| Indonesians call their country Tanah Air Kita,
which means "our land and water." Indonesia comprises 13,677 islands and
the surrounding water between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, south of Southeast
Asia and north of Australia. About 6,000 of the islands are inhabited.
The main islands are Sumatra, Java, Bali, Sulawesi, and the Nusa Tenggara
and Maluku archipelagos. The part of Indonesia known as Kalimantan shares
the island of Borneo with Malaysia and Brunei. Irian Jaya is the western
half of another large island; the eastern half is Papua New Guinea. Java
and Bali are very densely populated. Jakarta, on the island of Java, is
the capital and largest city. |
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| Indonesia can be divided into three regions: the
Sunda Shelf, the Sahul Shelf and the Lesser Sundas. The Sunda Shelf includes
Java, Sumatra and Kalimantan. The animals and plants found on these islands
are similar to those in Asia. This area is thought to have been part of
mainland Asia thousands of years ago. The Sahul Shelf includes Irian Jaya.
The flora and fauna of this island are like those of Australia, which suggests
that the two were once attached. The Lesser Sunda Islands, including Sulawesi,
Maluku and Nusa Tenggara, have unique plant and animal species and were
probably never joined to a larger land mass. |
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Did you know? |
| Komodo
dragons are found on the island of Komodo. They are lizards about three
metres long, weighing up to 140 kilograms. They have scaly bodies, short
muscular legs, massive tails and razor-sharp teeth. |
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| Indonesia is part of the "Pacific Ring of Fire"
and has more than 400 volcanoes, 70 of which are still active. Indonesia
experiences about three tremors or minor earthquakes every day, and there
is a volcanic eruption at least once a year.
Indonesia has a tropical climate with high humidity.
There are two seasons: the dry season from May to September and the wet
season from October to April. Monsoons are frequent during the wet season,
and even during the dry season there is some rainfall. Temperatures are
lower in the mountains and higher along the coast. Although Indonesia is
located on the equator, it has snow-capped mountains. The highest point
in the country is Mount Puncak Wijaya on Irian Jaya, at 5,030 metres. Nearly
two-thirds of Indonesia is covered in tropical rainforests, accounting
for 10% of the world's rainforests. Most are found on Sumatra, Kalimantan,
Sulawesi and Irian Jaya. |
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Trees such as teak, ebony, sandalwood,
camphor, clove and nutmeg grow in the forests. Animal life includes the
one-horned rhinoceros of Java, orangutans (found only in Kalimantan and
Sumatra), miniature deer, atlas moths (which have a wingspan of 25 centimetres)
and the brilliantly coloured, flightless bird of paradise.
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Did you know? |
| Indonesia
has the world's largest flower, the insect-eating Rafflesia arnoldii. |
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