Belait Swamp Forest

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Belait Swamp Forest, also known as Belait Peat Swamp Forest, is Brunei’s largest coastal peat swamp. It sits in the Belait District along the Belait River near Ulu Mendaram on the northwest coast of Borneo. The forest is a mix of peat swamp, dipterocarp forest and tropical heath, built on thousands of years of decayed plant matter. It is one of Brunei’s six key biodiversity sites and is designated an Important Bird Area because of its rich bird life, including several threatened species. The peat swamp ecosystem is an important part of Brunei’s long-term forest and environment plan, which aims to expand protected areas and help meet biodiversity goals. The Belait Swamp Forest faces threats from habitat fragmentation due to pipelines and roads, and from wildfires. Notable birds spotted here include black partridge, Bornean crestless fireback, green pigeon, Storm’s stork, Wallace’s hawk-eagle, wrinkled hornbill, Malay blue-banded kingfisher, blue-headed and fairy pittas, Bornean bristlehead, hook-billed bulbul, straw-headed bulbul, and large-billed blue-flycatcher.