The location: This course will take place in Danum Valley Field Centre, part of Danum Valley Conservation Area, in Malaysian Borneo. This 438 km2 reserve is home to 130 million year old rainforest and the tallest tropical trees in the world. Danum Valley’s core area is one of the best examples of primary lowland dipterocarp forest and boasts rich communities of flora and fauna with many species endemic to Borneo. With long-established research projects and almost no human impacts, Danum Valley is the ideal location to spot some of Borneo’s most iconic animals in their natural environment, including flying frogs, pit vipers, hornbills, gibbons, and orangutans.

Course Work and Highlights: The greatest threat to biodiversity worldwide is habitat loss, and the largest driver of deforestation in Southeast Asia and other tropical regions is expansion of oil palm plantations. Thus, knowledge of Bornean biodiversity
and its threats is crucial for conservation and sustainability. Natural history museum collections provide invaluable documentation of life on earth and are essential to our understanding of long-term anthropogenic changes
such as habitat loss and climate change. This course will introduce students to ecological survey methods and specimen preparation in a region of high biodiversity as well as high habitat loss. Students will learn Southeast Asian natural history, tropical ecology field skills, and scientific specimen preparation methods. Students will need to bring binoculars, headlamp, and field clothing.

April 30-May 1 on campus
May 2-16 Tentative travel dates

Housing: Students will stay in the hostel at Danum Valley Field Center. Note that Malaysia does not provide gender-neutral accommodation.

Prerequisite course: None, permission of the instructor.

Eligibility:
Chatham undergraduate students must have good academic standing and a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher at the time of application and at the commencement of spring 2025 term. Students must have completed at least 30 undergraduate credits at the time of travel, including at least 15 credits
completed at Chatham at the time of travel.
Students must have good judicial standing (to be verified by Office of Student Affairs) and good financial standing at Chatham (to be verified by Student Accounts).
Students must be current Chatham students at the time of the field experience to participate.

The minimum enrollment for this course is 16 students. Each field experience is self-supporting and must meet its minimum enrollment number or it will be cancelled.