Posted October 16, 2015 in All
In mid September, Foundation rescue teams were called out late at night to rescue a seven-year-old male orangutan found roaming about a local oil-palm plantation. Fortunately, the orangutan, now named Gagap, has already been successfully released into Camp Buluh in the Lamandau Wildlife Reserve. In September alone the Foundation undertook several rescues, with two orangutans rescued from community land, and also two crocodiles, two gibbons, three slow lorises, one eagle and one wildcat. The Foundation prides itself on being able to ensure that a wide variety of Indonesian wildlife is translocated into the safety of their protected reserve. Though the need for rescues is never good news, each translocation helps to rebuild these endangered populations in a habitat safe from the threats of oil-palm plantations and illegal activity.
In October, the Orangutan Foundation celebrates 25 years of achievements at the forefront of orangutan conservation in Borneo. Their work has made a real difference on the ground:
- They have reintroduced orangutans to establish a viable population in the Lamandau Wildlife Reserve in Central Kalimantan. More than 60 orangutan infants have been born here to reintroduced females in the past 15 years.
- They have safeguarded three critical orangutan populations from illegal logging, fires and conversion of forest to oil palm. This includes the largest wild population of orangutans outside a protected area, in Belantikan.
- They have provided alternative livelihoods for local people surrounding orangutan habitat.
To mark their 25th Anniversary, they are now launching an ambitious challenge to secure the future of 8,000 hectares of prime, critical orangutan habitat adjacent to the Lamandau Wildlife Reserve. The area (larger than Guernsey in the Channel Islands) would increase the size of the reserve by 15 per cent, bringing the total extent of its protected habitat to 64,000 hectares. Action for the Wild is proud to be supporting this important project so please consider donating here:
