16 July 2017 – Today in #AnimalsofCikananga: Femi, Sumatran orang-utan (Pongo abelii) IUCN status: Critically Endangered
Femi was caught from the wild before she was 6 months old, most likely her mother was shot in front of her eyes. We can be pretty sure about this considering young Orang-utans stay directly with the mother at this age, and the mother will protect her child at all costs. This terrible trauma becomes more absurd as she was shipped to Java: Femi was found in a post-parcel at a bus station when travellers noticed the package moving. After opening Femi was found… This only shows how horrible the trade is, and makes clear why getting a Orang-utan as a pet is cruel for so many reasons.

As the Habitats of Orang-utans are getting smaller, due to palm oil, logging, mining and other human activities both Sumatran and Borneo’s Orang-utans as categorised as Critically endangered. Recent studies show that the prospects aren’t good: 10,000 Orang-utans at Borneo live in areas earmarked for oil palm production, if these areas are converted to oil palm plantations without changes in current practices, most of these 10,000 individuals will be destroyed and the steep population decline is likely to continue according to researchers of the University of Queensland.
Rescue work like we do helps, but of course will not solve the overall problem. Without protection of the habitats and the efforts to stop hunt for Orang-utans that end up in the illegal trade the future of the Orang-utan’s is on the line. Luckily there are also positive developments, like for instance on Sumatra where Femi belongs.
We are working on moving Femi back to Sumatra, together with Rosie who arrived in Cikananga shortly after her. There they will be in a specialized rehabilitation center for young Orang-utans, and if all goes well Femi and Rosie will return to the wild after a long rehabilitation process. Before all the paper work is done for trans location we provide Femi and Rosie the best possible care we can offer. We take them outside twice a day so Femi and Rosie can develop climbing an nesting skills high up the in trees. Considering their troubled past they are doing very well.
In the July and August of this year we share a series of photo’s we call #AnimalsofCikananga. With this series we hope to give some insights and backgrounds on the rescued animals that are here in Cikananga and are so typical for the many challenges wild animals face in Indonesia.
Of course, we also hope to raise some extra attention to the work we do for the animals, the –very often- tragic situations and hope to find some help, financially or otherwise. Please like, share, tag and tell your friends, and help us save the wildlife: www.wanicare.com/donate