Alas Purwo National Park

Alas Purwo National Park is situated on Blambangan Peninsula in the Banyuwangi

Regency, at the southeastern tip of East Java province. The park is famous for its wild
Banteng and surfing location at Grajagan Bay.

The park's name means first forest or ancient forest, in accordance with a Javanese legend
that says the earth first emerged from the ocean here.

Geography
The park is located in Blambangan Peninsula at the southeastern tip of Java island, along the
shore of strait across Bali.

With an area of 434 km2, the park is made up of mangroves, savanna, lowland monsoon
forests and coral-fringed beaches. An internationally renowned surf break peels along the
edge of the park at Plengkung on Grajagan Bay. Mount Linggamanis (322m) is also located
in this national park.

Flora and fauna

The flora protected in this national park include: Terminalia catappa, Calophyllum
inophyllum, Sterculia foetida, Barringtonia asiatica and Manilkara kauki.

It is home to some of Java’s endangered species, such as the banteng (Bos javanicus). In
April 2004, there were only 57 bantengs found in the savanna of Sadengan, while the
population in the previous year was estimated to be 80 to 100, but in August 2010, the
scientists found 73 bantengs in the 80-hectare savanna area, a big increase in 6 years,
although they faced threats of poaching and loss of habitat. Herds of bantengs usually come
to Sadengan in the morning and afternoon in search of plants.

The biggest threat to the bantengs are humans. Poachers set traps outside the park during the
dry season to snare bantengs wandering outside the park in search of water. The bantengs are
slaughtered and the meat sold.

Other threatened animal species protected in Alas Purwo include the dhole, Javan langur,
green peafowl, red junglefowl, olive ridley, hawksbill turtle and green turtle.