Orangutan Foundation

Category: Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Lamdandau Vet, Orangutans, Uncategorized | Date: Jul 29 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

Thanks for your recent questions and sorry for the slow reponse!

News straight from the field is that Lady Di is healthy and is well enough to be released this Saturday!  I visited her last week and took these pictures.

Borneo female orangutan -Lady Di and infant (photo:Orangutan Foundation) 

Dr Fikri and the camp staff have taken really good care of Lady Di and while she has had to spend nights in a cage so that she doesn’t go off and cause further damage to herself, the staff let her out during the day and they keep a close watch on her! 

Regarding who is the father of Sawit’s offspring. We know that it’s a wild male, but he doesn’t stay around camp. Dr Fiqri is delighted to report that Sawit has given birth to a healthy baby girl (Sawit was more pregnant than we suspected!). Our Field Assistants are looking for name suggestions for Sawit’s new infant. It has to start with S and to be Indonesian. Please leave suggestions as a comments.

Thanks,

June

Programmes Manager

Tags: Borneo, forests, Orangutans, Released

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Category: Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Oil Palm Plantations, Uncategorized | Date: Jul 28 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

Lamandau Ecosystem Conservation Partnership (LECP) recently helped facilitate meetings in order to increase protection to the Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve Buffer Zone Area.

 Meeting between government and oil-palm companies faciliated by Lamandau Ecosystem Conservation Partnership (funded by the EU).

Finally, on July 13 2009, the Indonesian Government Agency for the Conservation of Natural Resources of Central Borneo (BKSDA) and two oil palm plantation companies, which have their plantation area close to or on the border of Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve area, signed the Memorandum of Understanding and Memorandum of Agreement, witnessed by Kotawaringin Barat and Sukamara District Government. The two companies are Sungai Rangit, Co. Ltd. and Bumitama Gunajaya Abadi, (BGA) Co. Ltd. 

According to Chief of BKSDA of Central Borneo, Mr. Mega Hariyanto, the memorandum is  the first Memorandum of Understanding in Indonesia on a conservation area’s buffer zone, that has been established by government and private sector.

The companies, BGA and Sungai Rangit, are willing not to plant and do any business activities within a radius of 500 meters outside of Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve buffer area. This is also very important as the reserve is a government designated orangutan release site. 

Below is a translated quotation from a local newspaper, Borneonews, on the memorandum assignation:  

BKSDA and Company made MoU on Conservation of Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve Thursday, July 23, 2009 |

‘Borneo News Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve which is situated at Kotawaringin Barat, Central Borneo is a conservation area which needs a protection. Related to its conservation, the management of Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve under coordination of the Indonesian Government Agency for the Conservation of Natural Resources has made a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with two companies which operated side by side with Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve.  Namely, Bumitama Guna Jaya Abadi (BGA), Co. Ltd which is situated at Kotawaringin Barat and Sungai Rangit, Co. Ltd. which is situated at Sukamara District are the two companies.  There are six important points that concluded within the agreement. Which are: BGA and Sungai Rangit are prohibited to do land clearing for plantation or any purposes in surrounding Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve.  BGA and Sungai Rangit is willing not to plant and doing any business activities within radius of 500 meters outside of Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve buffer area.  Both BGA and Sungai Rangit have to cooperate and accompanied by BKSDA to prevent forest fire in surrounding Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve. BGA and Sungai Rangit are obligated to make a report to BKSDA on the existence of orangutan and other protected wildlife if they were entering in plantation area.  BGA and Sungai Rangit also support BKSDA of Central Borneo socialization activity to community, and both companies should report to BKSDA of Central Borneo if there are any indication of illegal activity arround of Lamandau Wildlife Reserve appears.  Chief of BKSDA of Central Borneo Mega Harianto explained that one of reason to establish the agreement is issue on emission reduction caused by global warming that will harm environment.  ”This understanding and agreement is an initial point in building socialization on environment awareness surrounding Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve and both companies” Mega said.  Continued by Mega, the agreement is necessary established since management of Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve has been doing more effort to handle problems within its area, compared to manage Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve natural resources it self.  

In the other side, Second Assistance Regional Secretary of Kotawaringin Barat Regency, M. Sayrifudin emphasized that rules on area are necessary built by government at province or higher level in order to keep Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve from residence.’

Thank you,

Astri

Orangutan Foundation Liaison Office

Tags: buffer zones, forests, Indonesia, oil palm

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Category: Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Lamdandau Vet, Orangutans, Rehabilitation, Uncategorized | Date: Jul 24 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

July is a month which makes those of us working in Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve happy because one orangutan has been born. Dedek, gave birth to a son and this is her second son after Delon. Based on information from staff in Camp JL, Dedek gave birth on July 10, 2009. Camp JL staff first saw Dedek, with her son, under the feeding platform around 3pm.

Dedek and her newborn son born on July 10th 2009. Photo:Orangutan Foundation 

Dedek’s son looks well. We estimated that Dedek gave birth during the day because in the morning Dedek still came to feeding platform.

Newborn male orangutan.  Photo: Orangutan Foundation

Before Dedek was pregnant and during pregnancy she always played with Jalas, dominant male orangutan in JL Camp. Dedek never plays with other males only Jalas. Other male orangutans are afraid of Jalas. So we predict that Dedek’s son is Jalas’s son. Dedek and her son are well . Dedek was released in October 2002 at Camp JL. Camp staff have not decided on a name yet but it is likely to be Indonesian and staring with “D”!

Please support our work protecting these orangutans and their forest home helping to ensure they spend the rest of their life in the wild.

Thank you Tal B, Brigitta S and Matthew K for your monthly donations.

Thank you,

Dr Fiqri

Tags: Borneo, orangutan, Orangutan Foundation, reproduction

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Category: Belantikan Conservation Programme, Local Communities, Orangutans, Volunteer Programme, Yayorin | Date: Jul 21 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

You’re probably aware that the Orangutan Foundation runs a Volunteer Programme (see Categories for past posts) 

This year’s programme has been different in that we are working closely with our partners Yayorin on a water purification project in the Belantikan Arut region of Central Kalimantan. Belantikan is home to the largest remaning population of orangutans in an unprotected area and is a biodiversity hotspot. 

Our strategy involves community empowerment, education and agricultural management to help villagers protect their forests. This year’s Volunteer Programme fits in by working with the local communities and further improving our relationship with them, whilst gaining their respect and providing villagers with a cleaner, safer water-source.  Each team will work in a different village. At each village, a natural spring has been identified as an alternative source to the river which is currently used for transport, bathing, washing and as a toilet. The teams build a dam to harness the spring water and then a pipe system takes it down to the village.

Climbing back up to the jetty after a hard days work 

Team 1 ended on 13^th June and the village of Nanga Matu (home to Yayorin’s basecamp) now has taps providing clean water from a natural hillside spring on the other side of the river. The construction was no mean feat and massive thanks go to the hardworking volunteers and Volunteer Co-ordinators who made the project succeed.   Team 2 is already well into their work in the village of Bintang Mengalih and I was there to see the project commence. The team are living in a small community house where personal space is non- existent, and the movements and activities of us visitors is of most interest to the locals.

Volunteers are treated to a traditional party by a local village 

Whilst there, I encountered leeches, a scorpion, poisonous millipedes and lots of peat. Bathing is in a nearby river and we dug a long-drop toilet behind the accommodation. Before work began we had to go the village hall and formally meet the village head and some local villagers.

Local children were keen to “hang out” with the volunteers. 

The village were so appreciative of our work that they provided us with four local people to help on the project. They really were very excited and grateful about the work of Orangutan Foundation.  By 8^th August Bintang Mengalih will have clean water to drink at the turn of a tap!!

Thanks, 

Elly (UK Volunteer Co-ordinator)

Tags: Borneo, communities, orangutan, Volunteer

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Category: Orangutans, Uncategorized | Date: Jul 16 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

A recent newspaper article about orangutans in water encouraged us to dig out some old pictures taken of orangutans in water. Some go as far back as 1986. We thought we’d share them with you.

Orangutan wading through swamp water

The photo below was taken earlier in the year and is of a female orangutan called Siswi.

Tags: behaviour, Orangutans, water

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Category: Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Local Communities, Orangutan Foundation Staff | Date: Jul 09 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

Recently the Mobile Education and Library Unit (MELU), from our EC funded Lamandau Project, visited a local school to give a lesson about forest and orangutan conservation. More than 200 students of SMP 7 Middle First School in Pasir Panjang Village, Central kalimantan assembled in front of their school.  

 Enthusiasm was etched on their face as they listened to what Fadlik, our educator, had to say. The school yard, though clean, was barren with no big trees growing. So under the hot morning sun, Fadlik enthusiastically invited all the students to learn and understand the important of the forest and orangutan.    

Many questions were asked by the children including why forest and orangutan must be conserved, and what was the difference between orangutan and monkey?

Teachers watched the interaction between Fadlik and their students with interest. The teachers said their students must learn about conservation.  We hope the student’s love for their forests, their orangutans and other wild animals will increase with these efforts.

Tags: Borneo, conservation, education, Indonesia, Orangutans

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Category: Orangutan Foundation Staff | Date: Jul 03 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

Stephen blogged about the female orangutan Sawit and her adopted son Andi, back in January 2008, when they were released into Lamandau Wildlife Reserve. Andy was found injured in April and it is thought he was attacked by a male orangutan. He has been treated and kept in the quarantine enclosure at Camp Rusak. Having successfully recovered from his injuries he was given the okay at the end of May and he is now back in the forest and is doing well. We hope he will stay out off trouble!

Another piece of good news is that Andy’s adopted mother, Sawit, is four months pregnant.

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