Climbing route
Climbers must be accompanied by accredited guides at all times due to national park regulations. There are two main starting points for the climb: the Timpohon Gate (located 5.5 km from Kinabalu Park Headquarters, at an altitude of 1866 metres (6,122 ft)), and the Mesilau Nature Resort. The latter starting point is slightly higher in elevation, but crosses a ridge, adding about two kilometres to the ascent and making the total elevation gain slightly higher. The two trails meet about two kilometres before Laban Rata.Accommodation is available inside the park or outside near the headquarters. Sabah Parks has privatized Mount Kinabalu activities to an organization called Sutera Sanctuary Lodges (also known as Sutera Harbour). The mountain may be climbed on a single day drip, or hikers may (usually) stay one night at Laban Rata Resthouse at 3270 metres (10,728.3 ft) in order to complete the climb in 2 days, finishing the ascent and descending on the second day. The majority of climbers begin the ascent on day one of a two day hike from Timpohon gate at 1866 metres (6,122 ft), reaching this location either by minibus or by walking, and then walk to Laban Rata. Most people accomplish this part of the climb in 3 to 6 hours. Since there are no roads, the supplies for the Laban Rata Resthouse are carried by porters, who bring up to 30 kilograms of supplies on their backs. Hot food and beverages, hot showers and heated rooms are available at Laban Rata. The last 2 kilometres (6,561.7 ft), from the Laban Rata Resthouse at 3270 metres (10,728.3 ft) to Low's Peak (summit) at 4095.2 metres (13,435.7 ft), takes between 2 and 4 hours. The last part of the climb is on naked granite rock.
Given the high altitude, some people may suffer from altitude sickness
Altitude sickness
Altitude sickness—also known as acute mountain sickness , altitude illness, hypobaropathy, or soroche—is a pathological effect of high altitude on humans, caused by acute exposure to low partial pressure of oxygen at high altitude...
and should return immediately to the bottom of the mountain, as breathing and any further movement becomes increasingly difficult.
Tales
There are two stories that led to the main beliefs in the origin of the mountain's name.The first derivation of the word Kinabalu is extracted from the short form for the Kadazan Dusun word 'Aki Nabalu', meaning "the revered place of the dead".
The second source states that the name "Kinabalu" actually means "Cina Balu" (which would fully mean "A Chinese
Chinese people
The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....
Widow"). Due to the lingual influence
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
among the Kadazan Dusun of Sabah
Sabah
Sabah is one of 13 member states of Malaysia. It is located on the northern portion of the island of Borneo. It is the second largest state in the country after Sarawak, which it borders on its southwest. It also shares a border with the province of East Kalimantan of Indonesia in the south...
, the pronunciation
Pronunciation
Pronunciation refers to the way a word or a language is spoken, or the manner in which someone utters a word. If one is said to have "correct pronunciation", then it refers to both within a particular dialect....
for the word "cina" (chee-na) was changed to "Kina" (kee-na).
It was told that a Chinese prince, was cast away to Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
when his ship sank in the middle of the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
. He was subsequently rescued by the natives from a nearby village. As he recovered, he was slowly accepted as one of the people of the village. Eventually, he fell in love with a local woman, and married her. Years went by, and he started to feel homesick. So he asked permission from his newly-found family to go back to China to visit his parents (the Emperor and Empress of China). To his wife, he promised that as soon as he was done with his family duties in China, he would come back to Borneo to take her and their children back to China.
When he made his return to China, he was given a grand welcome by his family. However, to his dismay, his parents disagreed with him about taking his Bornean wife back to China. Worse, they told him that he was already betrothed to a princess of a neighbouring kingdom. Having no choice (due to high respect towards his parents
Filial piety
In Confucian ideals, filial piety is one of the virtues to be held above all else: a respect for the parents and ancestors. The Confucian classic Xiao Jing or Classic of Xiào, thought to be written around 470 BCE, has historically been the authoritative source on the Confucian tenet of xiào /...
), he obeyed with a heavy heart.
Meanwhile, back in Borneo, his wife grew more and more anxious. Eventually, she decided that she will wait for her husband's ship. However, since the village was situated far away from the coast, she couldn't afford to come to the shore and wait for him daily. Instead she decided to climb to the top of the highest mountain near her village, so that she could have a better view of the ships sailing in the South China Sea. Thus, she was then seen climbing up the mountain at every sunrise, returning only at night to attend to her growing children.
Eventually her efforts took their toll. She fell ill, and died at the top of the cold mountain while waiting for her husband. The spirit of the mountain, having observed her for years, was extremely touched by her loyalty towards her husband. Out of admiration for this woman, the spirit of the mountain turned her into a stone. Her face was made to face the South China Sea, so that she could wait forever for her dear husband's return.
The people in her hometown who heard about this were also gravely touched by this. Thus, they decided to name the mountain "Kinabalu" in remembrance of her. To them, the mountain is a symbol of the everlasting love and loyalty that should be taken as a good example by women.
Local legend among the people of Ranau, a district in Sabah, has it that St. John's Peak was the stone which her body was turned into.
See also
- Borneo lowland rain forestBorneo lowland rain forestBorneo lowland rain forest is an ecoregion, within the Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests Biome, of the large island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. It supports approximately 10,000 plant species, 380 bird species and several mammal species...
- ecoregion - Borneo montane rain forestsBorneo montane rain forestsThe Borneo montane rain forests are an ecoregion, of Cloud forest, within the Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests Biome, of the island of Borneo in south-east Asia .-Location and description:...
- ecoregion