Borneo Part Two: Orangutans of Sepilok

Sepilok
June, 2018


Sepilok was our first stop on the 12 day wildlife adventure tour we booked through Wild Planet Adventures tour company.  With our guide, Dixon, we visited the Sepilok Orangutan Rehab Center, the Sun Bear rehab center and the Rainforest Discovery park.  We stayed at the Sepilok Nature Resort for one night and enjoyed several visits by Orangutans to the trees above the resort.

The Orangutan Rehab Center was a great introduction to the plight of this endangered species on the island of Borneo.  With 85% of the island's rainforests gone, the wild orangutan population is limited to relatively small reserves that we would visit later.  The orangutans in this center were rescued and they are trained over a period of years to return to the wild life in the forest.

Young Orangutan at the nursery area at Sepilok

We also got to tour the Rainforest Discovery Center and get a great overview of the plants and wildlife we hoped to see on our tour.  It was here that I got started on what was to become a productive birdwatching experience over the next two weeks, totaling more than 90 bird species identified.  Meeting a young avid birder from the Bay area was fun and really helpful and motivating.

Our private guided night walk was a highlight.  We got to see flying squirrels leaping between trees and were followed on our walk by a group of tame orangutans before they climbed into the trees for the evening.

Sun Bears are only found in Borneo.

Orangutans walking around the Center during our night hike.

My birding friend.

Plants of the rainforest.

Tree Lizard

Leaves "Hugging" a tree.