Borneo Adventure - Sepilok and Labuk Bay

June 20, 2016

Today we started out by visiting the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center.  It was really interesting to learn about the efforts of orangutan rehabilitation and incredibly entertaining to watch the beautiful orange primates feast on fruits like papaya (their favorite, from what we witnessed), jackfruit,  bananas, apples and oranges.

The aim of the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre is to return orphaned, injured or displaced orangutans back to the wild. Many orphans have successfully undergone the process of rehabilitation and have been released into the 4294 hectare Kabili-Sepilok Forest, a virgin jungle reserve rich in tropical rainforest and mangrove swamp. The rehabilitation process starts as soon as the orangutan is admitted to the centre with a thorough health examination, followed by a quarantine period to eliminate diseases being transmitted. Young orangutans spend their time in the ‘Nursery’ learning skills essential to jungle life, for example finding food, building nest and climbing. It was so much fun watching the little ones play and run around.  They really reminded me of children, teasing one another, play-fighting and being quite loving and social. Once ready, they are moved to the ‘Outdoor Nursery’ where freedom is increased and dependence on food and emotional support is decreased. Last but not the least, most animals achieve total independence and become integrated into the Sepilok wild orangutan population.  

We also learned that the word orangutan comes from the Malay language and means 'person of the forest' - from the words ‘orang' meaning people and ‘hutan' meaning forest.

Waiting for feeding time and reading up on some information.

Eva, spotting the first orangutan in the trees.  Anticipation was high and everyone was listening to the rustling of leaves and cracking of branches, because we were in an open jungle the orangutans could come from any side at any time.  They pretty much know and are ready for the feeding times, so as the time neared a few orangutans could be spotted sitting in the trees directly above us, and eventually they started to make their way to the platform.  It seems like they have their "highways" and routes, but for us it was all surprise, and fun to see them arriving from all directions, some swinging in the trees over our heads.  We knew that wherever we heard leaves rustling or saw trees moving, we'd soon spot an orangutan.  Altogether, we saw about six or seven orangutans of all sizes take turns feeding - on occasion when there were more than two or three, there was also some animosity and territorial behavior - it was quite entertaining to watch.  We definitely witnessed a display of varied personalities.

Feeding time.  A couple orangutans arrived early, anticipating the food that was coming their way.

The biggest orangutan feeding on the day we were in Sepilok.

Yoga pose?

As we were getting ready to leave we saw an orangutan sitting right beside the boardwalk eating bananas.  He saw us and decided to take the boardwalk and casually pass right beside us.  After moving down the boardwalk, he soon climbed back up into the trees, but it was an interesting encounter, which triggered some reflection on how much we really have in common with these intelligent animals.  We actually share 96.4% of our genetic makeup with orangutans.

Next we were off to visit the Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary. It was about a 40 min drive from Sepilok.  We had hired a taxi to drive us around for the day.  At 300 MYR a bit pricey,  but for the six of us,  the easiest way to get around. (In retrospect, we could have used the local bus system to get around to some places, but it is so difficult to find your bearings, be able to orientate yourself and feel secure in some of these foreign environments - especially on the first or second day there...but usually, by the time a few days have passed, I find we manage to "figure" things out and are much more comfortable navigating our options and utilizing local infrastructure.)

We really did not know what to expect from the Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary (in all honesty, I didn't even really know what a proboscis monkey was),  but this was a really up close and personal,  very cool experience.  The best thing about these sanctuaries is that these animals are WILD. They are not kept in an enclosed area and they are free to roam wherever,  whenever.  As guests in their world . .. we have to move out of their way,  not the other way around .

Baby monkey snuggling with mama.

Giant male monkey came to hangout with us and observe from a different vantage point.

The big male seemed to be posing for pictures..., but then he caught sight of something, yelled out and jumped away.

 We also saw several hornbills fly by an perch in some nearby trees.  These birds are huge.

The Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary is a privately owned sanctuary in the middle of a palm plantation.  It was interesting to learn that these monkeys do not like sweet fruits, they much prefer vegetables and unripe fruit, because it is not sweet.

The two military men ensuring the tourists are safe, and our taxi driver for the day.  In retrospect, we should have let them patrol and not asked for a photo.  But I think things in this area are predominantly quiet. This is just a precaution.

It was a little unnerving to have 2 armed military men supervising our excursion here, but because we were so close to the open sea (we could see the water through the bush), and in light of the recent kidnappings and other incidents occurring in the Sulu Sea (in nearby areas), it was a security measure that was welcomed.  That being said, we were happy to move on and move further west.