A worker feeds orangutans at the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation in this file photo. Eleven endangered orangutans were released into the wild in Central Kalimantan on Saturday. (Antara Photo) |
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A total of
11 orangutans aged from 8 to 24 years old were released into the wild at
Batikap forest in Murung Raya district of Central Kalimantan on Saturday. It
was the second release by the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation, which was
also joined by the provincial forestry agency and the local administration.
The
foundation aims to return 49 orangutans to the jungle this year, foundation
spokeswoman Meirini Sucahyo told BeritaSatu on Saturday.
“There are
25 orangutans left that will be released in the next months ,” she said.
The
Saturday release was performed by two teams. Beforehand they were tested for
TB, hepatitis, HIV, herpes and other sexually transmitted diseases as a
precaution. The first team transported Bang Jagur, Bunga, Kali, Mama Tata and
Tata in the morning and the second team went with Ompong, Jojo, Heldi, Komeng,
Yaya and Ika.
“They are
all anesthetized first and transported on helicopters,” Meirini said, adding
that 15 people were involved in the release.
Afterwards,
the foundation tracks the animals two to three times a week in the jungle. The
monitoring team will observe for
behavioral changes among the primates and see how they are adapting to their
new environment.
Experts say
there are about 50,000 to 60,000 orangutans left in the wild, 80 percent of
them in Indonesia and the rest in Malaysia.
They are
faced with the threat of extinction from poaching and the rapid destruction of
their forest habitat, driven largely by palm oil and paper plantations.
Conservationists
in the region have been raising awareness about the plight of the endangered
orangutans for some time.
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