Visit Malaysia Year 2014 - Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary

To support Visit Malaysia Year 2014, I will be writing on various tourist attractions in the country. Let us work together to bring in tourists to our lovely Malaysia.

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It's already halfway through 2014 which means I have already written almost 26 entries on places to go in Malaysia. Hurray me! Granted, the entries on the past two months were rather insipid and short but what to do? I'm currently in Warsaw and I can't get to explore around the country. But, I will be back soon and there will be better written posts then.

A lot of walking in Labuk Bay sanctuary

As of now, let us shift our focus back to Sabah. Or, to be precise, Sandakan. This town is well known for its two main attractions. One of them is the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre (which was already featured here) while the other being Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary.

Proboscis monkeys

Proboscis monkeys, which coincidentally is the mascot for the Visit Malaysia Year 2014, are endangered animals. Also known as the long-nosed monkeys, this species of primates can only be found in the Borneo island. Hence, when you are in Sabah, chances are you will see at least one of them if you visit the national parks.

You can also go to the sanctuary, located about an hour from Sandakan town, for an up close and personal time with them. A former palm tree plantation (and still a functioning one), this piece of estate was turned into an animal shelter when the owner of the plantation witnessed the destruction of their habitats when he was deforesting the land and decided to keep a part of it remained untouched. 

Watching them so close can be such a worthwhile and educative experience. We were told that it is the males that are with the long noses and that the noses are what attract the females. The longer the noses they have, the more females will swoon over and fall head over heels for them. 

They usually live in a group, with one male and his many wives. Other male monkeys are not allowed in the group as the leader often fears that he will be ousted by the other competitors. Even their own sons will be kicked out of the tribes once reached maturity. 

They usually come in a group

Besides proboscis monkeys, you can also find other types of animals here such as silver-leaf monkeys, hornbills, and so on. The silver-leaf monkeys are really adorable and they usually hang around the platforms so you get to interact with them. 

Hornbill

Silver leaf monkeys

They really like her as they kept dangling around her hair

Be sure to make it in time for the feeding time which is at 9.30 am and 2.30 pm for Platform A and 11.30 am and 4.30 pm for Platform B. You would want to attend both as the locations of these two platforms are different. 

During feeding time, they would all come out from their habitats

Info Box

Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary,
Off Jalan Labuk, Sandakan.
Open daily.
Entrance fee is at RM 15 for adult (RM 60 for non-Malaysian) and RM 5 for child (RM 30 for non-Malaysian). There is a RM 10 charge on cameras.
For more information, you can go to Sabah Tourism Board here.