Gua Gomantong

The Gomantong Caves are complex cave systems located inside theGomantong Hill. The hill is situated in the Malaysian state of Sabah, on Borneo Island. As the hill is located in a forest reserve of Sabah Parks, the surrounding area and the caves are labeled as a protected area for wildlife, especially for orangutans. Basically, the main cave system is divided into two parts: Simud Putih Black Cave and Simud Hitam White Cave. First one is more accessible than the latter. The entire cave system houses enormous species of animals, including immense populations of bats and cockroaches. One can see Asian fairy bluebirds, kingfishers, and crested serpent eagles outside the cave. The cave is quite known for centuries, for their precious edible Swiftlet nests. These are collected for bird's nest soup. The white ones are the most valuable of the nests as these are sold at very high prices. Collecting the birds' nest is an ancient tradition of this area. These nests are traded from a very ancient time. It is heard that since 500 AD, this trading has been done here. Locals with licenses climb to the roof of the caves twice a year- once during February to April and again in July to September time period. These nest collectors basically use bamboo poles, rattan ladders, and ropes to collect the nests. Every evening, more than 2 million resident bats move out to collect their food. After the bats leave out the cave, the swiftlets begin to make their way back to the caves. There are also some bat hawks that do not run far from the cave. Simud Hitam
Among the two caves Simud Hitam Black Cave is the most accessible one. It will take a few minutes' walk from the entrance building. The cave area is open to the general public. Its ceiling is about 40-60 meters high. There are a number of "black saliva" nests available inside the cave. It is the source of the feather as well as saliva.
Simud Putih
Though the cave is not widely accessible, yet Simud Putih White Cave is the larger of the two caves. The cave is rather more technical and not open to the general public. To get into the cave, one has to be experienced enough and must contain caving equipments. White saliva nests of the swiftlets are found in this cave.