 Seram Island | |
  Seram | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Oceania |
| Coordinates | 3°08′S129°30′E / 3.133°S 129.500°E /-3.133; 129.500 |
| Archipelago | Maluku Islands |
| Area | 17,100 km2 (6,600 sq mi) |
| Area rank | 52nd |
| Highest elevation | 3,027 m (9931 ft) |
| Highest point | Mount Binaiya |
| Administration | |
Indonesia | |
| Province | Maluku |
| Regencies | Central Maluku,East Seram,West Seram |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 434,113 (2010) |
| Pop. density | 25.4/km2 (65.8/sq mi) |
| Ethnic groups | Manusela,Nuaulu,Alune,Wemale,Ambonese |
| Additional information | |
| Time zone | |
Seram (formerly spelledCeram; alsoSeran orSerang) is the largest and mainisland ofMalukuprovince ofIndonesia, despiteAmbon Island's historical importance. It is located just north of the smallerAmbon Island and a few other adjacent islands, such asSaparua,Haruku,Nusa Laut and theBanda Islands.
Seram is traversed by a centralmountain range, the highest point of which,Mount Binaiya, is covered with denserain forests. Its remarkably complex geology is because of its location at the meeting of several tectonic microplates, which have been described as "one of the most tectonically complex areas on Earth".[1] Seram falls on its microplate, which has been twisted around by 80° in the last 8 million years[2] by the relatively faster movement of the Papua microplate. Meanwhile, along with the northward push of the Australian Plate, this has resulted in the uplift that gives north-central Seram peaks of over 3000 m. On the island, there are important karst areas. In the mountains, near Sawai, there is the cave Hatu Saka, currently the deepest cave in Indonesia (-388 m). In Taniwel district, on the north coast, is the underground riverSapalewa, one of the largest underground rivers on the planet.[3][4][5]
The population of the island and the neighbouring smaller islands in the 2020 Census was 773,459 people,[6] administered among three regencies (kabupaten), namelyMaluku Tengah Regency (which had 204,907 people on Seram Island itself[7] and 218,185 on the lesser islands, the majority on Ambon Island),Seram Bagian Barat Regency andSeram Bagian Timur Regency.[8]
Seram Island is remarkable for its high degree of localised bird endemism.[9] There are 117 species ofbirds on the island; 14 species and subspecies areendemic, including theeclectus,great-billed andMoluccan king parrot,purple-naped andred lories,salmon-crested cockatoo,Seram masked owl,collared,sacred andlazuli kingfishers,long-crested myna,elegant imperial-pigeon,Seram oriole,metallic starlings andgrey-necked andSeram friarbirds.[10]
The mammals found on Seram include Asianmurid rodents as well as Australasianmarsupials, including thecommon spotted cuscus and several species ofPhalanger. The mountain area of Seram supports the greatest number of endemic mammals of any island in the region. It harbors 38 mammal species and includes nine species that are endemic or near-endemic, several of which are limited to montane habitats. These include theSeram bandicoot, severalbat species includingMoluccan andSeram flying foxes,Manusela mosaic-tailed rat,spiny Ceram rat and theCeram rat, all considered threatened.[11]
Herpetiles are highly prevalent on the islands. The largest and most dangerous to humans is thesaltwater crocodile, found within the island's coastalbrackish waters anddeltas; some are known to swim inland via freshwater routes, such as theSalawai River. Other reptiles of the island includeAmboina sailfin lizards,Bronchocela sp., thebrown tree snake,emerald tree skinks,green sea turtles,Indonesian blue-tongued skinks,Moluccan flying snakes and thetokay gecko, among numerous other species ofgecko andskink. Amphibians includeFejervarya,fork-tongued frogs andHorst's andwhite-lipped tree frogs.[12]
In the eastern part of the island,Manusela National Park was established in 1997, covering an area of 1,890 km2 (11% of the island).[10]
Most central Moluccans consider Seram to be their original ancestral home and it is still known colloquially as Nusa Ina (Mother Island).[13][14]In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, Seram was generally within the sphere of influence ofTernate, although it was often ruled more directly by the Ternaten vassal state ofBuru. The expedition ofAntónio de Abreu (as captain) andFrancisco Serrão sighted and explored the entire southern coast of Seram in early 1512, for the first time for Europeans.[15]Portuguesemissionaries were active there in the 16th century.Dutchtrading posts were opened in the early 17th century, and the island came under nominal Dutch control c. 1650. TheTidore Sultanate made periodical claims on Seram and were accorded suzerainty in the eastern part of the island from 1700 to 1768. In the 1780s, Seram provided a key base of support for PrinceNuku of Tidore's long-running rebellion against Dutch rule.[16] From 1954 until 1962 the island's mountain terrain was the scene of an armed guerilla struggle against Indonesian rule by the counter revolutionaryRepublic of South Maluku movement led byChris Soumokil.
Seram includes three of theregencies within the province of Maluku, but administratively each of these regencies includes a number of smaller islands adjacent to Seram.
Seram has been traditionally associated with theanimism of the indigenousAlfur (orNuaulu), a West Melanesian people who reputedly retained a custom of headhunting until the 1940s.[21] Today, however, most of the population of Seram is eitherMuslim orChristian due to both conversion and immigration. Seram was affected bythe violent inter-religious conflict that swept Maluku province starting in late 1998, resulting in tens of thousands of displaced persons across the province[22] but after the Malino II Accord of 2002 tempers cooled. Seram has been peaceful for many years but towns likeMasohi remain informally divided into de facto Christian and Muslim sections.[citation needed]Around 7,000 people belonging to theManusela tribe follow Hinduism.[23]
Copra,resin,sago, andfish are important products.Oil is produced in the northeast near Bula by CITIC Seram Energy[24] who took over from KUFPEC (Indonesia) Limited in 2006.[25] The Oseil oil field is located onshore in the northeast of the island in the Seram Non-Bula Production Sharing Contract area.[24] The discovery well was drilled in 1993.[24] As of end 2010 the Seram Non-Bula Block had estimated proven oil reserves of 9.7 million barrels.[24] Most production comes from the Jurassic Manusela carbonate formation.[26][27]
Media related toSeram at Wikimedia Commons
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