Bantimurung National Park (South Sulawesi)
Bantimurung Bulusaraung National Park is a national park in South Sulawesi in Indonesia.[1] The park contains Maros Pangkep limestone hill, the second largest karst area known in the world after the one in South-Eastern China.The park is in Maros Regency, 50 kilometers to the north of Makassar (one hour drive) or just 20 kilometers from Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport (30 minutes drive). Most of the Karst formations are tall and steep at almost a 90 degree angle line along both sides of the road from Maros city to Bantimurung continuing on up to the Pangkajene Islands Regency.
The karst area is 43,750 hectares and has 286 caves which includes 16 pre-historic caves in Maros Regency and 17 pre-historic caves in Pangkep, Bone Regency. There is waterfall with 2 caves at the national park; the one on the left side is known as the dream cave (one-kilometer long) and the one on the right is known as the stone cave. Riding on the water on blown up inner tubes is a popular activity for children at the site.
Located in the transition area of Asia and Australia zone, the national park has many unique animals collection, such as Sulawesi moor macaque (Macaca maura), the red-knobbed hornbill (Aceros cassidix, Penelopides exarhatus), cuscus (Strigocuscus celebensis), Sulawesi palm civet (Macrogalidia musschenbroekii), bat, and pot-bellied boar (Sus scrofa vittatus). Recently, in March 2008, staffs of Bantimurung – Bulusaraung National Park had documented the existence of Tarsius fuscus (the smallest mammalian) and they also found its nest inside the area. Among crustacean biodiversity in the karst area, there is one unique species called "spider crab" (Cancrocaeca xenomorpha) which is only found in Maros Karst cave.
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