CARING FOR BABIES, THEN SETTING THEM FREE
On a trip last month to Sepilok, CNA learnt about the painstaking work of rehabilitating orangutans as well as some bright spots in conservation efforts.
The centre has not received any cases of orangutans being kept as pets in the last three years.
“Maybe it is also because of public awareness and people know that orangutans are protected. They don’t keep them as pets and they let the orangutan live freely. There is less human and wildlife conflict,” said Dr Nabila Sarkawi, the centre’s resident vet.
The number of orangutan babies sent to the centre has decreased over the years, she said. “We have seen this trend since 2021. We are not sure why as no scientific research has been done to look at the factors.”
The centre received one baby orangutan last year, but Dr Nabila did not share figures for prior years.
Babies usually end up at the centre after their mothers are believed to have been injured, or have died.
“Baby orangutans live with their mothers up to the age of six or seven years. If they were found (alone) below that age, we have to take care of them and teach them how to survive,” said Dr Nabila.
Babies are looked after round the clock until they are old enough to learn basic skills, such as climbing and foraging, in an indoor nursery. This area of the centre is not accessible to the public.
Once they are bigger, they “graduate” to an outdoor nursery where they mingle with older orangutans and learn skills such as building nests.
Human contact here is minimised, although there is a viewing area for visitors behind a glass pane. The apes are also free to roam in the nearby forest.
They are released once they have adjusted to forest life and demonstrated satisfactory survival skills.
