Nyaru Menteng, Home for Borneo Orangutan Survival

A lesser known orangutan reintroduction center but no less important than Tanjung Puting is the Nyaru Menteng Orangutan Reintroduction Center near Palangkaraya, capital city of Central Kalimantan. The Center is located within the Nyaru Menteng Arboretum, which was originally meant only for rare vegetations. Today the reserve also includes a forest conservation area where captured primates are released to find their way back into the wild.

Sited within the arboretum, the Nyaru Menteng Orangutan Reintroduction Center was founded in 1999 by Lone Dröscher Nielsen and Odom Kisar. Today it is home to more than 600 orphaned and displaced Borneo orangutans under the care of the Borneo Orangutan Survival (BOS) Foundation. Since its humble beginnings, the center has now become the world's largest orangutan conservation facility with numerous cages, islands, clinics, vehicles, training forests and hundreds of staff.

The Head of the project is Lone Dröscher-Nielsen. Lone spent four years volunteering in Tanjung Puting, caring for small infant orangutans, before deciding to go out on her own and open the Nyaru Menteng Orangutan Project. The clinic, quarantine facilities and socialization cages are inside a fenced area of 1.5 ha, while mid-way housing is at the farthest end of the arboretum.

The forest around the center is undisturbed by regular visitors and serves as the perfect place where the young orangutans are taught how to survive in the wild. As a site where certain special and rare vegetations are cultivated for scientific and educational purposes, the Nyaru Menteng Arboretum was established in 1988 on a 65.2 hectares area which was previously exploited for logging since 1974.

Located within the vicinity of Palangkaraya, there are a lot of accommodation options you can find within the close range to Nyaru Menteng. For more information on accommodation in Palangkaraya you can refer to our to stay and find a hotel in Palangkaraya.

Get There

Situated approximately 28 km from downtown Palangkaraya, the Nyaru Menteng Arboretum is administratively located at Tumbang Tahai Village, Bukit Batu Sub-district, in the city of Palangkaraya. The Arboretum lies pleasantly on the Palangkaraya-Sampit intercity route or to the east of the Tjilik Riwut Raya Road, easily accessible by rented cars or public transportation. There are more flights available to Palangkaraya than to Pangkalan Bun, the staging point for a visit to Tanjung Puting.