Wild Borneo - Garbutte & Prudente

LOCATION Edward Boyle Library

AUTHOR Garbutt, Nick.
TITLE Wild Borneo : the wildlife and scenery of Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei
and Kalimantan / text by Nick Garbutt ; photography by Nick
Garbuut and J. Cede Prudente.
IMPRINT London : New Holland Publishers, 2006.

DESCRIPT 176 p. ; 31 cm.
ISBN/ISSN 1845373782.
ADD AUTHOR World Wildlife Fund. World Wildlife Malaysia.

1 > Edward Boyle "Large" General Biology K-55 GAR

Synopsis

"Few places conjure images of darkness and mystery like Borneo; the island has long nourished the imagination of naturalists and travellers alike. From the heights of Mount Kinabalu to pristine coral-fringed islands off-shore with vast tracts of lush rainforest between, this diversity of habitats supports a tremendous array of endearing and intriguing species. There are mammals, lizards, snakes and frogs that fly, fish that 'walk' on mud, monkeys that dive and swim, plants that eat insects and flowers the size of dustbin lids. Illustrated throughout with over 200 stunning photographs, "Wild Borneo" is a celebration of - and a showcase for - the splendour and diversity of the island's natural history. Written in an engaging, educational and thought-provoking style, it also describes the ongoing efforts of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) to protect and nurture Borneo's wealth of natural resources, and is published in association with this world-renowned organization." -amazon.co.uk

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http://www.borneobooks.com/public/come.asp

"For our backpacking friends we are setting up a scheme to buy back paperbacks in good condition and then sell these on to others (based on similar schemes in Bangkok and elsewhere). We suspect that we are the 1st company in Borneo to offer this. We also have a collection of out of print science and literature books, some over 250 years old."

"Borneo Books Services announces the opening of a new big bookstore on the 2nd floor of the Wisma Merdeka (the shopping mall in which our existing small store is to be found). This new store sells a wider range of books, including 2nd hand and rare books. It is designed on the 'Home in the City' concept, with:

-an information point for visitors (where to stay, what to do, hard to find reports on local science and conservation, scientific reprints for photocopying - a real mine of info). Good music while you browse

-internet access for laptops, phone recharging, tea & coffee, seating area, lockable cupboards to put things while you shop. Fax facility and small cafes close by. The idea is to provide a home from home for our 'outstation' colleagues when they stagger back to KK, and for our out of state and overseas visitors. Sit down and have a rational conversation with someone you have never met before! It's fun! (All the most interesting people in town eventually turn up in our bookshops)

The concept is being steadily widened and deepened. We're quite excited by the response so far. Give us some suggestions (email to stephensutton at borneobooks.com)



http://www.borneobooks.com/onlinestored/default.asp

Soil compaction study - Dirk Ansorge (c) Farmers Weekly

Cut compaction and save money at the same time
30/08/2006 09:00:00
Farmers Weekly

Tracked combines produce significantly less soil compaction than wheeled machines, according to recent research.

The study, conducted at Cranfield University, Silsoe, has shown that tracks can reduce subsoil cultivation requirements and lead to savings of about £4/ha (£1.60/acre).

Aside from the reduced ground pressure exerted by tracks, they also bring an improved climbing ability and reduced transport width.

Conducted under test conditions in a soil bin and out in the field, German PhD student Dirk Ansorge's trials also investigated how important rear axle rubber choice was.

It was found that fitting wide, 700mm rear tyres in combination with tracks had little significant influence on soil compaction.

To explain this, he describes the tracks as leaving a shallow, flat-section compacted "roadway" on the top layers of soil.

As the rear tyres follow on this, it mimics the effect of the tracks thus spreading the pressure across the soil profile.

Mr Ansorage advises combine buyers to choose a 500/85 rear tyre with tracks.

"A taller tyre can be more beneficial than a wider tyre," he says.

"Compaction is similar, but rolling resistance and transport width is reduced."

But it's not all roses.

A Lexion on tracks suffers the same problems as any twin-track machine - in headland turns it has a tendency to scuff and create a zone of horizontal smearing.

Although this is pulled out by following cultivation passes, it is no good for direct-drilling, at least on the headlands.

Costs and savings

So tracks can limit compaction, but how much do they cost?

The straight answer to that is between £16,000 and £20,000 for Claas' TerraTracs and about £30,000 for John Deere's equivalent.

Claas pitches this as £2.50/ha (£1/acre) based on a combine covering 800ha a year (2000 acres a year), with the cost written off over five years and allowing for a resale premium of at least £6000.

Because compaction created by a tracked combine reaches far less deeply into the soil profile than a wheeled machine, Mr Ansorge has calculated that subsequent subsoiler passes can be conducted shallower and require less draft force.

Working 450mm (18in) deep behind a wheeled combine required 241hp at a cost of £6/ha (£2.40/acre) - just to remove the combine wheelings and not tramlines.

Running at 350mm (14in) in the less compacted soil behind the tracked machine, 88hp was required at a cost of £2/ha (80p/acre).

Best tyre option

For those unconvinced by the benefits of tracks the study throws up some more interesting findings about tyre choice.

A 900mm wide front tyre was best able limit ground pressure by spreading the load over a greater area.

However, 800/65 tyres were not significantly better than 680/85s - their narrower width is offset by their increased height, which provides a greater contact area.

The best combination in limiting compaction is 900mm wide tyres up front with 700s on the tail.

Where width is an issue, 680s should be used with tall, wide rubber on the rear.

A full report is available from www.claas.com

fwmachinery@rbi.co.uk

by Nick Fone (c)