In the vanishing lowland rainforests of Borneo, new research is underway to uncover and understand the unique cultural behaviors in wild orangutans. Photographer Tim Laman, researcher Cheryll Knott, and National Geographic Young Explorer Robert Suro have documented rarely-seen unique orangutan behaviors such as making pillows, fashioning umbrellas, and displaying regional greetings. With orangutan habitats disappearing […]
Tag: orangutans
5 men rescued, 1 killed, after 5-day Sumatran tiger standoff
Five men were finally rescued on Monday after spending five days trapped in a tree by a group of Sumatran tigers. A team of around 30 people rescued the men after several tiger tamers were able to lure the animals away using chants and mantras. The men were attacked inside Aceh’s Gunung Leuser National Park […]
Beaten and captured orangutan dies in Indonesia’s Aceh Province
An orangutan in Indonesia’s Aceh province died last Thursday after being beaten by residents of a local village attempting to capture the animal. The case casts a tragic spotlight on what is becoming an increasingly serious problem in the region, as habitat decline and weak law enforcement leave wild orangutans at risk of being killed […]
Tigers, orangutans, rhinos: Sumatra’s big mammals on the edge of extinction
Karman Lubis’s body was found near where he had been working on a Sumatran rubber plantation. His head was found several days later a mile away and they still haven’t found his right hand. He had been mauled by a Sumatran tiger that has been living in Batang Gadis National Park and he was one […]
Illegal wildlife trade flourishes in Sumatra
In a chilly rain on Sunday, in a town just a few kilometers beyond the edge of a protected Sumatran rainforest, a young orangutan sat perched on a piece of plywood and grabbed the metal wires of his tiny cage. He has sat in that cage for six months and, like dozens of other species […]
