Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre is located about 25 kilometres west of Sandakan in the state of Sabah, Malaysia. The centre is located within the Kabili-Sepilok Forest Reserve which covers an area of 4,294 hectare, much of which is virgin rainforest.
The centre opened in 1964 as the first official orangutan rehabilitation project for rescued orphaned baby orangutans from logging sites, plantations, illegal hunting or kept as pets.
Classified in the genus Pongo, orangutans are great apes native to Indonesia and Malaysia, they have proportionally long arms and short legs and their hair is reddish-brown.
Orangutans are among the most intelligent primates, the name ‘orangutan’ is derived from the Malay words orang, meaning ‘person’, and hutan, meaning ‘forest’.
During the fruit season, it is not easy to see orangutans in the park, you need to ‘invite’ them by a basket of fresh fruits.
All orangutan species are considered critically endangered. Threats to wild orangutan populations include poaching, habitat destruction because of palm oil cultivation, and the illegal pet trade.
The orphaned orangutans are trained to survive again in the wild and are released as soon as they are ready. Today around 60 to 80 orangutans are living free in the reserve.
