The Wonders of Mount Bosavi

    The world is large and full of wonders.  Man has spent his years traveling from place to place, learning and recording all there is to know about this home we call Earth.  And yet there are many places that have remained out of reach, hidden from sight, untouched by man.  It is these places that hold the most peculiar wonders.  It is these places that we strive to find.  It is these places that tell us more about the environment and how we can make an impact than any other place on earth. 

http://www.guardian.co.uk

    Mount Bosavi, one such location, is an extinct volcano, last erupting approximately 200,000 years ago, located deep within the tropical jungles of the Southern Highlands province of Papua New Guinea.  Scientists had long suspected that the massive rainforest covering the three-kilometer wide crater would be a treasure trove of scientific discovery.  They theorized that animals unable to move beyond the 1,000-metre crater walls were thought likely to have evolved in distinct ways after thousands of years in isolation, but no expeditions had been able to make it into the mostly inaccessible crater to discover the secrets it contained.   

    It wasn’t until 2009 that an international team of scientists and a television crew from the BBC Natural History Unit finally ventured into the crater where they discovered more than 40 species of animals previously unknown to science. Their discoveries included 16 frogs, at least 3 fish, several insects and spiders, a bat, and a giant rat, measuring almost 3 feet in length. The wooly rat in particular was unafraid of humans, having never had contact and thus no reason to fear them.  It is hoped that these discoveries will educate us about the mysteries that await in the world’s rainforests and encourage protection of these places at risk of destruction.

www.joshuaproject.net

 

     Before diving into the information surrounding the expedition into the Mount Bosavi crater, let’s cover some basics.  As stated above, Mount Bosavi is located in the Southern Highlands of Papau New Guinea as seen on the map to the right.  While most of the surrounding region is mainly made up of the rainforest ecosystem, the specific ecosystem that makes up the isolated environment of Mount Bosavi is local and unique.  The volcano peaks at an elevation of 8,225 ft, a prominence of 6,191 ft, and is listed as an Ultra Prominent Peak, a mountain with a topographic prominence of 4,921 ft. or more.  The region temperatures average around the high 80's degrees Fahrenheit with a humidity level of 99%, very characteristic of a tropic region.

Bosavi Jungle Spider

   Historically, Mount Bosavi has been mostly untouched and undisturbed by the outside world.  Because of the steepness of the crater walls and the terrain leading up to the mountain, the fauna and fora of the small region have had little to no contact with the outside world.  Therefore, as stated above, the species of the crater were likely to have evolved in distinct ways after thousands of years in isolation.  The official reporting of findings describes the mountain as such, saying, "What makes this area so interesting is that it is remote, relatively unexplored and the difficulty of accessing the crater means that hunting pressure on the animals inside is currently very low. Additionally, the top of Mount Bosavi, being an isolated montane habitat, will harbour species not found in the surrounding lowland forest."  Thus, scientists and explorers found an ecosystem largely untouched for the last couple thousand years and were determined "to film and document as many species as possible in the vicinity of Mount Bosavi on the Great Papuan Plateau"
(Official Report).

    The expedition began when “[Steve Greenwood] and a researcher first flew by helicopter to the nearest village, Fogomaya, 15 miles or a four-day trek from the crater."

The Bosavi Wooly Rat

Upon arrival, they found the crater populated by spectacular birds of paradise.  In the absence of big cats and monkeys, which are found in the remote jungles of the Amazon and Sumatra, the main predators are giant monitor lizards while kangaroos have evolved to live in trees. New species include a camouflaged gecko, a fanged frog and a fish called the Henamo Grunter, named because it makes grunting noises from its swim bladder (Official Report).

    In terms of plant life, the vegetation on the rim of the crater is very different to the lush forest which covers the interior. Above 2,000 meters, the trees are much shorter in height than the forest below and the high humidity encourages the growth of epiphytes and moss. At this altitude it can be cool and although very moist, much of the water comes from clouds instead of rain (Official Report).

    Overall, being such an isolated ecosystem, the human impact on Mount Bosavi has been good.  For example, the crater provides a critical haven for five species currently recognized as species of conservation concern: "One of these, the Eastern Long-beaked Echidna (Zaglossus bartoni), is classified as Critically Endangered. Another, Goodfellow’s Tree-kangaroo (Dendrolagus goodfellowi), is classified as Endangered. Two kangaroo species, Doria’s Tree-Kangaroo (Dendrolagus dorianus) and the Dusky Pademelon (Thylogale brunii) are listed as Vulnerable, and one, the Lesser Forest Wallaby (Dorcopsulus vanheurni) is listed as near threatened" (Official Report).

    Although the the human impact on Mount Bosavi itself is positive, the surrounding tropical regions of Papua New Guinea haven't been quite as fortunate.  "The University of Papua New Guinea and the Australian National University have recently analysed thirty years of satellite imagery for Papua New Guinea and have found that 19.8 million acres of forest was lost between 1972 and 2002. At the rate forest is being cleared or degraded, around 3.5% per year, they suggest that more than 80 percent of the country's accessible forest - and more than half of the total forested area will be gone or severely damaged by 2021. The loss of what is the world's third-largest rain forest would see the extinction of a unique flora and fauna and have devastating and far-reaching effects on the physical environment, regional weather patterns and the lives of the people that live there"
(Official Report).

    Personally, I believe that Mount Bosavi is protected from negative human impacts simply because of its location.  So while there isn't much to be done to improve the environment of Mount Bosavi, the discoveries at the volcano should be used as fresh evidence of the richness of the world's rainforests and a call for international action to prevent the demise of similar ecosystems.   

More pictures from the expedition can be viewed here.

~Works Cited~

Barkham, Patrick. "The Journey to the Creature Crater." The Guardian. Guardian News and
        Media, 09 July 2009. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment
        /2009/sep/08/mount-bosavi-creatures-discovery-scientists>.

BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/expeditions
        /newguineasforestsecrets>.

"Mount Bosavi." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Nov. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2012.
        <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Bosavi>.

"Mount Bosavi – Climbing, Hiking & Mountaineering." Mount Bosavi Mountain Information. N.p.,
        n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.mountain-forecast.com/peaks/Mount-Bosavi>.

"Mount Bosavi." Mount Bosavi. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://earth.esa.int/applications
        /data_util/SARDOCS/spaceborne/Radar_Features/Land_Features/mount_bosavi.htm>.

"Mount Bosavi." Touropia RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.touropia.com/explore
        /papua-new-guinea/mount_bosavi/>.

The official scientific report on Mount Bosavi can be found here.