Indonesian Archipelago (02:37)

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Indonesia lies at the heart of the Ring of Fire and houses nearly all of the world’s active volcanoes. The volcanoes allow animals and plants to thrive, despite the environment's hostile and desolate appearance.

Megapode (03:38)

Java island contains the Tengger Caldera. The environment is dry, but the megapode uses it as a nursery. A female digs a hole for her egg and buries it; the baby emerges fully feathered and strong enough to fly.

Leatherback Turtle and Water Monitor (06:33)

Around Indonesia, underwater volcanoes create small, remote, and isolated beaches. A female leatherback digs a hole on a beach to lay her eggs; she buries the eggs and returns to the sea. A water monitor swims to the beach, smells the eggs with its tongue, and has a meal.

Leaf Monkeys and Reticulated Python (06:29)

Mount Sinabung has hundreds of steam vents that expel sulfurous gases at high temperatures, providing nutrient rich soil for the nearby forest. Thomas leaf monkeys have long tails, slender limbs, and jump easily among rubber trees. A reticulated python climbs a tree to hunt a baby monkey without its mother.

Fruit Bats (05:40)

Indonesia’s monsoon season provides dense and nutrient rich forests. Bat guano is one of the best fertilizers. When it is dark, fruit bats take to the sky.

Borneo Life (06:11)

A sun bear climbs a tree, looks for food, and takes a nap. A rafflesia has no stems or roots and attracts flies with its look and smell of rotten flesh. A mengaris lives for many years and provides a feast of insects when it dies.

Life Around Volcanoes (05:44)

The Adudu salt lick on Sulawesi is a social gathering spot for all animals: primates. Male barbirusas have tusks that curl back into the skull; they will fight one another for breeding rights. On Sumatra, the Tinggi Raja is a group of moving hot springs on terraces.

Life Adapts to Environment (07:26)

The siamang has a large throat pouch that allows it to create loud calls; it lives in vegetation on rocky cliffs. Cave swiftlets live in large caves and make nests with saliva; a whip spider eats a cricket. The Sumatran rhinoceros is an endangered species.

Mud Volcano Life (05:20)

On Borneo, a mud volcano slowly moves toward the jungle, destroying everything in its path. Bearded pigs enjoy the mud that provides plants, insects, fungi, and salty mineral water. The pigs have long slim legs that help them walk in the mud and not get stuck.

Credits: Volcano Nation—Wildest Indonesia (00:34)

Credits: Volcano Nation—Wildest Indonesia