Ida, protector of Java gibbons

Ida, protector of Java gibbons

Theresia Sufa, Jakarta Post/Bogor

Theresia Ida Yuniati Mashur has a special life -- far away from the hustle and pollution of the cities, raising her "family" in a pristine forest on the side of a mountain. It sounds romantic, and Ida says it is.

A veterinary surgeon and manager of the Java Gibbon Rescue and Rehabilitation Center, located in uphill Sukabumi, Ida lives far away from hectic urban life.

"I've fallen in love with the Java gibbons' physical beauty and their unique natural tendency of monogamy," Ida says.

Born in Bandung on June 13, 1967, the fourth child of Aloysius Wahyudi Mashur and M.B. Rosaeni has worked with the Java Owa, as they are locally known, at the captive breeding center in Nanggerang village in Sukabumi, West Java, since its establishment in November 2002.

The graduate of the School of Veterinary Medicine at the prestigious Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB), was formerly lecturing at her alumnae before working as veterinarian at the Indonesian Safari Garden in Cisarua, Bogor. She them moved to the Indonesian Gibbon Foundation in Denpasar, Bali, from 1997 to 2002.

The center for Java gibbon rehabilitation is a non-profit agency jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Forestry, Conservation International Indonesia, the Gibbon Foundation and the University of Indonesia, with financial support from the Silvery Gibbon Project (SGP-Perth) and the U.S.-based Margot Marsh Foundation.

The center rehabilitates Java gibbons earlier kept as domestic pets and aims to release them back into their original habitats.

In addition, it also promotes public awareness of and participation in the conservation of these apes, while increasing cooperation between government agencies, non-governmental organizations, academic institutions and business circles.

At present, the center has five gibbons, comprising four of Java species (Hylobates moloch) and one of the Ungko species (Hylobates agilis) from Sumatra. Locals voluntarily gave up the previously domesticated primates to the center.

"We appreciate those who have surrendered their gibbons to us because no matter how much they love their pets, nature is the best place for them," Ida says.

Java owa currently face extinction, with only around 2,000 to 4,000 left on Java Island mostly found in West Java forests.

They originally occupied a total area of 43,247 square kilometers but poaching and land reclamation have reduced their habitat to 6,000 square kilometers of protected zones in the national parks of Ujung Kulon, Mt. Halimun, Mt. Gede-Pangrango, the nature reserve of Mt. Simpang and also around Dieng.

The five primates at the rehabilitation center are named Chimoy (14 years), Yuki (13), Jefri (6), Kis Kis (4) and the Sumatra Ungko, Kidi (4), the first two being females. They are all gorgeous, with thick long gray hair.

"Volunteers and officers at the Mt. Gede-Pangrango National Park frequently refer to the gibbons as symbols of true love," Ida says. All owa, particularly Java gibbons, are naturally monogamous and faithful to their mates.

"If we find five one-year-old baby gibbons on the market, it means 10 gibbon pairs are dead.

"The little ones aged one to three are carried along by their mothers, which have to be killed first to get the babies, with the eventual death of their fathers from loneliness," she said.

As a rule, Ida says, hunters always seek newborns and often then cut their canines, as in Jefri's case. This ensures the apes cannot survive in the wild as they have no means to protect themselves against attack.

Java gibbons have been protected since 1931 by the wildlife protection regulation No.266, supported later by Law No.5/1990 and the Decree of the Minister of Forestry dated June 10, 1991, with maximum imprisonment of five years and a maximum fine of Rp 100 million for those hunting or raising gibbons illegally.

"I hope our gibbons will return to the wild to find their mates and get their own habitat areas. There is no difficulty in caring for them here as the center is within easy reach of fruit and vegetables," she says.

The single veterinarian, who calls the five gibbons her "children", lives with the primates on the cool slope of Mt. Pangrango about kilometers from the Mt. Gede-Pangrango National Park.

With this family, Ida says she has found true love.