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ECOCLUB® |
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ISSN 1108-8931 |
International Ecotourism Monthly |
Year 4, Issue 41, Oct. 2002 |
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Kayaks allow tourist to get fairly close to animals and birds. These same animals normally flee from trekkers. Historically, humans walking in the jungle were out to shoot them. Approaching animals from the water obviously doesn't seem threatening to these animals. As the gibbons moved around, I paddled around to the other side of the point to see if I could get a better view. Entered the next cove, I noticed a couple of very large black and light gray figures on the far shore. They were perhaps 80 meters from my position. Through my binoculars I saw something I never even dreamed I would see... two enormous Malayan Tapirs were feeding on the grass along the banks of the Cheow Lan Reservoir! What an incredible one-in-a-million sighting.
Luckily, Eugene Boyle, a guest and friend on this trip, had brought his digital video camera and his digital camera. He started shooting right away. Gradually, we crept toward these wonderful odd-looking beings. Their elephant-like snouts wrapped around stalks of tall grass, then with a slight tug, the green cuisine was moved from snout to mouth. Malayan Tapir facts There are four species of Tapir in the world. The Asia or Malayan Tapir (tapirus indicus) taxonomically speaking are actually related to horses and rhinoceroses. They are among the most primitive large mammals in existence. They have not evolved for eons. Malayan Tapirs inhabit most of Southeast Asia. Their range includes Thailand, Burma, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia. They are now believed to be nearly extinct in most of these places. The remoteness and expanse of Khao Sok provide probably the only habitat available in southern Thailand for Tapirs. Tapirs are a very threatened species. The reasons for its drop in these magnificent animals included capture for the live animal trade, hunting, logging, human encroachment and loss of habitat. Actual numbers of wild tapirs are not known. The Malayan tapir weighs up to and occasionally over 800 pounds. They reach a length of six to eight feet and can be over three feet tall. The Malayan tapir is an odd-toed ungulate. We were able to get close enough to see that they had four toes on their front feet and three toes on their rear feet. Their middle toe is longer and larger than the others. Captive Tapirs have lived as long as thirty years. The tapir's diet consists of grass, leaves, shoots, aquatic plants, soft twigs, succulent herbs and shoots. Our sighting was exceptionally rare as Malayan Tapirs are primarily nocturnal and primarily solitary. Recent studies of wild tapir however, show that they do sometimes travel in pairs. We were observing one male and one female. Our one-in-a-million encounter is forever ingrained in our minds and hearts. Let's all hope that these lovely passive beings have a place to exist in the future.
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Swinging gracefully from branch to branch, high up in the thick
jungle canopy, a small group of White-handed Gibbons seemed
disinterested in our small group of kayakers. We were paddling in Khao
Sok National Park, near the town of Surat Thani. The abundance and
variety of wildlife in Khao Sok is astonishing.
The other group members slowly started paddling toward me. With
hand signals, I tried desperately to let them know what was happening.
Containing my excitement was very difficult. I didn't want to make any
sudden or radical movements, but I had to their attention. Everyone
finally realized that I was extremely fired up about something.
Pointing to the far shore was all it took for them to realize why.