Sukolilo
Location:
7°16'S, 1 12°47'E; in the Brantas Delta, southeast of Surabaya near Kecamatan I Sukolilo, East Java.
Area:
c. 1 ha.
Altitude:
Sea level.
Biogeographical Province:
4.22.12.
Wetland type:
07 & 10.
Description of site:
A small patch of protected mangrove forest (one ha) situated in a large area of aquaculture ponds. There are extensive intertidal mudflats along the adjacent coast, but other mangrove forest in the area has been heavily disturbed.
Climatic conditions:
Humid tropical climate.
Principal vegetation:
Mangrove forest.
Land tenure:
No information.
Conservation measures taken:
The one hectare patch of forest is protected by the local people, and there has been some replanting of mangroves.
Conservation measures proposed:
The site has been proposed as a Strict Nature Reserve -(Cagar Alam).
Land use:
Protected forest; aquaculture in surrounding areas.
Disturbances and threats:
The site lies only three km from the town of Surabaya and is seriously threatened by reclamation for real estate development. Intensive logging has greatly depleted the mangrove zone in adjacent areas, and some of the surrounding mangrove areas have been filled in with stones and boulders to provide a recreational site. Local youths often shoot at the breeding birds when they fly away from the protected forest over the unprotected aquaculture ponds.
Economic and social values:
The mangroves formerly supported a major fishery. However, the inshore fishery has declined drastically with the depletion of the mangrove forests, and fishing vessels now have to go much further out to sea.
Fauna:
The protected mangrove forest supports a mixed breeding colony of large waterbirds containing several hundred nests. The breeding species include Phalacrocorax sulcirostris. P. niger, Anhinga melanongaster, Egretta sacra, E. garzetta, E. intermedia and E. alba. Other species which occasionally visit the colony include Bubulcus ibis, Ardea purpurea, A. cinerea and Threskiornis melanocephalus. Flocks of up to several hundred migratory shorebirds have been recorded on the nearby mudflats.
Special floral values:
None known.
Research and facilities:
The area has never been adequately surveyed, and information is very incomplete.
Criteria for Inclusion:
1b, 2c, 3b.
Source:
Marcel J. Silvius.