A Visit to UBD’s Kuala Belalong Field Studies Centre

I recently had the chance to visit UBD’s Kuala Belalong Field Studies Centre (KBFSC). With me on this day long Saturday trip were colleagues from London and the High Commission, as well as James Margrove, an intern from the University of Aberdeen who recently guest blogged about his research work in Brunei. My main interest was to get a better understanding both of Brunei’s rich biodiversity and the many research links that exist between the UK and Brunei.

It’s always a fascinating boat trip from Bandar to Temburong, though unlike last time I saw neither crocodiles nor monkeys. Although a bit scared of heights, I was pleased to have made the effort to do the canopy walk. It’s a great experience to marvel at the well preserved primary forest whose many different species of plants and animals continue to fascinate researchers from all around the world.

UBD Associate Professor Dr Kushan Tennakoon was our informative host throughout the day. He gave a detailed presentation on current research activities. We were then taken on a tour of the centre and met one of the local PhD students with an interest in the ecology of amphibians, Honeyroll Ahmadsah, and Prof Bryan Pijanowski from Purdue University, who is conducting a fascinating Soundscapes project, part of a global scientific collaboration to investigate the impact of sounds in different habitats.

Throughout the day, I was pleased to learn more about the strong research links between Brunei and the UK. In recent times, these include Dr Aline Horwath from the Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge; Kate Baker, a PhD student from King’s College London; Dr David Burslem from the University of Aberdeen and Dr David Coomes from the University of Cambridge, who are both working closely with UBD and the Survey Department on LiDAR analysis. At an ASEM (Asia-Europe Meeting) Biodiversity Workshop last year, Imperial College researcher, Dr. Tom Fayle, spoke about species interaction networks and UK MSc student Francesca Culverhouse from the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh attended the student workshop. British students also use the KBFSC for fieldwork; in return, Bruneian students can access research facilities in the UK.

One other fascinating connection I learned. I discovered that one of KBFSC’s founders was the Earl of Cranbrook. I met Lord Cranbrook in Bandar Seri Begawan only last month. He told me had first visited Borneo as a young scientist in 1956. Back in Brunei on his latest visit at the age of 81, he was about to set off on a field expedition to Sungai Ingei. It’s a mark of the respect in which Lord Cranbrook is held, as well as the importance that Brunei attaches to its biodiversity, that he was granted an audience by HM the Sultan and HRH the Crown Prince.