Kota Kinabalu Wetland

Mangrove Forest
Main building compound

Kota Kinabalu Wetland

  • Country: 
    Malaysia
  • Site number: 
    2290
  • Area: 
    24.2 ha
  • Designation date: 
    22-10-2016
  • Coordinates: 
    05°59'N 116°05'E
Materials presented on this website, particularly maps and territorial information, are as-is and as-available based on available data and do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

Overview

The Site is a mangrove swamp in the heart of Kota Kinabalu City on the northern coast of Sabah State. It supports a range of biodiversity, with 30 mangrove species and associated plants, 90 species of resident and migratory birds and five species of reptiles. The Site supports three globally threatened species, including the critically endangered mangrove Bruguiera hainesii, and two vulnerable water birds, the Chinese egret (Egretta eulophotes) and the lesser adjutant (Leptoptilos javanicus). It is also important as a nursery ground for 21 species of fish and aquatic species including crustaceans, molluscs, horseshoe crabs and jellyfish. The Site acts as a green lung and buffer zone for the city. Due to its urban location, it has high potential value for tourism and educational and recreational activities; but the wetland is also exposed to a number of threats such as pollution, the over-exploitation of resources from fishing and harvesting of aquatic resources. Such mangrove forests used to cover the entire coastline of Kota Kinabalu City, but due to increasing urbanization, the Site now supports the last remaining example of this ecosystem, and so it is of great cultural importance.

Administrative region: 
The Site is located at the West Coast of the State of Sabah, in the eastern part of Malaysia (in the Northern Region of Borneo). It is within the administrative district of the City of Kota Kinabalu. The Central Business District lies 2 km southwest.

  • Last publication date: 
    08-03-2017

Downloads

Ramsar Information Sheet (RIS)

Additional reports and documents