Al-Sultan Abdullah Royal Tiger Reserve

This biodiversity hotspot safeguards vulnerable, endangered and critically endangered species, enhances local livelihoods, and contributes to Pahang’s economy through tourism and green finance.

Discovering Pahang’s Tiger Reserve

The Al-Sultan Abdullah Royal Tiger Reserve in the heart of Pahang constitutes the most important stronghold in Malaysia for the Malayan tigers, and is critical to conserving a viable population of the Malayan tigers in their natural habitat.

The Tiger Reserve covers some 1,340 square kilometres, comprising the Gunung Aais and Tekai-Tembeling forest reserves. The first of its kind in Malaysia and South East Asia, and one of the last pristine tracts of rainforest in Malaysia, it provides a secure habitat and landscape connectivity to support the natural recovery of the critically endangered Malayan tiger population and other endangered species, including the Asian elephant, Malayan tapir, Asian dhole, White-handed gibbon, Pig-tailed macaque and Dusky leaf monkey.

Essential ecosystem services and the fight against climate change

As the primary water reservoir for the Tembeling River, the Tiger Reserve plays a crucial role in supplying fresh water to the native populations and nearby communities within the region. This represents the most critical ecological benefit that the rainforest offers.

Recent modelling studies indicate that the Tiger Reserve contains the highest Above Ground Biomass when compared with other forests in Peninsular Malaysia. This distinction highlights its exceptional capacity for carbon sequestration and its substantial contribution to mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.