Samboja Lodge/Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation

Iza and the PRIS orangutan, which she shakes hands with every time she passes it since we've moved here

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A few weeks ago, Jill, Iza and I went up north to visit Samboja Lestari, the orangutan protection and rehab center, which our school helped create back in the 1990s. We were scouting out the lodge and grounds to help finalize details for an upcoming middle school trip. The lodge itself, is very impressive, built of nearly all local materials and based on many traditional designs. The animals, however, are in not as impressive of a state.

the unique looking lodge with its high observation point
(and 2 very nice, expensive hotel suites)

Iza enjoying the view from the highest lookout tower in the lodge.
From here you can see most of the orangutan islands, each either just males, females or those with Hepatitis and other diseases

our fearless guide, Agus, telling us the good, the bad, and the ugly

I know we live in the tropics, but our new home town is pretty urban. The grounds here were much more thick with vegetation, and the main focus of the foundation now is reforestation of all native species, a massive undertaking

the Borneo Sun Bear, which is the symbol of Balikpapan. It is the smallest bear in the world, only about 2-2.5 feet/<1 meter high at the shoulders, a bit like a medium to large dog. Though not all of them have it, they are named this as the patch on the chest often looks like a sun in a dark sky

Look at the size of its claws.
These bears are here because of loss of habitat

little green alien

The other evening I remembered to get out on the balcony and enjoy the cooler night air after another hot-oven-interior day in the tropics. Sitting back in one of our bamboo chairs and just trying to think of nothing as the stars came out, I saw a little green thing wiggle on one of the railing posts. I looked more closely and it wiggled it's torso out towards me, as if checking me out, too.

It was a Praying Mantis,
first one I've ever seen with my own eyes.

I got Jill to come out to meet our new friend. And when we returned it flew somewhat graciously to the ceiling near a 3"/7 cm gecko (young one, but not a baby, they're really tiny!). We could see it was going for a smaller bug that the gecko was after, too. The mantis flew again and nabbed it before the gecko, which was very surprising as geckos are FAST! The gecko then went after the mantis but it couldn't fly... so the gecko went to the corner and pouted and the praying mantis posed patiently for me as I shot about 40 pics. It was definitely aware of me and moved its head and torso appropriately every time I neared it with the camera.

I'm sure it didn't appreciate the flash going off so close to its eyes...

I'd estimate it was about 5"/13 cm long. The skin and/or wings were much more oily looking than we expected. It has lots of tiny barbs on its legs.

We hope it comes by for another visit again.

The weird one pictured on here from August or September hasn't shown up again.

One of my favorite books to read with Iza is, "I am a bunny" by Ole Risom (drawings maybe by Richard Scarry? not sure). Nicklaus the bunny tells you what he loves about the four seasons and what animals he sees and what he likes to do in each season. When Winter comes in the end, he curls up for the long sleep in his hollow tree and dreams about Spring... and in his dream is a Praying Mantis and a few other insects. I hope Iza gets to see it next time.

We're really living in a unique place!