Bird nests and visitors in Tanjung Puting National Park

Orangutan Foundation in collaboration with Tanjung Puting National Park run Pondok Ambung, a tropical forest research station. The national park’s wild orangutan population is estimated at over 4,000. But Tanjung Puting isn’t just famous for orangutans it has an amazing diversity of species that share the great ape's habitat. Arif, our manager of the research station sent this interesting update about recent sightings including the behaviour of nesting birds.

Aku Cinta Indonesia (ACI or I love Indonesia) Team Found Western Tarsier in Pondok Ambung

Aku Cinta Indonesia (ACI) is a program by detik.com. Their aim is to promote the beauty of Indonesia. ACI pick teams of 3 people who they send out on various adventures to document their experience.

One of the ACI’s team visited to Pondok Ambung and slept overnight on a kelotok (boat).  They were curious to see a nocturnal primate, called the Western Tarsier.   After the drizzle stopped we began our night tracking around Pondok Ambung and at around midnight, Evawi, a Foundation field assistant smelt the urine of the tarsier. We found this small beautiful primate – it is really rare to see them and after no less than 10 minutes we had lost it (see this post for picture of tarsier).

In the early morning, we did bird watching. Pak Hudi, the Foundation’s Programme Co-ordinator, gave basic tips about bird watching. So many bird species were seen!

Photographic Trip

Photographer Ian Wood and his group visited Pondok Ambung. There were eight in his group so we split in to 2 smaller groups. One went with Pak Hudi and climbed a watch tower to observe birds in the upper canopy.

The other group came with me to find a criptical bird and look at the nest of the Orange-bellied Flowerpecker. The group had some awesome tools of photography. Tele lens helped to take a small objects, like the birds.

 Bird Nests

We found the nest of a Malaysian Eared Nightjar(Eurostopodus temminckii).  Actually, they don’t really have a nest. They just lay down their egg on the ground, on top of foliage. There was one egg which started to hatch while we observed. It was a beautiful chick with a reddish plumage. I think this is the first record, at least in Pondok Ambung!

We also found the nest of the Orange-bellied Flowerpecker (Dicaeum trigonostigma).  The nest was suspended 2.5 m up on a leafy twig of a tree growing near the watch tower. The nest was small and egg-shaped, made from grass and ferns. It contained two chicks. During my observation, I saw the male and female adults attend the nest.

The female took food from the undergrowth around the nest. It seemed like fruit but they were just taking the seeds. When feeding the young, the male hung onto the outside of the nest by its feet so that it could face the chicks directly. After the male departed, the chicks would often wait in front of the entrance with their bills out. Sometimes, although the male was not present, the chicks would stick out their heads and open their mouths wide in a begging behavior.

 After several days, we found the nest is empty with a small hole in the bottom.  Before it, I watch something trying to make a hole from inside the nest. I can’t identify who and what they do. Maybe this is the way out when the chicks are strong enough to fly? We need more observations!

By Arif - Manager of Pondok Ambung Tropical Forests Research Station

Support our work and put this date in your diary – 10am on 5 December  your donation to us doubled at http://new.thebiggive.org.uk/project/orangutans

Thank you,

Orangutan Foundation

Celebrating Orangutans!

Yesterday was Orange for Orangutan Day - an event that always takes place in Orangutan Awareness Week. The aim is to raise awareness and funds for orangutan conservation but in a fun and interesting way.  It is also a celebration of this magnificent great ape. Many people are still unaware that their survival in the wild is threatened so thank you to everyone who has done something, no matter how small, for orangutans this week.  Here are some photos of what people got up to!

Comedian Hattie Hayridge at our pub quiz in London.

Many different ways to go orange for orangutans!

Pembrokeshire college students go orange!

A great poster by Pembrokeshire College

If you'd like to help then put this date in your diary - 10am on 5 December  your donation to us doubled at http://new.thebiggive.org.uk/project/orangutans

Leave a comment and let us know what you've been doing this week.

Thank you!

Orangutan Foundation

Orangutan Awareness Week

To mark Orangutan Awareness Week here are some lovely images of these great apes. They were all taken by Ian Wood, who runs photo tours to Tanjung Puting National Park, Borneo.  We've included some other animals shots too because if you protect orangutan habitat you also protect 1000's of other species! Why not do something for orangutans this week, whether it is going orange for the day, organising your own event or making a donation to Orangutan Foundation , every little action helps! 

More posts and pics to follow this week..

Thank you,

Orangutan Foundation 

Orange for Orangutan Quiz Night

Join us for our Orange for Orangutan Quiz night at Wood Marylebone, NW1 London on Wednesday 16 November (Orange for Orangutan Day 2011).

Photo by Ian Wood www.agoodplace.co.uk

Stand-up comedian Hattie Hayridge, the compere for the evening, will help make this a fun and colourful evening with all proceeds supporting our vital work.  Buy tickets from the Orangutan Foundation's website or call 020 7724 2912.

If you can't get to London then why not organise your own event?  Click here for ideas and info.

Go on, go orange for orangutans!

Bornean orangutans back home in the forest

We have received news from Pak Tigor, our Orangutan Release Manager, that the two Bornean orangutans, Kevin and bobby, who were brought back from Sumatra last month, have been released back into their forest home. They have been in holding cages at Camp Gemini, in the Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, since they arrived back in Borneo.  Last week after being closely monitored, Dr Fikri and field staff decided that they should be allowed out of their cages.  At around 16.30, an hour or so before it gets dark, the doors to Kevin and Bobby’s cages were opened.

Kevin immediately went onto the top of his cage, looked around taking in the situation. He eventually climbed off and gathered some branches which he took back to the top of his cage where he then made a make-shift nest.  We waited until about 18.30. Kevin stayed sleeping in his nest all night. The next day two field staff stayed close to Kevin, following him as he moved off into the forest. At the end of day he made a nest in a tree and went to sleep. He seems very at home back in the forest.

Bobby in climbing in trees after his release

Unlike Kevin, Bobby was more hesitant to leave his cage.  He just sat on the cage door, then climbed down to the ground and walked around the cage, back and forth for quite a while without any obvious purpose. He did try to climb into a tree, but as he did so he fell back and then returned to his cage door.

Bobby returns to the security of his cage

The Orangutan Foundation team waited until 18:00 and decided it was better for Bobby to go back into his cage for the night because is very dangerous for orangutans to sleep on the ground due to wild boar in the surrounding forests.

The next day Bobby was taken to the feeding site, where supplementary food is offered. Bobby climbed the trees and moved between them. Bobby did eat fruit from the forest but only one type.

Bobby playing with ex-captive orangutan Amoi and her infant

He also interacted with ex-captive orangutans, Ebony a female adolescent and Mantra a female orangutan with infant, spending a long time playing. Bobby didn’t attempt to make a nest and so he returned to his cage again for the night. We will continue to take Bobby out and hope that he will eventually become fully independent.

Bobby getting used to living up in the trees

We will have more news on Kevin and Bobby soon and hopefully some video footage too (so long as the internet connection remains good!).

Please support our work in the Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve by donating today.

Thank you.

Orangutans and Food - Blog Action Day 2011

Today is Blog Action Day 2011 and the theme is food.  So what does food have to do with orangutans? Quite a lot.   Our production of food, to feed a growing human population, has a huge impact on tropical forests, biodiversity and also on the great red ape. Our last post told about an infant orangutan that was rescued from an oil palm plantation.  These subjects, palm oil and orangutans, seem to go hand in hand now days.  The issue is highly sensitive, emotive and complicated.  Palm oil, which is extracted from the oil palm kernel, is used as a fuel or is a common ingredient in soaps, candles and numerous cosmetic products. It is also found in many different processed foods.  For example, in Europe, it is found in up to half of packaged food products.

The balance between the need to feed our planet's increasing human population (Indonesia is already well past the 230 million mark, China and India, both major importers of palm oil, have a combined human population of over 2.5 billion) and the need to safeguard the carbon-rich lowland forests of Indonesia and Malaysia (the two countries which produce the most palm oil) is a huge challenge. But it is one we must tackle if there is to be a future for orangutans, forests and people.

The problem can feel overwhelming. But in order to make progress it has to be looked at properly,  broken down and dealt with piece by piece. For example, a small yet effective initiative that the Orangutan Foundation support is the promotion of small-scale agro-forestry by  an Indonesian organisation, Yayorin.    By encouraging local farmers to adopt a sustainable, organic way of farming, as oppose to traditional  forest clearance by slash and burn or instead of farmers selling their land to an oil palm concession, forest loss has been reduced and orangutan habitat saved.

Consumers can also play their part by choosing which products they buy.  For example, avoiding those with palm oil or only buying if the the palm oil contained within is certified as sustainable.  A recent campaign we were involved with saw the European Parliament vote in favour of compulsory labelling of palm oil in food products in Europe.  This now allows consumer choice but will also help drive demand for certified sustainable palm oil.

Small-scale agro-forestry and wise consumerism are small but important steps being taken to address the problem.

Find out more about our work at www.orangutan.org.uk

Thank you,

Orangutan Foundation

Infant orangutan rescued

Dr Fikri, our vet sent through this report about the rescue of an infant orangutan. At the end of July our Reintroduction Team received a called from Pak Anton, the head of the Agency for Conservation of Natural Resources, BKSDA SKW II. He had received a request from a large oil palm concession in Central Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) about some orangutans isolated on the plantation, which will need to be trans-located.

Based on this, a team from the Orangutan Foundation and BKSDA planned to visit the plantation which is owned by Borneo Citra Indah.

Before leaving for the plantation, a ranger from Tanjung Puting National Park informed us about an infant orangutan, approximately one year old, on the plantation but in a different area.  According to the plantation staff, who had been caring for the orangutan for two days, it came from villagers living around the plantation. Apparently they found it without its mother.

After health checks at the local BKSDA facility it was decided the infant orangutan should be taken to the Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve.

The infant has been named Steph, after Steph Brown a long-term and commited supporter of the Orangutan Foundation. Little Steph will be cared for by our field staff at Camp Rasak. Considering Steph’s ordeal she is in good health.

Her weight at the end of September was 4 kg, a 1kg gain in weight since she was first found.

Please help us to safeguard this important protected area, provide care for these orangutans and ensure a future in the wild for these endangered great apes.

Thank you,

Dr Fikri and the Orangutan Foundation team

Tanjung Puting National Park photo contest

The Tanjung Puting National Park Authority hosted a poster and photographic competition last weekend.  The Orangutan Foundation is thrilled that Saud Teguh, one of our own members of staff came first in the photo contest with his image of the Greater Coucal and second place with his poster.   What talent - well done Teguh and thank you to the National Park for organising this initiative.

Photo above and poster below by Saud Teguh

Why Investing in Forests is Win-Win for Communities, Climate and Orangutan Conservation

Yesterday, Ashley Leiman, the Orangutan Foundation's director, was in Jakarta for the launch of a new UNEP report which explains why investing in forests is win-win for communities, climate and orangutan conservation.  Read the report, Orangutans and the economics of sustainable forest management in sumatra   

 

Male Sumatran Orangutan - photo by Gail Campbell-Smith

Comings and goings in Tanjung Puting National Park

In July, we said goodbye to Devis, our Tropical Forest Research Station Manager. Devis had worked for us for five years and though he will be greatly missed we know Pondok Ambung will remain in good hands.

Devis in the middle being hugged by Pak Hudi, our Programme Co-ordinator

Arif (in green t-shirt), our new Manager of Pondok Ambung

We are delighted to welcome Arif Nugroho.  An avid birdwatcher and nature lover – Arif has so far seen a Malay civet (Viverra tangalunga), Western tarsier (Tarsius bancanus)...

...as well as the many of the beautiful bird species found in the park.

Since his arrival in August, Arif has given the field station and its klotok (long-boat) a fresh look, repairing rotten boards and adding a new lick of paint. Though the bad news is the klotok only has about 6 month of life left in it, at the most!

Pondok Ambung Tropical Forest Research Station is a joint collaboration between the Tanjung Puting National Park Authority and the Orangutan Foundation. Researchers or Universities in interested in studying here should contact the Orangutan Foundation.

Spirit of Indonesia

Help save orangutans and their forest home and own a piece of unique art! Bid online now for our beautiful and unique orangutan, ‘Spirit of Indonesia’,  which is part of Jungle City Edinburgh 2011.

The design is based on traditional Indonesian batik entwined with the biodiversity of the orangutan’s rainforest habitat.

Proceeds from the auction of Spirit of Indonesia will support our vital work.

Happy bidding and good luck!

Images of the orangutans return to Borneo

Here are a few photos of Kevin and Bobby, the two Bornean orangutans who are now back in Borneo  after being returned from Sumatra.The internet connection in Pangkalan Bun, Borneo has been very poor and unreliable -Pak  Tigor, the OrangutanReintroduction Manager managed to send these through. 

Kevin and Bobby come off the plane into Pangkalan Bun, after a change over in Jakarta.

Cargo crates in the airport shed before being taken by pick up truck to the local givernment facility. Not that you can see them very well but both orangutans were unfazed by their journey.

Hopefully there will be more to follow of their final journey into the swamp forest of Borneo over the next few days. Thank you Pak Tigor for your persistence and patience in sending them through!

Please help us to ensure that Kevin and Bobby remain in the wild by supporting our work in the Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve. You can donate here.

Orangutans back to Borneo

Press Release

Wednesday 21^st September 211

 Back to Borneo

 Endangered Bornean orangutans return home from Sumatra.

Two orangutans, which started their life in the wilds of Borneo, but ended up as pets in Sumatra have returned home.

Kevin and Bobby, are male Bornean orangutans. Their mothers were almost certainly killed at the time of their capture in Borneo (probably whilst their habitat was being clear-felled) and their previous “owners” obtained them in Borneo before returning home to the island of Sumatra. Fortunately for both Kevin and Bobby, they were subsequently rescued by the Indonesian government’s local Nature Conservation department (PHKA) and staff of the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme (implemented by the Swiss based PanEco Foundation and the Indonesian Yayasan Ecosystem Lestari and PHKA). Under Indonesian law it is illegal to keep orangutans as pets and to trade, harm or kill them. Kevin was rescued in 2006, aged a little over 2 years and Bobby in 2009 aged around 3 or 4 years old.

Bobby above and below - male Bornean orangutan

Under the care of SOCP at the Batu Mbelin Orangutan Quarantine Centre near Medan, North Sumatra, both orangutans grew, gained weight and had excellent health. They were therefore very much ready for a return to a life in the wild. To do this, however, they had to be returned to the island of their birth. Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) and Sumatran orangutans (Pongo abelii) are nowadays recognized by scientists as being two distinct and separate species. As such, Bornean orangutans must only be released on Borneo, and Sumatrans on Sumatra. Mixing the species on the two islands would be detrimental to the genetic viability of both species’ wild populations.

Kevin -  male Bornean orangutan

The Sumatran orangutan is already listed as Critically Endangered by the World Conservation Union (IUCN), and the Bornean as Endangered. In fact there are estimated to be only around 50,000 Bornean orangutans left in the wild and as few as only 6,600 or so Sumatrans. The future for both is therefore already precarious enough.

For the above reasons, Dr Ian Singleton, Director of Conservation for the PanEco Foundation and head of the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme, approached the Orangutan Foundation, a UK registered charity, to help get the two young orangutans back to where they belonged thus contributing to the long term conservation of the Bornean orangutans, “Kevin and Bobby deserve the chance to be wild orangutans once again and we have done everything we can to make sure it happens. If we can at the same time highlight the plight of orangutans on both islands and remind people that it is illegal in Indonesia to keep them as pets then that would be an added bonus.” said the British born expert.

The Orangutan Foundation’s work is focused towards Central Kalimantan, in the Indonesia part of Borneo. In collaboration with the Indonesian government’s local Nature Conservation department (PHKA), the Orangutan Foundation runs a release site for rehabilitated and trans-located wild orangutans in the Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve.

On Saturday 17 September, the Orangutan Foundation team including their vet, Dr Fikri, flew to Medan, where the two orangutans were being kept together.  On Monday, after final checks, Kevin and Bobby began their journey home. First they flew to Jakarta, on the island of Java. Both orangutans seemed fine and not too stressed after the first flight and the Orangutan Foundation’s vet gave them some fruit. They then flew onto Pangkalan Bun, Central Kalimantan, on the island of Borneo.   On arrival, back home in Borneo, both orangutans looked out curiously from their cargo crate. The Australian Orangutan Project, partners of both organisations, kindly agreed to help fund the cost of bringing the two orangutans home. 

Kevin and Bobby are currently resting and then they will undergo some additional final pre-release medical checks at a local government facility. They will then complete the final leg of their journey, by river on a longboat, to the 76,000 hectare.

Once at the reserve they will again be housed for a few more weeks in a large cage, but this time deep in the forest that they will soon be free to explore. This is to allow them to really rest up after all the travelling and to acclimatize to their new surroundings, the swamp forests of Borneo.

Their health and behaviour will continue to be closely monitored by Orangutan Foundation’s vet and once given the all clear and when the time is right, they will finally be freed and get their chance to live as wild orangutans once again. Even then, the OF team will continue to follow them and monitor their behaviour and health until such time they are confident they will survive with little or no more intervention.

The principle threat to wild orangutans on both islands is habitat loss, mostly as forests are cleared for conversion to agriculture, especially vast, monoculture oil palm plantations. Many of the orangutans in these forests die or are killed in the process. Some of the lucky ones manage to survive and end up as illegal pets. The luckiest of them all survive long enough to be confiscated and placed in a rescue centre, and are eventually returned to a life in the wild.

The general public can help support the Orangutan Foundation’s work in the Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve at http://www.orangutan.org.ukor 020 7724 2912.

For more information, high resolution images, or to arrange an interview,

call Cathy Smith on +44 (0)20 7724 2912 or email cathy@orangutan.org.uk

Notes to editors:

Orangutans are only found on two islands, Borneo and Sumatra and they are classified as two distinct species reflecting this geographic distribution.

Sumatran orangutans are critically endangered with only about 6,600 in the wild. Bornean orangutans are endangered with only about 50,000 remaining. 

The Sumatra Orangutan Conservation Programme is a collaborative programme implemented by the Swiss based PanEco Foundation, Indonesia’s Yayasan Ekosistem Lestari (Foundation for a Sustainable Ecosystem) the Indonesian Government’s Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature

The Orangutan Foundation works in collaboration with The Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Conservation of the Ministry of Forestry of the Republic of Indonesia (Ditjen PHKA).

The Orangutan Foundation is the UK representative of the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme.

Spirit of Indonesia - Jungle City

'Spirit of Indonesia' is our beautiful orangutan that has been hand painted by Scottish artisit, Lex McFadyen. It is part of Scotland's biggest ever outdoor art exhibition - Jungle City Edinburgh 2011 run by the charity, Elephant Family. Online bidding for the sculptures begins on 22nd September until 2nd October 2011. Proceeds from the auction of  'Spirit of Indonesia' will go to the Orangutan Foundation.

'Spirit of Indonesia' in St Andrew Square - Lex’s intricate design was inspired by traditional Indonesian batik motif into which he entwined the biodiversity of the orangutan’s rainforest habitat.

Our utmost thanks go to Paterson Arran, the Scottish food manufacturers, who have sponsored Spirit of Indonesia.

Own a unique piece of art (Spirit of Indonesia) and help save orangutans!

Orangutan nest building

Follow this link to view fascinating video footage, by the Wildlife Research Center of Kyoto University, taken of a wild orangutan building a nest at Danum Valley, Sabah (Malaysian Borneo).

Tanjung Puting National Park

Last week we said we'd put up some images from Tanjung Puting National Park and surrounding areas, (Central Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo).  Here are a few recent ones all of which were taken during June's Conservation Tour and Reading University's field visit in July.

Dyok - dominant male at Pondok Tanggui by Jenny Aundrews

Stork-billed kindfisher on the Sekonyer River Tanjung Puting National Park by Lynda Gent

Hornbill on the Sekonyer River by Jenny Aundrews

Tanjung Harapan village school on the boundary of Tanjung Puting National Park.

A royal gift for the school from one of the tour participants! (sorry about the quality)

Hitching a ride!

Reading University field trip to Tanjung Puting National Park's Pondok Ambung Tropical Forest Research Station.

Pak

From left to right: Head of Tanjung Puting National Park, Pak Gunung Sinegar with Dr Mark Fellowes from Reading University and Orangutan Foundation Programme Co-ordinator Pak Hudi D Wuryanto.

Bangkal - a gentle giant

I'd like to share with you a lovely story... In October 2000, I went to Tanjung Puting National Park, Central Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo to join the Orangutan Foundation Volunteer Programme .  Back then, illegal logging of the national park was in full flow and because of this our group of 12 volunteers found it hard to keep our spirits up.  The whole reality of the situation came crashing down on us one day when we heard that an injured orangutan had been found close to where we were working.

Bankal in 2000 just after he was found.

Bankal, a sub-adult male aged about 11 years old, was found injured and weak. He had an open wound across his face and a horrible burn down the side of his face and neck. The cause of his injuries was all too clear, boiling oil had been thrown over him by illegal loggers. No one else would have done this.  It is probably one of the most heartbreaking things I have ever witnessed.  He was rushed to the Orangutan Care Centre and Quarantine Facility, run by Orangutan Foundation International, where he was given emergency surgery. 

Despite all he went through, Bankal remained incredibly gentle and trusting. During his recuperation, he developed a unique way of protecting himself from annoying insects, by using a blanket to cover his injured face. He would lift the blanket to allow people to feed him. 

Sadly, this was not the first tragic encounter Bankal had had with humans. It is likely that his mother was killed when he was still an infant.  He was caught, and may have been sold into the illegal pet trade.  Luckily he was discovered and confiscated by the Indonesian Authorities.  He then began the long, slow process of rehabilitation.  Bankal was a quick learner and his gentle, intelligent manner made him a favourite with everyone who cared for him.  He was first released into Tanjung Puting National Park and he became more and more independent and rarely needed to come to the feeding station.

Bankal recovered from his burn injuries and he was eventually released again in 2003, but this time into the Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve.  This June, almost 11 years after my first encounter with Bankal, I unexpectedly saw him again – this time in much happier circumstances.  I was leading a group of our supporters, from Steppes Discovery, which had been given permission by the Agency for Natural Resources Conservation (BKSDA) to visit the reserve for the afternoon.   As we walked through the forest an Orangutan Foundation staff member pointed out an orangutan on the forest floor. It was hard to make him out but when they said it was Bankal my heart jumped.  I was so thrilled to meet him again and see what a beautiful, magnificent adult male he had grown into.

Bankal in 2011 - photo by Jenny Aundrews

I am confident that Bankal will spend the rest of his life in the wild. His habitat is being protected and this we owe him. With a new vet programme in place we continue to monitor the orangutans that have been released.  With local communities, the Agency for Natural Resources Conservation and a local NGO, Yayorin we are safeguarding the future of this reserve for orangutans, forests and people.

Please consider a donation to help us continue our vital work.

Thank you,

Cathy

Orangutan Foundation

Orang-utan Holiday

Two of the three Orangutan Conservation Tours that we run with Steppes Discovery each year have now finished leaving the last one departing in September. Ruby, who joined the first trip in June and kept the group entertained with her yoga poses and cartoon drawings, wrote the piece below for Latest 7 magazine, www.thelatest.co.uk/7 . We thought we'd share it with you... Orang-utan Holiday

It has taken me several days to come down from my visit to Borneo.  I am completely orangutaned out. When I say that I was reading the same book on the plane back as the one I had started when flying out, and that the large bottle of gin L and I bought in Dubai was hardly touched at the end of the two weeks, it will give you some idea of how action packed this holiday was.

As we swanned up and down the Sekonyer river in a local boat (klotok) we were not allowed to just lie back and enjoy the surrounding jungle of the Tanjung Puting National Park. We had to look for proboscis and macaque monkeys in the trees and try and identify the various brightly coloured birds  and admire the  storks , geese and ducks  that flew overhead. Our guide, a beautiful young Indonesian man with high cheek bones and thick glossy black hair, had incredible eye sight and could see and identify a hornbill at five hundred yards, whereas I had trouble seeing it when we sailed past.

At Camp Leakey the ex-captive orangutans  were cheeky and not at all frightened of humans. Watching a mother swing through the trees with a tiny baby clinging to her back was just incredible. Later we were privileged to be able to visit the Lamandau (Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve) reserve where orangutans  are released or relocated and see the various community projects which help to protect the rain forest  by teaching the local people to earn a living  other than by logging or mining.

One day we had a five hour tramp through the jungle, tripping up on tree roots, sinking into bogs  and teetering along  tree branches like bad trapeze artists.  We were all geared up with rucksacks, water bottles,  mosquito repellent and trousers  tucked into our socks(against the leeches) while our lissom guide scampered ahead in flip flops!  It was magic when we managed to see some wild orangutans high up in the trees but I have never sweated so much in my life.  No time for a gin before collapsing into bed that night.

All the creepy crawlies seemed to be so much bigger in Indonesia -  ferocious red ants a good inch long, flying geckos and stick insects with large gossamer wings, cicadas which sounded like chain saws. I think that between us L and I were lucky to get away with only experiencing two leeches, one tummy bug and multiple mossie bites.  This has been one of the most exciting, uplifting and exhausting holidays ever.

Next week we'll share some beautiful images taken in Tanjung Puting National Park.

Painting Orangutans

Orangutan Foundation member, Jacha continues to raise vital fund and awareness for us through his wonderful art. Jacha’s latest activities involved a week-long visit to Merchiston Castle School, in Edinburgh.  Jacha, a full-time artist, is passionate about conservation and has a great love of animals. A trip with the Orangutan Foundation to Borneo had a deep affect on him and inspired his collection of orangutan paintings, which have sold worldwide. He has his own gallery space in the Alpine Coffee Shop  and Gallery, Betws-y-Coed, North Wales.

Photo above: Jacha and students.

The Merchiston school were thrilled to have Jacha for the week, taking art classes and speaking at the School assembly.   Jacha spent much time in the Art Centre, where his enthusiasm rubbed of on the pupils and staff alike.

Jacha also painted one of his 'orangutan' portraits so all were very interested to watch the piece evolve over two days. During Jacha's stay he spoke to the Fourth and Sixth Form about threats to orangutan habitat and hightlighted the impacts of the palm oil industry.

 The School also hosted ‘An Evening with Artist Jacha Potgieter’ which included dinner and live music for parents, Sixth Form pupils and staff.   The school and Jacha raised £1,500 for the Orangutan Foundation - a fantastic effort all round! 

Photo above: An evening with Jacha

A huge thank you to the school and Jacha for making a difference and raising vital funds and awareness.

Thanks for your support!

Orangutan Foundation

www.orangutan.org.uk

Sumatran Orangutan Twins

View video footage of the orangutans twins  (Sumatran orangutans give birth to twins) born at the start of 2011  to blind parents from our partners, the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme. Help the valuable work of this centre by adopting Wenda.

Thank you!

Orangutan Foundation