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Headline: Wild Male Orangutan Is Moved To Safety By Rescuers In West Borneo

Caption: A wild male orangutan has been rescued and moved to safety in West Borneo. A combined team of the Wildlife Rescue Unit (WRU) from the Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) in West Borneo and International Animal Rescue (IAR) Indonesia has removed the adult orangutan from a plantation in the village of Tempurukan, in the District of Delta Pawan, in Ketapang District. The adult male, who was given the name John by his rescuers, was reported to be looking for food in the villagers’ plantation. He is likely to have come from Sentap Kancang Forest which borders directly with the village entrance to the plantation because most of the forest habitat was destroyed in 2019. Based on the results of aerial verification and monitoring, the distance between the residents' land and the Sentap Kancang Forest block was more than 4 kilometres. This meant that it was too far to shepherd the orangutan back into the forest. As a consequence, given the potential risk of human-orangutan conflict, the IAR Indonesia team and BKSDA Kalbar decided to translocate the orangutan to a better location in the River Benibis region. The landscape in that area is the same as the Sentap Kancang Forest and made up of peat swamp forest. It is quite a distance from the plantation and the township so the potential for conflict will be minimised. Survey results have shown that food for orangutans is plentiful in peat swamp forests. The orangutan was estimated to weigh about 50 kg and be aged between 15 and 20 years old. After carrying out a series of medical tests, the vet from IAR Indonesia who examined John confirmed that he was in good condition and did not have any abnormalities, wounds or injuries on his body. “Because the orangutan is healthy and does not require any medical treatment, we can translocate him directly to Sentap Kancang Forest," said Argitoe Ranting, IAR Indonesia’s Head of Programmes. Although the translocation of an orangutan to a safer forest is better for the individual, such transfers are only a temporary solution. Translocation does not tackle the root of the problem. The real problem lies in the conversion of forest and forest destruction. While orangutans are being translocated, if the destruction of the forests continues, human-orangutan conflicts will continue to occur. Threats to the orangutans’ survival have increased since huge fires hit most regions in Ketapang. Burning forests leave many orangutans without shelter and food. Inevitably they then go in search of food and come into conflict with local people when they enter their land. A high number of these encounters lead to conflict in which orangutans are harmed and sometimes humans too. Sadtata Noor Adirahmanta, Head of the BKSDA West, said in a written statement that conflicts with wildlife are a serious cause for concern. “Conservation efforts will be more effective with the support of all stakeholders, from central government as far as individual members of the public. Everyone should share concern about conservation and get involved, and everyone should be aware of the different roles each party plays in these efforts," said Sadtata on 2 October. It is estimated that there are 57,350 Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) in the habitat area of 181 692 km2 (PHVA, 2016), covering the area of West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, East Borneo, and Sarawak - Malaysia. In West Kalimantan, it is estimated that there are around 4,520 individuals of the sub- species Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus. Orangutans are protected by the Act based on the Regulation of the Minister of Environment and Forestry (LHK) No. 106 Year 2018. According to the IUCN, the conservation status of the Bornean orangutan is Critically Endangered (CR). "There is an urgent need to reduce conflict between humans and wildlife and I invite all components of society to come together jointly to protect and preserve wild species, particularly the Bornean orangutan," concluded Sadtata. Alan Knight OBE, IAR Chief Executive, added: “Translocating a wild orangutan is always the last resort for our team when other options have been exhausted. Nor is it a solution to the underlying problem which can only be addressed by the concerted efforts of us all to protect and preserve the remaining natural habitat of orangutans and other wildlife.” The rescue and relocation operation to move the orangutan to safety took place on Tuesday, 29 September.

Keywords: animal rescue,wild animal,male orangutan,nature,animal help,photo feature,photo story

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