Flora and Fauna of Tropical Asia
The fascinating world of tropical nature
Borneo Giant Millipede
In Borneo, natural surprises await an unsuspecting visitor on every corner. The Borneo giant millipede (Trigoniulus) is a long invertebrate that can reach 20 centimetres in length and may have as many as 300 pairs of legs! Unlike many centipedes, which are nocturnal, carnivorous and often aggressive, this Borneo creature is a harmless, gentle giant of the rainforest – a vegetarian feeding mostly on soft decomposing plant tissue. A physiological difference between centipedes and millipedes is the fact that millipedes have two pairs of legs per segment of their bodies (unlike centipedes which have just one pair). They… Continue reading
Borneo Elephants
Borneo elephant (Elephas maximus borneensis) is a subspecies of elephant found in northeastern Borneo. Their origin is a matter of dispute – there have been suggestions that the mammal was introduced to the tropical island from peninsular Malaysia, but there are zoologists who believe that they developed separately from other Asian elephant species. As just about any large animal on the world’s third biggest island, these elephants are threatened due to shrinking rainforest which is apparently disappearing at a rate of 300 football fields every single hour! The forst is replaced with palm oil plantations, a monoculture made… Continue reading