With orangutans, pygmy elephants, proboscis monkeys, slow lorises and much more, Sabah is a dream destination for animal lovers
It’s a place of ecological treasures, World Heritage Sites and some of the most incredible biodiversity on the planet: the Malaysian state of Sabah, northern Borneo.
Home to Malaysia’s three tallest mountains and to world-famous diving, Sabah features topography that ranges from highlands and rainforests to wetlands and oceans. And within each ecosystem lives remarkable wildlife, from the Bornean pygmy elephant to the quirky proboscis monkey. Here’s a guide to some of the fascinating wildlife you can expect to encounter.
In the Lower Kinabatangan, Central Sabah and Tabin ranges, visitors will find Borneo pygmy elephants (Elephas maximus borneensis), the smallest subspecies of Asian elephants and one of the least-understood elephant species in the world. These mammals have a docile temperament, small facial features, large ears, long tails and straight tusks.
Conservation efforts from organisations like Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary offer a safe space for the elephants to roam and feed along the riverbanks. Guests to the sanctuary have the chance to spot the sweet creatures during a river cruise at dusk or dawn.
Another creature endemic to the area is the Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus). While the Kinabatangan River, Danum Valley, Deramakot Forest Reserve and Tabin Wildlife Reserve are great locations to spot these primates in the wild (it’s estimated that there are some 11,000 Bornean orangutans), Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre in Sandakan offers visitors a protected place to see these long-haired primates up close. Set within the Kabili Sepilok Forest Reserve, the centre was established in 1964 as the world’s first facility to focus on rehabilitating orphaned orangutans.
Today, some 80 orangutans live independently in the reserve, with around 25 orphaned orangutans housed in nurseries. Orangutan DNA has a 97 per cent match with humans (the Malay word “orangutan” means “person of the forest”), and during feeding times, guests can observe the creatures’ incredible social skills and problem-solving abilities.
Adjacent to the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre is the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Center (BSBCC). Tourists cannot miss the chance to see the mysterious Borneo sun bear (Helarctos malayanus), also known as the honey bear. With tongues that span up to 10 inches long – perfect for reaching insects in tight spaces and slurping honey from beehives – this endangered mammal is the world’s smallest bear and the second-rarest bear species after the giant panda.
Sun bears are actually the least-studied species of bear in the world, a challenge that the BSBCC in Sandakan aims to solve. The centre, home to 42 of the solitary, long-tongued creatures, is the world’s only facility dedicated to caring for orphaned or formerly captive bears. At BSBCC, wildlife experts train the carnivores to develop survival skills – encouraging behaviours such as tree-climbing, nest-building and foraging – before releasing them back into their natural habitat.
During your Sabah adventure, you’re highly likely to spot the proboscis monkey (Nasalis larvatus), endemic to Bornean rainforests. Along with an unusually large nose and a pot belly, this primate sports partially webbed toes and fingers that make it an excellent swimmer and diver. When threatened by predators like the clouded leopard, proboscis monkeys will cannonball into the water from tree branches with a big splash.
This long-nosed monkey species is found along the Sugut, Kinabatangan and Segama rivers and in areas including Klias, Tangkarason, Paitan, Sandakan, Lahad Datu, Tawau Bay, Bongawan, Kota Belud and Labuk.
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Source : The Telegraph