Recently a book “Spirit of Borneo” co-authored by Daily Express Chief Editor James Sarda & University Malaya Associate Professor Dr. Danny Wong made waves on the Kota Kinabalu literary scene.

http://dailyexpress.com.my/print.cfm?NewsID=68362

This book is made of photos and stills of British North Borneo (now Sabah) from the period 1920 to 1935 by Martin and Osa Johnson. Here is a link to these adventurers:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_and_Osa_Johnson

For those who are interested in knowing more of their work there is an interesting book by them entitled: “Last Adventure; The Martin Johnsons in Borneo” Edited by Pascal J. Imperato, M.D. New York: William Morrow and Company; 1966

The photos on British North Borneo are housed in the Martin and Osa Johnson Safari Museum Chanute, Kansas. Little did we know that a portion of Borneo is in a Kansas museum – check on this link: http://www.safarimuseum.com/

40 km north of Sandakan, Sabah (the former British North Borneo) lies the Turtle Islands, made up of the 3 islands of Pulau Selingaan, Pulau Bakkungan Kecil and Pulau Gulisan, encompassing an area of 1740 hectares.

The main attractions of these islands are the Green Turtles (Chelonia Mydas) and Hawksbill Turtles (Eretmochelys); these comes to nest on the shores of Selingaan and Gulisan. The Hawksbill seems somewhat particularly attracted to Gulisan. Generally both these species lay their eggs all year round but what used to be the “bumper collection period” for collectors and now poachers are the months of July and October.  Don’t forget turtle eggs are a delicacy in these parts of Sandakan and up to 1971 these islands were private property where the inhabitants derive income from the sale of turtle eggs. Subsequently the government acquired the islands and established the Turtle Island Park.

A conservation program is now in place and the cluster of islands comprising the park namely three main nesting islands – Pulau Selingan, Pulau Bakkungan Kechil and Pulau Gulisan, are protected areas for turtles and other marine life inhabiting the area.

The highlight of a visit to the park would be a hands-on look on how the conservation programs are put in place – visitors accompanied by rangers are invited to witness female turtles laying their eggs and as turtles are basically shy creatures these are nocturnal activities. A few standing rules though: the dress code is bare feet on the beach lest you trample a hapless hatchling to death; no cameras or video takes as flash lights aggravates the turtles. No roaming around the beaches after dark without being accompanied by a ranger. Only one turtle is shown to visitors per night…  The visit to the hatchery is a must where the rangers may allow you to hold the little hatchlings and invite you to release them to the open sea.

The Turtle Islands as they are collectively called, are part of a chain of islands and islets the straddle the Malaysian and Philippines waters and with only a mere stretch of water separating the political boundaries. It takes a speed boat ride of 2 hours to get you to the islands from Sandakan. Marine patrols from the two nations frequently patrol the surrounding waters. Do not be perturb, they are there to ensure the safety of visitors in this post 911 world that we live in and in the aftermath of the embarrassing Abu Sayaf kidnapping of tourists from Sipadan Island near the Sabah Kalimantan border. Security since has been pretty tight in the Sabah waters. In times gone by these waters were the trading routes of the Spice Trade in the Nusantara Melayu where the Sultanates of Sulu & Brunei held sway over these parts of Borneo.