RAWA AOPA WATUMOHAI NATIONAL PARK (RAWNP)

BY : SABRY MATASALA

Rawa Aopa Watumohai National Park ( RAWNP ) has many potential natural resources. According to the Government Administration, the national park is located in 4 districts : 6.238 Ha in the konawe district, located in the Lambuya and Puriala subdistrict, 12.824 Ha in the Kolaka district, located in the Tirawuta, Ladonggi Watubangga, and Tangketada subdistricts, 40.527 Ha in the south konawe districts, located in the Anggata and Tinanggea subdistricts, and 45.605 Ha in the Bombana districts, located in the Rorawatu subdistrict.

The Rawa Aopa Watumohai National Park area is merger of a few conservation areas. The Watumohai Buru Park, Rawa aopa Reservation, and Rumbia Land Buru Park, it is 105.194 Ha wide and was established as a National Park according to the decision letter of the ministry of Forestry No. 756/KPTS-ll/1990. It was been bordered with 4.158 milestones 366.673 km in length from 1985 to 1987.

The Rawa Aopa Watumohai National Park has 4 types of ecosyetem :mangrove forest, tropical forest, swamp, and savanna, thay are each in habited by a variety of wild life and rare plants that can only be found in Sulawesi. The various ecosystems have a direct affect on the number of protected wildlife inside the jungle. There are 28 kinds of mammals, of which 13 types are Sulawesi endemic, 4 types of Amphibians, of which 1 type is endemic to Sulawesi, 7 types of reptiles, 8 types of fish, 207 of birds, of which 38 types are Sulawesi endemic and 9 types are Indonesian endemic , and 323 types of plants.

As a preventation area, Rawa Aopa Watumohai National Park has tourist destinations that are similar to other tourist destinations in Indonesia. The tourist destination spread from the seashore to the lowland mountains. To reach the National Park, you can take public transportation, bus, Damri, or rented car, using route of Kendari – Ranomeeto, it is about 80 km and takes about 1 hour. The best time to visit the national park is in july or august, when local people hold their traditionalceremonies.