Tangkoko Batuangus Nature Reserve sits on the northeastern tip of the Minahasa peninsula, about 70 kilometres from Manado. The reserve covers 8,700 hectares of tropical forest rising from the coast to volcanic peaks and is one of the best places in Sulawesi to see endemic wildlife.
The star attractions are the spectral tarsier — the world's smallest primate — and the Sulawesi black macaque (locally called yaki), which lives in large troops throughout the forest. Dawn wildlife walks with a local guide offer the best chances of seeing both. Hornbills, maleo birds (which bury their eggs on warm volcanic soil for the heat to incubate them), and the babirusa — the "pig-deer" with tusks that curve back toward its forehead — are among the other notable species. The reserve is a half-day journey from Manado; most visitors do it as a full-day trip.