HANDSOME HERCULES NOW LIVES ON THE ISLAND!

Our pre-release islands are tracts of natural forest where our Forest School graduates go through the last phase of their rehabilitation process. On the islands the orangutans live more independently in order to prepare them to become a true wild orangutans and live in the real forest.

On our pre-release islands, the orangutans will taste freedom, like that of a real wild orangutan. They no longer need to go back to their enclosures each night, instead they are free to build their nests in the trees. During this stage, their interactions with humans are significantly reduced. Technicians only provide food supplements twice a day at specific points – compared to Forest School where the orangutans receive food 5 times a day. The rest of the time, the orangutans have to forage independently.

This is the reason why the survival skills we build during their pre-release is an important criteria to determine whether an orangutan is eligible to enter our pre-release islands. Other criteria includes health, social interaction, behaviour, etc.

The Great Hercules
Hercules is a 23 year old male orangutan who weighs a staggering 95 kg. He has big cheekpads and a handsome face. His thick red brownish hair and beard make him look dashing. Young Hercules was confiscated by the Conservation and Natural Resources Authority (BKSDA) from a resident in Jakarta and arrived in Nyaru Menteng on September 28, 2002 when he was 12.

Hercules has eyesight problems. His right eye is permanently blind which meant he lived within our Nyaru Menteng clinic enclosure for quite a while, constraining him from living free on one of our islands with the other orangutans.
For the sake of animal welfare, health is one of the critical requirements for an orangutan to be eligible to live on an island. But Hercules, with his physical shortcomings, now has received the chance to be out of his enclosure and join the free life with his friends on the island.

Another Chance for Hercules
Wednesday (June 26), Hercules finally tasted freedom on the Island. He was translocated from his Clinic enclosure to Kaja Island, one of the pre-release islands run by the BOS Foundation - Nyaru Menteng.

From Nyaru Menteng, Hercules departed towards Sei Gohong in a big travel cage after being sedated beforehand. From Sei Gohong, Hercules was transported by a motor boat to Kaja Island, safely within a travel cage.

The cage door was opened at a beach on Kaja Island. Once it was opened, the big male orangutan didn’t immediately step out. He was probably still a little disorientated and readusting his eyesight. He looked a bit confused seeing the unobstructed view which was laid before his eyes, as opposed to the view from behind his enclosure’s bars.

Soaking up the freedom that was waiting in front him, Hercules stepped out of his travel cage. He sat for while on the sand and took a good look around. He moved his head to the left, right and to the back, and moved his limbs as if he was warming up after his muscles were stiff from living in an enclosure for such a long time. After warming up, Hercules confidently walked into the forest on Kaja Island. It was his first time of being able to move so freely after living in an enclosure.

For His Happiness
Long discussions and debates over the years have taken place within the internal body of the BOS Foundation about Hercules, before we finally made the careful considerate decision to move Hercules to an Island. The medical team, management, expert primatologists, scientific board, and those who are concerned with orangutan conservation were divided over the pros and cons of letting Hercules live on the Island.

Those who expressed disagreement based their judgement on health, safety and welfare issues. Those who supported Hercules being moved to the Island argued that adult male orangutans like Hercules will live happier in his true habitat despite facing the risks and challenges. Through these discussions and deliberations, the majority finally agreed that Hercules should have the chance to live freely in nature, under constant and intense observation from the Nyaru Menteng Team.

Hope for Hercules and His Friends
At our rehabilitation centers, sadly we are never short of orangutans who suffer from disabilities due to accident, disease, or even abuse. For the sake of their survival, orangutans with such conditions are bound to live at the rehabilitation center for quite a while until their condition has improved. Even worse, it is possible that they must spend the rest of their lives inside an enclosure should their disabilities totally prevent them from living independently in nature. In such unfortunate cases, it is impossible for those orangutans to be released back into the wild and live with healthy orangutans; they simply wouldn’t be able to cope with the competition of living among the healthy.

It is heartbreaking to see those orangutans who don’t have the chance to live in  the wild due to their disabilities. However, their true habitat is the best place for them, instead of within enclosures. More precisely, they need special and safe areas; safe from the competition with stronger orangutans and human threats.

Despite his physical impairment, we chose to let Hercules free on the island because he has convinced us that he is up to the task. Thanks to his physical build, and even though we have released him on an island inhabited by other orangutans, they will not disturb Hercules.

The Nyaru Menteng Medical and Technician team are committed to intensively monitor the condition of orangutans with special needs such as Hercules in the wild. While we are still facing the challenge of finding more suitable forest as wild orangutan habitat for our releasable orangutans, we have an equally big hope to build a safe sanctuary for orangutans with physical disabilities. This will give hope for Hercules, and more of our orangutans just like Hercules to be able to live in nature as they should.