Birds posing for photos, Kinabatangan River, Sabah, Malaysia

Taken on: 30th September, 2012. Copyright: All Rights Reserved - See travelfishery's page of Flickr

Read more about Kinabatangan River

If you've come to Sabah for the wildlife, spending a few days cruising along the Kinabatangan River looking for orangutans and proboscis monkeys should be at the top of your to-do list. The mangrove forests and flood plains along the 560 kilometre-long river are a refuge for animals pushed out of the jungle as it's eaten up by palm plantations. The fact that they're constrained to a narrow swatch of land is bad for them but good for you -- sightings are practically guaranteed.

The treetops are home to more than just primates and you can spot eagles, kingfishers, herons and the spectacular rhinoceros hornbill. Crocodiles can be seen sunning themselves on the riverbanks and many more lurk in the river's muddy water. If you're lucky, you may even see the endangered Borneo pygmy elephant, which are small for elephants but still stand up to three metres tall and weigh a few tonnes.

Jungle lodges offering varying levels of comfort have sprung up ... Read our complete Kinabatangan River travel guide

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