ARE ORANGUTANS EMPATHETIC?
It was a usual day at the Nyaru Menteng forest school, where young orangutans were learning from one another while their human surrogate mothers looked on from below.
Do you remember our stories about Inung and Indie? This mother-infant pair was recently spotted by our Post-Release Monitoring (PRM) team near Camp Totat Jalu in the Bukit Batikap Protection Forest, Central Kalimantan.
Read also: INUNG SUPRISES PRM TEAM WITH BABY
Inung and Indie were observed foraging for cassava and guava near our camp. Despite getting close to us, Inung avoided entering the camp area and seemed unfazed when she spotted humans observing her. Mother Inung is known to be quite vigilant and wary of our team and oftentimes when she realises she has human eyes on her, she will move to a distance that makes her feel more comfortable and safe.
Baby Indie, meanwhile, is more focused on fun. Once Inung stops moving, Indie usually will leave her mother’s embrace and actively play by herself. However, the moment when mother Inung sets off into the trees again, Indie will quickly return to her arms to cling on and be carried through the forest. Indie seems to have adopted the same characteristics as her mother, she is not aggressive, but she remains very alert.
Indie (Photo Credit: Bagas Qurhananto)
Inung and Indie (Photo Credit: Bagas Qurhananto)
Inung and Indie both appear to be in good health and spend a lot of time engaged in foraging activities, as evidenced by the amount of guava fruit scraps left behind near the camp. While Inung and Indie did not attempt to enter the camp this time, their presence this close to humans has caused some concern among our PRM members as they do not want them to grow accustomed to human presence.
Hopefully, Inung and Indie will move deeper into the Bukit Batikap Protection Forest and continue to explore all of the natural wonders it has to offer.
It was a usual day at the Nyaru Menteng forest school, where young orangutans were learning from one another while their human surrogate mothers looked on from below.
Our Post-Release Monitoring (PRM) team at Camp Himba Pambelum in Bukit Baka Bukit Raya National Park (TNBBBR), Central Kalimantan, encountered Suci, a young female orangutan, three times back in 2023.
Kopral has been receiving treatment at the clinic since April 2023 due to wounds on the sole of his right foot and fungus between his toes.
