ORANGUTAN WARRIOR #3: MANG USUP

To continue our series on the amazing orangutan warriors who help the BOS Foundation to carry out our mission every day, allow us to tell you the story of another warrior who was given the ‘best technician’ award by PT. RHOI (Restorasi Habitat Orangutan Indonesia). PT. RHOI is a company that established by the BOS Foundation to acquire and manage a forest concession, to be used as an orangutan reintroduction site.

Muhammad Usup, known by his friends and colleagues as Mang Usup, has been working as a technician for the BOS Foundation since 2012. He joined our Post-Release Monitoring (PRM) team after hearing about a job opening from a relative, and applied for the position. He undertook training in observation methods and ethology - the study of animal behaviour - at the Ragunan Zoo, in Jakarta, and then went directly to the Kehje Sewen Forest to begin working as a member of our (PRM) team there. Mang Usup began his work with the BOS Foundation during the very first year that we started to conduct orangutan releases after a break that lasted for more than a decade. Today, his many years of experience and practice, make him a highly-skilled and valuable asset in the orangutan conservation effort. 

Mang Usup once resigned from his duties, due to personal issues. However, an unending love for orangutans and his work saw him return to the Kehje Sewen Forest after a 6-month break. He considers the work he does for PT. RHOI as his true calling. 

Read also: ORANGUTAN WARRIOR #2 – IMAM GHOZALI

In the forest, our PRM teams not only monitor the progress of released orangutans, but also conduct phenology surveys and forest patrols, carry out camp maintenance, and support the release of new orangutans from the rehabilitation centres. 

Mang Usup has had many memorable experiences while on the job; like the time he was on patrol with his colleagues and they bumped into Mona. Released in 2013, Mona is a female orangutan who is unafraid of humans. It was little wonder then, that Mona bravely approached the PRM team members on this occasion to show her displeasure at their presence. The team quickly retreated to give Mona her space, but one unlucky technician was not quick enough, and Mona grabbed him by the leg. 

Thanks to a quick distraction from another technician, Mona released the other and the team was able to continue on their way. While there are no records of wild orangutans attacking people, that particular moment taught Mang Usup an important lesson about rehabilitated orangutans who had experienced past trauma at the hands of humans. He stated, “It showed me that we should never underestimate rehabilitated orangutans. No matter how long they have known humans, in general they are just like any other wild animal fighting to survive, and they can be unpredictable. We shouldn’t be overconfident. But if we are alert at all times and comply with our SOP, then we should be fine”. 

Read also: ORANGUTAN WARRIOR #1 – HANNI

Another interesting experience that Mang Usup cherishes is the opportunity to observe orangutans as they live in their natural habitat, especially that of adult females with their offspring. The way that orangutan mothers care for their babies touches Mang Usup deeply. “They act pretty much like a human mother with her child,” he reflects. 

Mang Usup hopes that both PT. RHOI and the BOS Foundation will achieve even greater success in the future and that the PRM teams continue to receive the support they need to continue their work, providing vital data and reports from the forest. He also sincerely wishes that the released orangutans will thrive in the wild and help create a new generation - to avoid extinction and to keep protecting the quality of Borneo’s forests.