Here, one is most likely to be greeted by intense rainfall, particularly during the Northeast Monsoon (October to March), although the Southwest Monsoon (April to August) also brings plenty of rain. In addition to daytime temperatures of 30-32 °C, humidity is constantly high. Only in the higher reaches of the centre of the island do things get noticeably cooler.
Although Borneo conjures images of dense rainforests stretching as far as the eye can see, the landscape offers a mosaic of varied habitats. Mangroves, peat swamp and freshwater swamp forests, lowland dipterocarp forests, ironwood forests and hill dipterocarp forests are all found in Borneo. The island is also home to the largest heath forests in South East Asia.
Cracking open Borneo's biodiversity vault
Although Borneo has a long history of research and exploration, the most recent findings suggest that there are still literally thousands of species of plants and animals left to discover.
The most likely area to offer new discoveries is the Heart of Borneo – the relatively inaccessible inner region that harbours some of the most pristine forest left on the island.
The forests' caretakers
The Heart of Borneo is mostly inhabited by the Dayak, a term which is generally agreed to mean "interior" or "upriver" person, and refers to the variety of indigenous peoples living in the area, each of which has a specific language and culture.
