Whilst waiting for your next wave, look past the reef onto the white sandy beaches, take a moment to stare into the thick exotic rainforest that is full of life, home to a number of animal species that cannot found anywhere else in the world. A long geographic isolation has resulted in numerous endemic mammals, including four primates. Our favourite being the world’s only exclusively monogamous leaf-monkey, the Mentawai leaf-monkey. It doesn’t stop there, walk through the forest and mangroves to catch a glimpse of any one of the 134 bird species, or come across some snakes, squirrels and chipmunks. The enchanting sounds of this ancient rainforest will be like nothing you have heard before.
Sea life
As the sea will be your home here with us, you will get the chances to snorkel in some of the most pristine waters and experience the underwater wonderland that these islands have on offer. The islands are a part of the “coral triangle” with over 500 species of reef building coral and 300 species of fish, its recognised as part of the “Global centre of marine diversity”. Dolphins (Stenela longirostris) can be seen along the east coast. Other sea mammals such as dugong (Dugong dugong) occasionally can be sighted near the sea grass by the mangrove along with three protected species of sea turtles.
