Handle those gorillas with care, please!

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Most people might think the gorilla is a wild, dangerous animal as pictured in Hollywood movie King Kong.

This perception is misleading.

The gorilla is actually a sensitive creature. This was revealed on Tuesday at Ragunan zoo, which currently houses four male African gorillas on loan to the zoo from the Howletts and Port Lympne Park in Kent, England.

During their first public appearance, several photographers attempting to take their pictures, clapped their hands and shouted at them in the hope that the apes would respond.

But, Kihi, Kimbou, Kijou and Komou, who were playing on the ground, looked upset and hid inside a cave.

Dharma Jaya, the keeper, said that the gorillas must be treated tenderly.

"They have feelings just like human beings. We, keepers, must treat them like babies because they are still immature; otherwise, they will sulk," said Dharma, who is able to communicate with the gorillas after being trained for nine months in England.

Kihi and Kimbou are seven years old. Komou and Kijou are five years old. They are related, according to Dharma.

The gorillas stay in the Schmutzer Primate Center in the zoo. There are also gibbons, long-tailed macaques, siamang, orangutan and Griffith silver-leaf monkeys in the lavish pen built at a cost of over Rp 16 billion.

The primate center covering 6.2 hectares of land is planned to be extended to 13 hectares.

Dharma explained that visitors must obey strict regulations before entering the primate center.

During the soft opening of the center on Tuesday, visitors could only observe parts of the animal collection because workers were still putting the final touches on the center. On Sunday, the primate center is expected to be ready to welcome more visitors.

The management also offer a night visit to the primate center every Sunday from 7:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Visitors are not allowed to bring bags, food, drinks and cigarettes inside the primate center. They are required to leave their belongings at the deposit counter at the center entrance gate. Visitors should not disturb or touch the animals.

Dharma specifically asked visitors not to feed them.

"They can only eat selected food to prevent them from getting a stomachache or falling sick. It's our duty," he said, saying that Howletts would take the gorillas back if they fell ill or were distressed.

Zoo visitors here occasionally give food to animals despite it being prohibited. A zoo veterinarian said that some animals in Ragunan Zoo suffer a stomachache on Mondays after being visited by many visitors, who give the animals food, during the weekends.

In the Schmutzer Primate Center, visitors are being monitored by 64 cameras. A visitor who does not follow the rules will be removed by security officers.

"We only want to give the primates the best care as Mrs. Schmutzer wanted to show the Indonesian people the best way to treat animals," Dharma said, referring to the late Mrs. Puck Schmutzer, an animal-lover who financed the development of the primate center and whose photo is displayed at the gate.