Swamp in the Bilabong Residential Area, Bogor, Indonesia

Environment

Environment

Human settlements

Affected by human activity

Agriculture

Deforestation

Pollution

Human settlements

Dispersed

Surrounding area

This swamp is the upstream part of Setu Tonjong and the Pesanggrahan River, which will flow into the capital region of Indonesia, Jakarta. Before 1990, this area was a plantation for fruits, bamboo, and rubber, supplying the needs of Jakarta’s population. At that time, these swamps were untouched. Entering the 2000s, urbanization began to transform this area into a densely populated settlement, with almost all the swamps filled in or given concrete embankments.

I heard complaints from the local community that the swamps, which are the habitat of Oryzias hubbsi, always pose a potential danger of malaria and dengue fever mosquitoes, and thus they will be drained and the lakebanks will be concreted. This is a very dilemmatic situation.

Vegetation list:

• Musa paradisiaca
• Mangifera indica
• Ficus benjamina

Underwater landscape

During the dry season, the barren land becomes parched, and the Limnophila plants transition to terrestrial leaves and root themselves in the soil. When the rainy season arrives, the area is filled with submerged shrubs, and the Limnophila plants become a place for Oryzias to lay their eggs.

Fishlist:

• Oryzias hubbsi (Adrianichthyidae)
  
• Dermogenys pusilla (Zenarchopteridae)
  
• Trichopsis vittata (Osphronemidae)
  
• Trichogaster trichopterus (Osphronemidae)
  
• Aplocheilus armatus (Aplocheilidae)
  
• Brachygobius xanthomelas (Oxudercidae)
• Barbodes binotatus (Cyprinidae)
• Rasbora argyrotaenia (Danionidae)
  
• Channa striata (Channidae)
  
• Amphilophus labiatus (Cichlidae) – introduced

Crustaceans:

• Caridina laevis

Aquatic plants:

• Limnophila aquatica (Plantaginaceae)
  
• Persicaria attenuata (Polygonaceae)
  

Wetland plants:

• Brachiaria sp.
  

Threats to ecology

This area is crucial for the sustainability of Jakarta. Historically, Jakarta to Bogor was an area of swamps and very fertile land. The current exploitation and land conversion have led to uncontrollable flooding. As a resident of this area, I experience a dilemma: if the swamps are preserved, tropical diseases like malaria become uncontrollable.

Efforts to eradicate malaria have been made since the Dutch East Indies era by introducing Gambusia sp. and Poecilia sp. fish, which proved ineffective and even suppressed the local ecosystem, including Oryzias hubbsi. We should protect these native fish and house them in home aquariums to help them survive longer.