Semenggoh Nature Reserve

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Summary

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• Northwest Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus) are present in Semenggoh Nature Reserve.
• 27 individuals occur in the site.
• The orangutan population trend is stable.
• The site has a total size of 6.53 km².
• Key threats to orangutans are habitat encroachment and hunting.
• Conservation activities have focused on orangutan rehabilitation, ecotourism, raising awareness and education.
• Semi-wild orangutans inhabit the site.

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  © Isabel Ordaz-Nemeth
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  © Isabel Ordaz-Nemeth
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  © Isabel Ordaz-Nemeth
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  © Isabel Ordaz-Nemeth

Site characteristics

The nature reserve is located in the Malaysian state of Sarawak, in the northwest of Borneo. The site was first designated as a Forest Reserve in 1920 and subsequently used as a botanical research plot (SFC). In 1975 the Semenggoh Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre was established as part of the reserve, with the aim of rehabilitating orangutans and other wildlife species in Sarawak (SFC). Semenggoh Forest Reserve was declared as Semenggoh Nature Reserve in 2000. In the same year, the Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre was renamed as the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre. The name is derived from the Semenggoh river, which runs through the reserve. Semi-wild orangutans inhabit the site; they spend most of the time roaming freely in the forest, but occasionally visit feeding platforms that are provisioned daily. In addition to orangutans, the site is also home to giant squirrels, pygmy squirrels, gibbons and a wide variety of birds (SFC).

Table 1. Basic site information for Semenggoh Nature Reserve

Area	6.53 km²
Coordinates	1.392031, 110.299506
Designation	Nature Reserve
Habitat types	Subtropical/tropical moist lowland forest

IUCN habitat categories Site designations

Ape status

Table 2. Ape population estimates in Semenggoh Nature Reserve

Species	Year	Abundance estimate (95% CI)	Density estimate [ind./ km²] (95% CI)	Encounter rate (nests/km)	Area	Method	Source	Comments	A.P.E.S. database ID
Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus	2016	27			Semenggoh Nature Reserve	Full count	Tisen & Silang 2016
Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus	2023	29			Semenggoh Nature Reserve	Full count	Azizi Bin Ahmad Zaini pers. comm. 2023

Threats

Table 3. Threats to apes in Semenggoh Nature Reserve

Category	Specific threats	Threat level	Quantified severity	Description	Year of threat
1. Residential & commercial development	1.1 Housing & urban areas	High		Habitat encroachment due to housing developments around the site, which also increase forest fragmentation (Ali 2021).	Ongoing (2021)
2. Agriculture & aquaculture		Unknown
3. Energy production & mining		Unknown
4. Transportation & service corridors		Unknown
5. Biological resource use	5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals	Present, but threat severity unknown		Poaching (Ali 2021).	Ongoing (2021)
6. Human intrusion & disturbance		Unknown
7. Natural system modifications		Unknown
8. Invasive & other problematic species, genes, diseases	8.5 Viral/prion-induced diseases	Present, but threat severity unknown		Risk of infection due to human presence, including Covid-19 (Ali 2021), and pulmonary diseases (Azizi Bin Ahmad Zaini pers. comm. 2023).	Ongoing (2023)
9. Pollution		Unknown
10. Geological Events		Absent
11. Climate change & severe weather		Unknown
12. Other options		Absent

IUCN Threats list

Conservation activities

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  © Isabel Ordaz-Nemeth
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  © Isabel Ordaz-Nemeth
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  © Isabel Ordaz-Nemeth

A rehabilitation program for orangutans was created at the site in 1975. By 1990 there was a growing population of semi-wild orangutans. Due to the small size of the site, the rehabilitation program was moved to Matang Wildlife Centre in 1998. Since the year 2000, Semenggoh Wildlife Centre has been used for the quarantine and transit of wildlife before being sent to Matang. The wildlife centre is still active in conservation awareness and education for schools and the public (Tisen & Silang 2016).

Table 4. Conservation activities in Semenggoh Nature Reserve

Category	Specific activity	Description	Year of activity
1. Residential & commercial development	Not reported
2. Agriculture & aquaculture	Not reported
3. Energy production & mining	Not reported
4. Transportation & service corridors	Not reported
5. Biological resource use	5.6. Conduct regular anti-poaching patrols	Regular patrols to monitor orangutans, secure the reserve from trespassing and poaching (Azizi Bin Ahmad Zaini pers. comm. 2023).	Ongoing (2023)
6. Human intrusion & disturbance	Not reported
7. Natural system modifications	Not reported
8. Invasive & other problematic species, genes, diseases	8.9. Limit time that researchers/tourists are allowed to spend with habituated animals	Tourists are only allowed to watch orangutans twice a day for two hours each time (Azizi Bin Ahmad Zaini pers. comm. 2023).	Ongoing (2023)
8. Invasive & other problematic species, genes, diseases	8.16. Treat sick/injured animals	In case of illness/injury, a veterinarian is available (Azizi Bin Ahmad Zaini pers. comm. 2023).	Ongoing (2023)
9. Pollution	Not reported
10. Education & Awareness	10.1. Educate local communities about primates and sustainable use	The wildlife centre is active in nature and wildlife awareness programs for schools and the public (SFC).	Ongoing
11. Habitat Protection	11.2. Legally protect primate habitat	The site is a nature reserve.	Ongoing (2023)
12. Species Management	12.24. Rehabilitate injured/orphaned primates	Care of orangutans that have been injured in the forests, orphaned or kept illegally as pets. After rehabilitation, the animals would eventually be released back into the wild (SFC).	1975-2000
12. Species Management	Other	Planting of fruit trees for orangutans (Azizi Bin Ahmad Zaini pers. comm. 2023).	Ongoing (2023)
	12.6. Regularly and continuously provide supplementary food to primates	Supplementary food is provided everyday twice a day (Azizi Bin Ahmad Zaini pers. comm. 2023).	Ongoing (2023)
13. Livelihood; Economic & Other Incentives	13.4. Run tourist projects and ensure permanent human presence at site	The site is open to tourists and offers ecotourism activities (SFC).	Ongoing (2023)

Conservation activities list (Junker et al. 2017)

Challenges

© Isabel Ordaz-Nemeth

Ecotourism at the site brings both benefits and challenges; the main challenge is to ensure large numbers of tourists stay at the permitted distance from orangutans in the occasions when orangutans appear by the road in the reserve and not on the feeding platforms (Azizi Bin Ahmad Zaini pers. comm. 2023).

Table 5. Challenges reported for Semenggoh Nature Reserve

Challenge	Source
Ensure tourists follow the rules when visiting.	(Azizi Bin Ahmad Zaini pers. comm. 2023).

Research activities

A few studies have been conducted on the ecology and behavior of orangutans at Semenggoh, e.g., Wesley (2001) on the activity budget on orangutans, and Mohd-Rahmantullah (2001) on nesting ecology.

Documented behaviours

Table 6. Ape behaviors reported for Semenggoh Nature Reserve

Behavior	Source
Not reported

External links

Semenggoh Nature Reserve]

References

Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC). (n.d.). Semenggoh Nature Reserve. Online: https://semenggoh.my/about-us/
Tisen, O.B. & Silang, S. (2016). Orangutan Conservation in Sarawak, Malaysia.15th National Peat Congress, 2016; Sarawak Forestry Corporation, Sarawak, Malaysia. Abstract No: A-394.
Mohd-Rahmatullah, M. H. (2001). Nesting ecology of semi-wild orangutans at Semenggoh Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre, Sarawak. Thesis (undergraduate), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, Kota Samarahan.
Wesley, M. N. (2001). Activity budget of mother-infant pairs of semi-wild orangutans at Semenggoh Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre. Thesis (undergraduate) Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, Kota Samarahan.
Ali, N.S. (2021, Oct., 2). Not just survival of the fittest for orangutans in Sarawak reserve. Malaysia Now. https://www.malaysianow.com/news/2021/10/02/not-just-survival-of-the-fittest-for-orangutans-in-sarawak-reserve/

Page completed by: Muhammad Azizi Bin Ahmad Zaini & A.P.E.S. Wiki team Date: 14/09/2023