Captive orangutans relearn what nature intended

Captive orangutans relearn what nature intended

By PJ Leo

SAMBOJA, East Kalimantan (JP): Slowly but surely, several
young orangutans (pongo pygmaeus) climb the tall trees of
Wanariset, Samboja, East Kalimantan, after being released from
cages in the morning.

After a day of playing in the trees, swinging and moving among
the cluster of branches, they return to their cages in the
evening.

One day, if they are judged to be ready to live on their own,
the jungle will once again be their home.

Young orangutans separated from their mothers before they were
fully reared are cared for at Wanariset, which is run through aid
from animal lovers from inside and outside the country.

Some of the animals are the victims of human greed, orphaned
after their mothers were killed by hunters. Others lost their
habitat from forest fires, many of which were set by people.

"The population of orangutans is already on the brink of
extinction," said tropical forest expert Willie Smits, who is
also the chief and founder of the Wanariset Orangutan
Reintroduction Project.

"If the government is not serious in upholding the law for
those who hunt and sell the orangutan as well as those who
destroy and burn the forests, then the orangutan population will
in two or three decades share the same fate with the Sumatran
tiger and Javan rhinoceros, with populations which can be counted
on one's hands."

The project was started in 1991 as part of the activities of
Wanariset Station, located in the jungle of Samboja, about 38
kilometers from Balikpapan. Its Kalimantan Project from forestry
research agency Tropenbos trains forestry officials and local
populations in sustainable use of forests.

There are about 250 young orangutans in quarantine at
Wanariset. About 100 more from different places in the country
are waiting for entry to Wanariset; for the time being they are
kept at zoos in their areas. Hundreds of other young orangutans
in foreign countries, mainly Taiwan, are also on the waiting list
for an opening at Wanariset.

"For every orangutan sold on the market, people must kill at
least three adult orangutans, especially the mother. While a
female orangutan can only give birth and raise a maximum of three
offspring during her lifetime," Smits said.

To introduce animals raised as pets to life in the jungle, the
center has created a special playground. Only orangutans under
two years of age which have passed selection by a medical team
are permitted to play in the area. They are free to play from
morning until the evening under the supervision of their keepers.

In addition to the playground, Wanariset has opened up a
jungle area of about 10 hectares on land owned by state oil and
gas company Pertamina. It is designated as a "halfway house" to
provide the transition period for the orangutans before they
return to life in the jungle. Only orangutans which are at least
three years old and have passed medical selection can reside in
the area.

"After being at the site from six months to a year, the young
orangutans are ready to released into their natural habitat in
the wild," Smits said. "They will be taken to a protected area of
forest near the Wain River about 40 km from Wanariset, or
protected forest near Mt. Meratus which is about 100 km from
Wanariset."

Hundreds of orangutans once kept as pets are now doing what
comes naturally after being returned to the wild by the project.
Wanariset is in the process of establishing another orangutan
conservation area at Nyaru Menteng near Palangkaraya, South
Kalimantan.