Malaysia Vegetation

Malaysia, a member of the Commonwealth, represents the political marriage of territories that
were formerly under British rule. When it was established on Sept. 16, 1963, Malaysia
comprised the territories of Malaya (now Peninsular Malaysia), the island of Singapore, and the
colonies of Sarawak and Sabah in northern Borneo. In August 1965 Singapore seceded from the
federation and became an independent republic.
Peninsular Malaysia occupies most of the southern segment of the Malay Peninsula. To the north
it is bordered by Thailand, with which it shares a land boundary of some 300 miles (480 km). To
the south, at the tip of the peninsula, is the island republic ofSingapore, with which Malaysia is
connected by a causeway and also by a separate bridge. To the southwest, across the Strait of
Malacca, is the island of Sumatra inIndonesia. East Malaysia consists of the countrys two largest
states, Sarawak andSabah, and is separated from Peninsular Malaysia by some 400 miles (640
km) of theSouth China Sea. These two states occupy roughly the northern fourth of the large
island of Borneo and share a land boundary with the Indonesian portion (Kalimantan) of the
island to the south. Surrounded by Sarawak is a small coastal enclave containing the sultanate
of Brunei. Of the countrys total area, which includes about 265 square miles (690 square km) of
inland water, Peninsular Malaysia constitutes about 40 percent and East Malaysia about 60
percent.

Plant and animal life

The characteristic vegetation of Malaysia is dense evergreen rainforest. Rainforest still
covers more than two-fifths of the peninsula and some two-thirds of Sarawak and
Sabah; another fraction of the country is under swamp forest. Soil type, location, and
elevation produce distinctive vegetation zones: tidal swamp forest on the coast,
freshwater- and peat-swamp forest on the ill-drained parts of the coastal plains, lowland
rainforest on the well-drained parts of the coastal plains and foothills up to an elevation
of about 2,000 feet (600 metres), and submontane and montane forest (also
called cloud forest) in higher areas. The highly leached and sandy soils of parts of
central Sarawak and the coast support an open heathlike forest commonly
calledkerangas forest.
The flora of the Malaysian rainforest is among the richest in the world. There are several
thousand species of vascular plants, including more than 2,000 species of trees, as well
as the parasitic monster flower (Rafflesia arnoldii of the Rafflesiaceaefamily), which
bears the worlds largest known flower, measuring nearly 3 feet (1 metre) in diameter.
Numerous varieties of the carnivorous pitcher plants (Nepenthes) also grow in

Malaysias forests. One acre (0.4 hectare) of forest may have as many as 100 different
species of trees, as well as shrubs, herbs, lianas (creepers), andepiphytes (nonparasitic
Physical features
Malaysia is located on the Sunda shelf, and is tectonically inactive. The oldest rocks in the
country date from 540 million years ago, and are mostly sedimentary. The most common form of
rock is limestone, formed during the Paleozoic Era. Limestone laid down in East Malaysia
during the Tertiary period has since eroded, and such erosion forms basins of sedimentary rocks
rich in oil and natural gas. The mountain ranges in Malaysia were formed through orogenesis
beginning in the Mesozoic era.[3] he total land area of Malaysia is 329,847 square kilometres
(127,350 sq mi), the 67th largest country in the world in terms of area.[6] It is the only country to
contain land on both mainland Asia and the Malay archipelago.[3] Peninsular Malaysia makes up
132,090 square kilometres (51,000 sq mi),[1] or 39.7% of the country's land area, while East
Malaysia covers 198,847 square kilometres (76,780 sq mi), or 60.3%. From the total land area,
1,200 square kilometres (460 sq mi) or 0.37% is made up of water such as lakes, rivers, or other
internal waters. Malaysia has a total coastline of 4,675 kilometres (2,905 mi), and Peninsular
Malaysia has 2,068 kilometres (1,285 mi), while East Malaysia has 2,607 kilometres (1,620 mi)
of coastline.[6]

Climate
Both peninsular and insular Malaysia lie in the same tropical latitudes and are affected
by similar airstreams. They have high temperatures and humidities, heavy rainfall, and a
climatic year patterned around the northeast and southwestmonsoons. The four
seasons of the climatic year are the northeast monsoon (from November or December
until March), the first intermonsoonal period (March to April or May), the southwest
monsoon (May or June to September or early October), and the second intermonsoonal
period (October to November). The onset and retreat of the two monsoons are not
sharply defined. Although Malaysia has an equatorial climate, the narrowness and
topographic configuration of each portioncentral mountainous cores with flat, flanking
coastal plainsfacilitate the inland penetration of maritime climatic influences. The
monsoons further modify the climate. The northeast monsoon brings heavy rain and
rough seas to the exposed coasts of southwestern Sarawak and northern and

northeastern Sabah, and it sometimes causes flooding in the eastern part of the
peninsula. The southwest monsoon affects mainly the southwestern coastal belt of

Human Life
The people of Malaysia are unevenly distributed between Peninsular and East
Malaysia, with the vast majority living in Peninsular Malaysia. The population shows
great ethnic, linguistic, cultural, and religious diversity. Within this diversity, a significant
distinction is made for administrative purposes between indigenous peoples (including
Malays), collectively called bumiputra, and immigrant populations (primarily Chinese
and South Asians), called non-bumiputra.
The Malay Peninsula and the northern coast of Borneo, both situated at the nexus of
one of the major maritime trade routes of the world, have long been the meeting place
of peoples from other parts of Asia. As a result, the population of Malaysia, like that
of Southeast Asia as a whole, shows great ethnographic complexity. Helping to unite
this diversity of peoples is the national language, a standardized form of Malay, officially
called Bahasa Malaysia (formerly Bahasa Melayu). It is spoken to some degree by most
communities, and it is the main medium of instruction in public primary and secondary
schools.

Tourism
The Petronas Towers, also known as the Petronas Twin Towers (Malay: Menara Petronas,
or Menara Berkembar Petronas), are twin skyscrapers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. According to the
Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH)'s official definition and ranking, they were
the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 and remain the tallest twin towers in the world
replacing the World Trade Center in New York. The buildings are a landmark of Kuala Lumpur, along
with nearby Kuala Lumpur Tower. The towers were designed by Argentine American architect Csar
Pelli. They chose a distinctive postmodern style to create a 21st-century icon for Kuala Lumpur.
Planning on the Petronas Towers started on 1 January 1992 and included rigorous tests and
simulations of wind and structural loads on the design. Seven years of construction followed,
beginning on 1 March 1993 with the excavation, which involved moving 500 truckloads of earth
every night to dig down 30 metres (98 ft) below the surface.

The construction of the superstructure commenced on 1 April 1994. Interiors with furniture were
completed on 1 January 1996, the spires of Tower 1 and Tower 2 were completed on 1 March 1996,
and the first batch of Petronas personnel moved into the building on 1 January 1997. The building
was officially opened by the Prime Minister of Malaysia's Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad on 1 August
1999.[6] The twin towers were built on the site of Kuala Lumpur's race track. [7] Test boreholes found
that the original construction site effectively sat on the edge of a cliff. One half of the site was
decayed limestone while the other half was soft rock. The entire site was moved 61 metres (200 ft)
Kuala Lumpur (/kwllmpr/ or /-p/; Malaysian pronunciation: [kwal lumpr]),[7] is the federal
capital and most populous city in Malaysia.[8] The city covers an area of 243 km2 (94 sq mi) and has
an estimated population of 1.6 million as of 2010.[8]Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang
Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 6.9 million as of 2010.[4][5] It is among the fastest growing
metropolitan regions in the country, in terms of population and economy.
Kuala Lumpur is the seat of the Parliament of Malaysia. The city was once home to the executive
and judicial branches of the federal government, but they were moved to Putrajaya in early 1999.
[9]

Some sections of the judiciary still remain in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur. The official residence

of the Malaysian King, the Istana Negara, is also situated in Kuala Lumpur. Rated as an alpha world
city, Kuala Lumpur is the cultural, financial and economic centre of Malaysia due to its position as
the capital as well as being a key city. Kuala Lumpur was ranked 48th among global cities
by Foreign Policy's 2010 Global Cities Index[10] and was ranked 67th among global cities for
economic and social innovation by the 2thinknow Innovation Cities Index in 2010.[11]
Kuala Lumpur is defined within the borders of the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur and is one of
three Malaysian Federal Territories.[12] It is an enclave within the state of Selangor, on the central
west coast of Peninsular Malaysia.[13]

Putrajaya is a planned city, 25 km south of Kuala Lumpur, that serves as the federal administrative
centre of Malaysia. The seat of government was shifted in 1999 from Kuala Lumpur to Putrajaya,
due to overcrowding and congestion in the Kuala Lumpur area. Nevertheless, Kuala
Lumpur remains Malaysia's national capital, being the seat of the King and Parliament, as well as
the country's commercial and financial centre. Putrajaya was the brainchild of former Prime
Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohammad. In 2001, Putrajaya became Malaysia's third Federal
Territory after Kuala Lumpur and Labuan.
Named after the first Malaysian Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra, the city is within
the Multimedia Super Corridor, beside the recently developed Cyberjaya. In Sanskrit, "putra" means

"prince" or "male child", and "jaya" means "success" or "victory". The development of Putrajaya
started in early 1990s, and today major landmarks have been completed and the population is
expected to grow in the near future.
Putrajaya, which was originally Prang Besar () , was found in 1918 as Air Hitamby
the British. Originally found with a land area of 800 acres (3.2 km2), it later expanded to 8,000 acres
(32 km2), and merged with surrounding estates, including Estet Raja Alang, Estet Galloway and
Estet Bukit Prang. The vision to have a new Federal Government Administrative Centre to replace
Kuala Lumpur as the administrative capital emerged in the late 1980s, during the tenure of
Malaysia's 4th Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Bin Mohamad. The new city was proposed to be located
between Kuala Lumpur and the new KL International Airport (KLIA).