“I don’t want to see the proboscis monkeys” opined my life partner. “They’re ugly!” As unique to Borneo as the orangutans the quirky proboscis monkeys in habit the coastal mangroves while the orangutans “rule” the jungle. Sadly both of these species are threatened by habitat destruction as poor Malay farmers fell the local vegetation and plant palm oil crops. The cheap and plentiful palm oil is sold to the west and appears in everything from foods to cosmetics. When we buy these products we are contributing to the demise of these apes.
Labuk bay is a half hour taxi ride away from Sepilok and on a fine, almost sunny morning we head off to visit the proboscis monkey sanctuary. The so called sanctuary is only partly what it claims to be. As we drive past the entrance gates to the feeding platforms we drive through kilometers upon kilometers of palm oil plantation amazingly resilient as it is in a wet swamp land. Walking to the platform we get a chance to appreciate the mangroves, the mud, the tangle of exposed roots, trapdoor crabs and mudskippers flitting across the mud. As we get to a more open area we see our first proboscis monkey a younger male sitting nonchalantly on the railing and unperturbed by our presence. “She who must be obeyed” is immediately entranced.
Over time more and more venture out of the mangrove forest, mature males mothers with infants. When the food arrives they jostle and bicker amongst themselves. The alpha male with the longest and most protruberant nose growls at those who antagonise him. We are immersed in the tableaux and are thoroughly fulfilled.
Hot and sweaty Suzanne decides to join in the outdoor shower action.
The evening is spent on a firefly cruise. We start out in the late afternoon on a motorised longboat cruising the rivers of the mangroves. Starting in a small tributary the river quickly opens up into a boad expanse of muddy brown water. All around is thick mangrove vegetation. We are alone with the hum of the motor and chirping of crickets as our company. We spot macaques and proboscis monkeys high up in the overhanging canopy. Their is a brief stop at sunset island but the dense cloud precudes any sunset views. Finally as the darkness dominates the light we see our first flicker of light, then another and soon the trees look like Christmas trees with the firefly bioluminescence lighting. It is magical and a great end to our day.
The next morning after breakfast we went back to our cabin and I was sitting at the desk on my laptop. A massive loud bone shattering thud on our roof breaks the silence and I look out through the windows across our balcony and come face to face with a 1 metre tall orangutan hanging off the branches. For a few seconds our eyes lock and I am paralysed with amazement. As I recover my senses and look to grab a camera or phone to record the encounter he catapults himself further into the canopy and we are left with the sounds and vision of branches moving under his weight and I am left with the image of his face permanently etched in my memory.