Honors student Katie Serba was able to participate in a travel study course through UT’s Biology department to Borneo during the summer of 2019. Here’s a description of the experience:
“In Borneo, we learned about different conservation efforts (replanting trees, creating ropes for orangutans to use to cross rivers, nest boxes for birds, reducing palm oil production, and stricter regulations for animal trade) across different ecosystems. This is a very serious issue since so many species are threatened by habitat loss, poaching, and illegal trade. We also saw the Borneo Big 5, which includes the Bornean elephant, orangutan, saltwater crocodile, Proboscis monkey, and rhinoceros hornbill! We even saw all 8 species of hornbill birds as well, which is extremely rare since one of them is critically endangered and almost never observed. I loved it there so much and might even be able to go back if I do end up attending LSU for graduate school to focus on Ornithology.”