Borneo's Orangutans

There are surely few more endearing creatures in the world than that gentle rainforest giant, the Orangutan. A close affinity with Homo sapiens is obvious, and gazing into the solemn inscrutable features of an old male, or observing the impish behaviour of youngsters at play, it is easy to appreciate their evolutionary links with mankind. Sadly, in its native Sumatra and Borneo, the ‘old man of the forest’ has been subjected to relentless pressures which have reduced its world population by as much as 50% during the last 10 years to a meagre 25,000 animals. Hunting for meat and the demands of the pet trade have been contributory factors, but more significant has been the large-scale clearance of forest throughout the region, leaving dwindling habitats for the apes. The principal focus of our holiday will be Orangutans but, as we visit some of the most magnificent rainforests on Earth, we will also be entering the domain of many wonderful birds, mammals and insects, including another threatened primate, the bizarre Proboscis Monkey.

Our tour begins with a flight to Kuala Lumpur, the modern capital of Malaysia. From here we quickly progress by air to Kota Kinabalu, in Sabah, and thence to Sandakan where we drive a short distance to the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre. This extraordinary place was established in 1964 to help once captive or displaced Orangutans learn to fend for themselves back in the wild and, during our time at Sepilok, we will see every facet of the work carried out there. Everyone will undoubtedly fall in love with the wide-eyed and bewildered little orphan Orangs, which are regularly taken into care and exemplify the scale of the problem faced by the Centre, as adult apes are ruthlessly slain to facilitate the felling of more trees. Returning to Sandakan we take a boat along the Kinabatangan River to spend three nights at the Sukau Rainforest Lodge. As we explore the river tributaries and hidden oxbow lakes we will be hoping to encounter our first wild Orangutans foraging in the riverine forest. We will also no doubt be observed by troupes of potbellied and comic-looking Proboscis Monkeys, another animal threatened by forest clearances. After making the initial acquaintance of Sabah’s stunning birdlife around Sepilok, we now have the opportunity to consolidate this experience as we meet hornbills, pittas, kingfishers, broadbills, woodpeckers and many other representatives of the very extensive avifauna. The rare Storm’s Stork is occasionally recorded at Sukau, and we also have a chance of glimpsing Asian Elephants at the river edge.

An excursion to the legendary Gomantong Caves will bring alive scenes familiar from TV documentaries as numerous swiftlets dash into these vast cathedral-like cave systems, their nests forming the unlikely basis of ‘bird’s-nest soup’, and at dusk there is a spectacular exodus of several million bats which emerge like plumes of smoke to fan out over the surrounding ocean of trees. We conclude our tour at the Danum Valley Conservation Area, where we spend three nights at the superbly situated Borneo Rainforest Lodge. The Danum Valley contains one of the last remaining tracts of primary lowland dipterocarp forest and is renowned as one of the very best natural history sites in south-east Asia. We have a very good chance of finding more Orangutans in the forests here, indeed all 10 species of primate found in Sabah have been recorded in the Danum Valley, together with a quite remarkable selection of mammals, birds and reptiles. As is usual in such forest habitats, many of the inhabitants are difficult to find or nocturnal in habits but we are assured many exciting observations as we explore this wonderful habitat.

The prolific birdlife includes a number of pheasants, eight species of hornbill, the endemic Bornean Bristlehead and a whole host of other Asian specialities. Mention should also be made of the many exotic butterflies which occur in a diversity of colour and form to enhance every day in the field. At the end of this memorable tour we will have learnt much about Orangutans and hopefully enjoyed the rare privilege of watching them in the wild.