The Western Java montane rain forests cloak the volcanic mountain ridges of western and central Java, Indonesia, generally above 1,000 meters along a narrow 500-kilometer spine that includes peaks such as Mount Gede, Pangrango, Salak, and Slamet. Most of the ecoregion is closed broadleaf evergreen forest, with montane stands dominated by oaks and their relatives in genera like Lithocarpus, Quercus, and Castanopsis alongside laurels, giving way to heath-family shrubs such as Rhododendron at the highest elevations. The climate is tropical monsoon, with relatively even year-round temperatures above 18 degrees Celsius and a pronounced dry season. These highland forests harbor a notable share of endemic mammals and shelter threatened wildlife including the Javan leopard, the silvery (Javan) gibbon, and the flagship Javan lutung, though much of the original rainforest has been lost and the remaining tracts are safeguarded largely within national parks like Gede Pangrango and Halimun Salak. For gardeners, the cool montane uplands are a native home to Rhododendron, a familiar ornamental genus.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 7.1°S, 108.2°E.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
13b
Plotwright
CHELSA-derived typical winter month at this ecoregion's bbox grid.
Projected (2041–2070)
13b
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +2.9°F by mid-century. SSP3-7.0 (current trajectory) · CHELSA v2.1 bio06 sampled across 10 of 10 points within this ecoregion's bounding box.
At a glance
Dominant biome
Tropical & Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests
Realm
Indomalayan
Approximate area
10,146 sq mi
Conservation tier
Nature Could Reach Half Protected (Dinerstein NNH 2)
About the tropical & subtropical moist broadleaf forests biome
Warm, wet, highly productive forests — including tropical rainforests — with closed canopies, near year-round growing seasons, and the richest terrestrial biodiversity on Earth. Low seasonality and high rainfall sustain dense, layered vegetation from canopy to forest floor.
Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion
No catalog plants intersect this ecoregion's zone range. As the catalog grows to cover this region's climate band, suggestions will surface here.
Collections for this ecoregion
No curated collection's plants all fit this ecoregion's zone range. We surface a collection only when every member would grow here — partial fits get filtered out rather than mislead. As the catalog and the curated set both grow, this section will fill in.
Related ecoregions
Other tropical & subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregions to explore: