Research on the Hydrology and Meteorology of Tropical Montane Forest in Cameron Highlands, Peninsular Malaysia

Type of work: Field Research
Description: Ever wondered what makes the montane forests in the highlands of Peninsular Malaysia so unique? Is there any links between the hydrology and meteorology on these forest types, which are our main water catchments? Our first question is whether cloud moisture is a significant component of the total precipitation in montane forests and if it is so what is the proportion of cloud water to the canopy water balance?
Montane forests, both upper and lower montane have distinct differences in its structure, tree species, etc. Is there any relationship between the forest structure and the hydrometeorology of the area? Are there large differences in the partitioning of gross rainfall into throughfall, stemflow and canopy interception between lower and upper montane forests? These are some of the questions we have asked ourselves and we are embarking on this project in Cameron Highlands which also contributes towards a Ph.D. thesis on the hydrometeorological significance of tropical montane forests in Peninsular Malaysia. Once we have the basic information then we could embark to find out what else we need to know about this unique ecosystem.
Skills: Field research and data analysis in MS-Excel.
Period: Part-time for 6 months based at Cameron Highlands, Pahang.
Equipment needed: Home PC is an advantage.
Funds available: None, but travel to Cameron Highlands will be arranged.
Outputs: Exposure to some aspects of hydrometeorological research and investigation. Articles published.
Location: Cameron Highlands, Pahang.
Contact: Sanath Kumaran mailto:skumaran@wwf.org.my