Malaysia Info Guide
for Locals & Visitors

KOTA KINABALU: There were loud cheers and claps when divers and a tugboat finally towed a 24m-long Bryde's whale from shallow waters off Pulau Gaya near here last night.

The bruised and bleeding whale, called Luulumbo by the Kadazans, was towed out of the shallow waters to the South China Sea under the watchful eyes of concerned nature lovers, including divers from Scubazoo, who worked tirelessly to rescue the whale which had been trapped in the shallow waters since Thursday.

Relating how the whale was freed, Scubazoo operations director Simon Enderby, who was among those helping to tie the mammal to the tugboat, said: “It was an elating moment.”

Merdeka and Malaysia Boleh. Perhaps it’s more than just waving flags and getting a “patriotic” high from Earth’s highest ever pulled tea or teh tarik – in outer space. Maybe patriotism is also about celebrating Malaysia’s more down-to-earth treasures – like our unique rainforests. 

Would Australia flatten its Blue Mountains forests? Would America chain-saw through Yellowstone National Park? To harvest million$ in logs today only to sacrifice billion$ in tomorrow’s tourism revenues? 

If Singapore had a forest where tourists could see elephants, panthers and wild boars crossing a highway, what would they do? A forest with the world’s largest flower. Where tigers, tapirs and mousedeer lap at salt licks, Where anglers can catch some 23 types of freshwater fish. 

JOHOR BAHARU, July 25 (Bernama) -- Poachers in droves are chipping off dark-coloured resin or extracting oil from sandalwood trees in the country's forest reserves to make gaharu, an incense for religious rites and a raw material for perfume.

The lack of enforcement has enabled poachers to encroach the forests of Kelantan, Pahang, Johor and Sarawak for the pricey resin. Sandalwood trees are also found in Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, India and Indonesia.

Kota Kinabalu: The Sumatra rhino a nearly extinct species was photographed by a motion-triggered camera trap is believed to be one of as few as 13. The existence of this group was confirmed in Borneo by a field survey last year, according to Malaysia’s Sabah Wildlife Department and WWF.

The cameras have been installed as a part of a protection effort launched last year to monitor the rhinos and defend them from poachers. Rhino horn is used in traditional Chinese medicines and carries a high price on the black market. “This is an encouraging sign for the future of rhinoceros conservation work in Sabah,” said Mahedi Andau, Director of the Sabah Wildlife Department in northern Borneo.

Jakarta: A new and previously unknown type of snake, which can change its colour like a chameleon, has been discovered by biologists. WWF said the poisonous snake, when picked up was reddish-brown but when it was put in a bucket it changed its colour to white.

The half meter long snake was discovered in the wetlands and swamp forests of Betung National Park in the Indonesian part of the island, which is also shared by Malaysia and Brunei.

KUCHING, July 16 (Bernama) -- Sarawak has emerged as the first destination in Malaysia that offers dolphin-watching tours, focusing on the Irrawaddy dolphins frequently sighted in the Santubong and Salak river estuaries near here.

According to the Sarawak Tourism Board (STB) newsletter "Hornbill Trail", the state was one of the best places in Southeast Asia to watch these dolphins native to tropical and sub-tropical waters.

"During the dry season from March to October, Irrawaddy dolphins are frequently sighted in the Santubong and Salak river estuaries just 45 minutes from the State capital of Kuching," the newsletter said in its latest publication.

They usually swim in small groups of two to six but larger groups of up to 15 had been spotted at the Salak estuary.

Though Sarawak was the marine tourism pioneer, being the first to launch commercial dolphin-watching tours in 1998, with its extensive network of national parks, Sarawak is fast gaining reputation as one of the country's premier eco-tourism destinations on land.

Apart from dolphin-watching, other activities include mangrove cruises that offer tourists the chance to see proboscis monkeys and crocodiles as well as a tour to the new Kuching Wetlands National Park, Sarawak's first Ramsar Site.