Last Updated On : Sunday, 27 November, 2016 01:50:12 PM
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Lok Kawi Wildlife Park
15-25 km from Kota Kinabalu City (about 30
minutes)
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Malayan Tiger
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Playful Otters and
Gibbons Observing the playful otters somersaulting
in the water and the gibbons showing off their loud, elaborate
voices are fascinating... Smooth Otters are cute animal.
The zoo keepers feed them with small fish. When fishes are throw to them, they will just
rush to the food.
Otters communicates by shrill, yelping calls and whistles. |
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Animal Show |
After the Animal Show, the visitors has a chance to approach the stage to have a close look and take photographs of the animals and ask question to the host about animals. Photo below right : Great to be close to nature - After the show the host of the animal show let the young visitors to have a gentle touch of a 4 months baby snake. |
Lok Kawi Wildlife Park was open to
public on the 17th February 2007. A Wildlife Park worth a visit for
the animals of Borneo that one might otherwise not get to see in
real nature. Lok Kawi Wildlife Park has a good collection of Borneo
wildlife and provided decent facilities for these animals. The
management also involved in conservation and education. It is located along the Penampang-Papar old road about 25 kilometers from Kota Kinabalu, the Wildlife Park is a combination of a zoo and a botanical garden. Sprawled over 280 acres of land, it is developed and managed jointly by the Sabah Wildlife Department and Forestry Department. Lok Kawi Wildlife Park can be
easily accessible by either the old Penampang-Papar road via
Donggongon town or the Putatan-Papar road. The Park was formally a rubber plantation that has reverted to a secondary green jungle. It costs about RM2millions a year to maintain this first wildlife park (Zoo) in Sabah. The Wildlife Park's main aims are
to; The bird aviary and botanical garden especially has a jungle-like feel to it. For those who don’t have the time for a real trip into the jungle, the zoo is a convenient place to see the wildlife of Borneo such rare animals like the Sumatran Rhinoceros and Bornean Clouded Leopard, which would otherwise be very difficult to spot in the wild. Animals that are not from Borneo include the zebras, ankoli cattle, capuchin monkeys, ring-tailed lemurs and tigers. In the mean time, visitors are
still welcomed to see the orangutan ‘Marsha’ and her friends. Be
amused by their antics during the daily exhibition which is to take
place at the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park Amphitheater (situated opposite
the cafeteria) from 11.15am and 3.30pm.
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![]() Photo Above : Administrative Building of Lok Kawi Wildlife Park Among the facilities at the park are the administrative building, visitor centre, car parks, public toilets and food stalls. |
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The Proboscis Monkeys has their own enclosure with a flowing
stream of water and enough branches to climb around A group of Proboscis Monkeys usually consist of one alpha male and several females. Proboscis Monkeys are distinctive, of their huge noses. There is apparently no scientific explanation for these bulbous noses. Theory suggests females are attracted to the biggest nose and thus, the alpha males usually has the biggest. Noses. The females are smaller in size and have small noses. They walk upright on ground when they’re not on the trees. The nose for young proboscis monkey is dark color. The color changes as they grow older. |
Three major habitat zones :
1) the forest canopy zone - orang- utans, bats, snakes and eagles 2) the forest floor zone - sun bears and elephants 3) the water edge zone -
Gibbons, turtles, crocodiles,
proboscis monkeys and snakes The aviary is a much more animated section with the sound of mynahs
greeting visitors with a simple hello. Other birds at the aviary
include hornbills, pigeons, egrets, parrots and eagles. It is both
entertaining and educational to watch the antics of the orang- utans
and the pygmy elephants. |
The children's section of the zoo features pygmy elephants, ponies
and goats among others. Children can enjoy elephant rides daily from
10.00 am to 11.00 am and from 3.30 pm till 4.30 pm.
This Park is a great place where children enjoy elephants ride. |
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The elephants are a hit with children. The park’s biggest attraction for the children is the Elephant rides at Rm 5 per ride of 2 minutes. |
As we walk alone the trial a crowd gather around the elephant enclosure. We headed over to see what is the elephant enclosures. The elephants are not Borneo Pygmy Elephants . But they are the smaller Asian elephant variety. |
Ankole Cattle Ankole Cattle have large, distinctive, almost over-sized horns. The cattle have for centuries been an intricate part of African culture and were used as a source of food, currency for trading and status. The king of each tribe would often own the cattle with the longest horns, and these were considered sacred. Able to thrive in the excruciating heat of Africa, the cattle have adapted to survive. Part of their ability to withstand great temperature in arid environments, lies in the big horns, which are honey-combed with blood vessels. The blood flows into the horns where it’s cooled by moving air, before flowing back into the animal’s body thus reducing body temperature. The horns can grow up to 12 feet, measured from tip to tip.
Ankole Cattle They are also known as watussi cattle as they are kept by an East African tribe of that name. Ankole Cattle are a purely domestic breed and should not confused with wild species such as buffalo and bison. |
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Male Ankole have shorter horns that tend to face forward, and they are larger and more heavily built than the females. Ankole Cattle's spend their day grazing, accompanied by a herd and at night they put into a kraal (corral) for protection against lion. Ankole cattle give birth to one young after 280 days gestation period. They reach sexual maturity at around 2 – 2.5 years and can live as long as 20 years. Their mains food is grass and body weight can reach between 200 — 360 kg. Since their daily temperatures range from 0° C to 48 °C, they tolerate temperature and weather extremes well. The large horns act as radiators; blood circulating through the horn area is cooled and then returned to the main body. This allows excess body heat to be dispersed. The Ankole Cattle are capable of running and Jumping with tremendous agility.
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Ring-tailed Lemur The Ring-tailed lemur is one of twenty-two species of lemurs. They share a common ancestry with Africa's monkeys and apes, but were isolated from those species probably SO million years ago when Madagascar separated from the African continent. They are found only on the east African island of Madagascar. The word Lemur comes from old Latin and refers to ghosts and spirits. The staring eyes, haunting sounds and nocturnal ways of lemur inspired early observers to think them as ghost or forest spirits. The Ring-tailed lemur's coat is black gray, the limbs and belly lighter and the extremities white. There are rings about the eyes, the muzzle is black, the tail is banded black and white. Ring-tailed lemur uses the ground for travel. It is diurnal and gregarious, living in groups of 5-30. Females are generally dominant to males. They love to sunbathe with legs and arms spread wide. They are the most terrestrial of all lemur species and spends time in all layers of the forest. They move by walking or running quadrupedally, holding their tails almost completely vertically as they move. A single offspring is born after gestation period about 139 days. The young are grayish with thin coat of hair. The entire groups helps care for and play with the young. They are sexually mature and fully grown at 1.5 years. In the wild they could live up to 19 years. Ring-tailed lemur are herbivorous. Their diets consist mainly of leaves, fruits and berries, although they occasionally take bird eggs, small mammals and insects. Body weight can reach between 2.2-5.5 kg. They use their tails as a visual signal. In aggressive encounters, the Ring-tailed lemur will wave its scent-covered tail in the direction of a rival. Large calls alert other members of the social group to danger and help maintain comfortable spacing between groups. |
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INDEX : Kota Kinabalu November 27, 2016 01:50:12 PM |
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