Semenggoh Nature Reserve

There are few places in the world with a healthier population of young orangutans than the jungles surrounding the Semenggoh Nature Reserve near Kuching. This thriving population of wild orangutans owes its success to the three-decade-old rehabilitation program at the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre, situated within the 2.6-square-mile (6.8-square-km) reserve.So many orangutans were successfully reintroduced into the surrounding forest that the habitat reached capacity, and all rehabilitation activities were moved to the Matang Wildlife Centre inside Kubah National Park. During its years of active rehabilitation, the center cared for nearly 1,000 endangered animals, with birds, mammals, and reptiles representing dozens of species.

While rehabilitation efforts have ended, visitors to the reserve can still observe some of the program’s “graduated” orangutans—now living in the surrounding forest reserve with their offspring in tow—during twice daily supplemental feedings. Since the orangutans are free to roam, there’s no guaranteed sightings, but many of them stop by the center regularly for a free meal of fruit, eggs, and sometimes hidden vitamins.

Two trails take visitors through the primary rainforest, where it’s sometimes possible to spot rescued gibbons, crocodiles, river terrapins, or porcupines from a safe distance.