Forest Restoration with the Orangutan Information Centre (OIC)

Paul Daley from Australia is spending a year with the OIC’s forest restoration team in northern Sumatra – here we share his first report from the field, and some of his fantastic images, bringing this work to life!

Observing free living wild orangutans in their Forest homes is an absolute life-altering earth-grounding experience. There is a grace and humbleness to our gentle tree-dwellin’ cousins, whose very existence provides a living window into our not-so-distant forest-bound past..

 

It’s obvious why we are so fascinated by orangutans! They are the only Great Ape species, apart from Humans, surviving on this side of the world (South-East Asia). Chimps, Bonobos and Gorillas  never left Africa!

 

Perhaps our fascination for orangutans stems from a naturally anthropocentric world-view which makes perfect sense when you think about it… we share 96% of the same genetic code and have a recent ancestor just 10-14 million years ago when our evolutionary paths ‘diverged’.

I suppose up until now in our evolutionary journey this human-centered world-view has been absolutely essential to our survival! Can’t feed your family if you’r protesting against hunting endangered Wooly Mammoths!! (Mammuthus primigenius).

 

What we are witnessing now is a shift from the narrower human-centered world-view to a more holistic ‘bio-centric’ perspective that recognizes the inherent value of all living beings which form the living biosphere.

Indeed, I sometimes feel like the focus on our red-haired cousins overshadows all the forgotten species of the rainforest who are often equally rare and endangered compared to the more charismatic mega-fauna which dominate conservation efforts (Tigers, Rhino, Elephant).

 

Check out this awesome article ‘Forgotten species: the overlooked Sumatran striped rabbit’ describing one of the many rare and threatened species found in Sumatran rainforest.What a funky little critter! I had no idea they existed until recently.

The beauty of orangutan conservation is that if we protect and restore orangutan habitat, we’re automatically conserving a huge range of species which make up the super-organism of a forest eco-system (not just animals.. also plants, fungi, bacteria, the whole web).

This is why we call orangutans ‘Flagship’ species, they are ambassadors for the entire eco-system which form their habitat and can teach us humans so much about our own inter-dependency with ecological communities!And now reporting from Indonesia…

First Meeting with the National Park and Restoration Field Staff

 

I’ve finally arrived in Sumatra for my 12 month AYAD assignment with the Orangutan Information Centre (OIC)and have just spent 2 weeks based inside the national park living with the Restoration team in the field cabin now surrounded by quickly regenerating rainforest! (with primary forest just a few hundred meters away)

Life in the Forest – Top floor of the Restoration Hut – aka ‘The Jungle Penthouse’ 

The team are successfully restoring 100’s of hectares of degraded lands inside Gunung Leuser National Park which were illegally cleared by an Oil Palm company… Finally I get to see with my own eyes this amazing project in action.

As well as restoring forest ecology, the team have successfully re-established the authenticity of National Park boundaries. By working with local communities the Primary Forest within Gunung Leuser National Park is now a secured habitat for Orangutan and many other endangered species (including Elephants, Tigers and perhaps Sumatran Striped Rabbits).

Below are some photos taken from the OIC restoration site in Gunung Leuser National Park. In the foreground is regenerating rainforest and in the background is the ‘Primary’ forest.

Every morning we hear Orangutan, Gibbons, Hornbills and Argus Pheasants calling from the intact primary forest.. and not once have I heard the sound of chainsaws or bulldozers! Success!

BEFORE (2012 August)

 

AFTER (September 2013)

 

The Restoration Cabin ‘Before and After’

 

 

Panut Hadisiswoyo, Founder and Director of OIC planting a Tree with his son. Walking the talk and educating the next generation on environmental stewardship.

 

As well as continuing to propagate plants in the nurseries and tree planting activities we are working together in improving the nursery systems and propagation methodologies as well as critical monitoring of biodiversity recovery.

 

Thanks to a generous donation from school teachers in Sydney, Australia, we now have 5 high quality HD camera traps for biodiversity monitoring.Stay tuned for biodiversity reports and field updates!

The health of the regenerating forest is self-evident. Absolute abundance where life creates the conditions that sustain more life! For me this is the real magic of forest restoration, an evolved  mechanism for ‘self-healing’ the eco-system (or colonizing degraded sites such as volcanoes).

In restoration ecology we are literally working ‘with’ nature!

Already species are beginning to flower and produce seeds, attracting seed-dispersing bird and mammal species which diversifies and speeds up the regeneration and habitat recovery process, it becomes a positive feedback loop and where nature does most of the work and the site is usually ‘captured’ (closed canopy) within a few years.

The project gets a lot of visitors, locally and from around the world, who come to support the project and learn about Forest Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation.

That’s it from me, I hope to update my blog regularly and share with you all stories from inside the national park.. including any new species from the camera traps survey!

If you would like to support this work, you can donate to plant a tree (or 5!) via SaveArmstrong.com – in your name or as a gift.

Orangutan Adventures

The Gunung Leuser National Park is one of the only places in the world where you can still see the Sumatran orangutan in the wild. They share these forests with a whole host of other wildlife: gibbons, elephants, hornbills, Thomas leaf monkeys, macaques, sunbears, and the elusive Sumatran tiger are just a handful of the thousands of animal and plant species found in this unique World Heritage ecosystem. Deborah Williams from Alaska writes about her recent trek in search of the red ape…

For our vacation, we wanted to visit our red-haired relatives, the only ones who live in trees. With his red hair, my husband Rance always had a special affinity for orangutans; and I have always been fascinated by our fellow primates.

 

Deborah next to some huge buttress roots in the Gunung Leuser National Park.

To our delight we not only experienced many orangutans, but also Thomas leaf monkeys, 5-foot monitor lizards, rhinoceros hornbills, Lar gibbons, long-tailed macaques, glorious butterflies, extraordinary flora, abundant cool and clear rivers and streams, fabulous Indonesian food, and amazing Indonesian guides. The operative word is experience because all senses are involved: the Tarzan sound-track jungle sounds, the earthy and pungent smells, the heat and humidity, the verdant green views near and far, and even the tastes.

From our balcony in Bukit Lawang, a lively and charming village situated across the river that demarcates the national park, we could look across the river and watch bright orangutans making nests in the tree tops or slowly swinging between the trees, while dozens of mischievous long-tailed macaque monkeys made their way from the park to village.

There used to be a rehabilitation center for orangutans near the park entrance, and since there is still a feeding platform for a few orangutans who have not yet made a complete transition into the wild, visitors are likely to see orangutans during the twice daily feeding periods. Over time, most rehabilitated orangutans have ventured deeper into the park.

 

Deborah ventured deep into the park for a chance to spot its unique wildlife.

Our guides’ keen eyesight, hearing, and sense of smell ensured that we saw the jungle’s hidden treasures. We discovered a group of the stunning punk-haired Thomas’ leaf monkeys, a well camouflaged peacock, and a 5-foot monitor lizard swimming down a stream. We smelled the sweet resin from the towering damar tree, and learned about many other of the over 4,000 amazing plant species in the park. The views are magnificent and although the hiking is challenging, quitting was not an option. The jungle and its inhabitants were simply too compelling.

Two of our favorite sounds were the hoot-laugh of the rhinoceros hornbill and the distinctive call of the Lar gibbon. We hiked up and down cliffs to reach these elusive and amazing animals to catch a glimpse of them before they flew away with immense wings (the mate-for-life hornbills) or flitted quickly across tree tops (the Lar gibbon). Blue, yellow, red, orange, white, black, and purple butterflies were everywhere, especially near the rivers and streams. At night, the fireflies illuminated the sky with dancing points of light.

The star attractions, of course, were the orangutans, the largest tree-inhabiting mammal on earth. They are stronger, more graceful, and more emotionally intense than we had anticipated; and we quickly appreciated their name, which in Malay means ‘person of the forest’. At up to 175 pounds, with an arm span of almost 7 feet, orangutans are stunningly impressive, especially with their long orange-red hair in sharp contrast to the verdant green around them.  The only great ape to live in trees, orangutans share 96.4% of our genetic heritage. When you look into their eyes, this common heritage is deeply felt.

The food on our trek was utterly delicious, and each night we enjoyed an Indonesian feast of 6 or 7 local dishes — like pumpkin curry, spicy fish and tofu, fried tapioca chips, sautéed local ferns and shoots, and other delicacies.

On the last day of our jungle trek, after visiting a beautiful waterfall, we loaded our gear into inner tubes and rafted down the sparkling, cool river to Bukit Lawang.

 

Sparkling, clear, cool rivers are a welcome sight.

On our final morning, across the river, two orangutans gracefully swung from tree-to-tree before starting to make a nest. Given the timing, there was a sense of “remember us please,” which could be interpreted as “do not let us go extinct on your watch.”

There are many ways to help improve the odds that our red-haired cousins will survive, including injecting tourism dollars into the local economies to provide livelihoods for Indonesians. Without deliberate action, the Sumatran orangutan will become extinct, and we will have destroyed the first great ape. We can do better; and by visiting Gunung Leuser National Park we can have an extraordinary time doing it.

If you would like to follow in Deborah’s footsteps, join an SOS expedition to the breathtaking Leuser forests. Click here for departure dates and booking information.

Reflections on Sumatra by Craig Jones

My two week trip ends tomorrow (Sunday). I’ve had a wonderful trip. A rollarcoster of a journey both physical and emotional. The scale of the issues in Sumatra have overwhelmed me, to read about them is one thing but to be here and see them is another thing. I love wildlife thats what I do and love, capture nature’s beauty. I have seen things here that have upset me, angered me and my only way to help these voiceless animals is to show the world my images and with the help of SOS that’s what I intend on doing.

I already miss the Orangutans, their peacefulness, their human like behaviours. I have made a firm commitment to myself and SOS that I will help our closest relative. It’s easy to blame the palm oil but for me the blame lays with the government here, it’s they that don’t protect the national parks, it’s they that grant logging licenses, it’s they that allow the vile palm plantations to grow and increase, destroying the rainforests.

Global warming, weather patterns and much more are all affected by the brutal culture of deforestation that’s happening here in this region. Those wet and cold summers all down to changing weather, greenhouse gas and so on. So if the orangutans’ survival is not something you’re interested in then the changing weather we are getting should be.

Sumatran Orangutans are afforded the highest protection in law, these species are classified as critically endangered by the world conservation union – IUCN yet they are killed, kidnapped and poached, shot at, trapped and hurt each day in Sumatra. They are in the way, their home of protected park is being eroded around the edges with illegal logging each week and the Indonesian government does nothing to protect them or their homes.

I have seen burning of land and only yesterday I was taken to an area of primary forest inside the national park that has been cut down and burned. A westerner like myself, with a camera at such a sensitive site could have meant trouble for me should I have been compromised but it was my choice, my decision to see this place so I can show what’s happening. 300 year old trees lying on the ground, plants upside down still clinging to them as I filmed and photographed this I just couldn’t get my head around it. The place looked like a massive crime scene and in the distance I could hear a lone bang of an axe as someone deep inside the forest was felling yet another tree.

My last photo here before I head home is of a female with a baby in her arms, she’s wild and outside of the park in an area where 18 Orangutans are hanging on. Darma my guide and truly amazing man showed me this area. She paused here for a spilt second having seen me, its wasn’t until I looked through the viewfinder I could see she only had one eye. As I took a couple of photos I was saying to myself “you’re alright I’m not going to hurt you”, silly I know but I could see she was jumpy as I had caught her out here. She was scared, fearful of another attack maybe, I sensed her unease at seeing me.

My long lens also looked like a long gun which added to her nervousness. She moved and soon after disappeared back into this area where they are safe for the moment. Once I reviewed the image I showed it to the vet and he told me it’s probably through being shot, he then saw another pellet under her right eye, embedded into her skill, which confirmed she had lost her eye through being shot at, probably by a farmer who had taken the land she once lived and hunted in.

I just sat and zoomed in, this image for me sums up just how these amazing and enduring animals are treated by those that see them as a problem or a pest in Sumatra, how we as humans can do this to another living creature is beyond comprehension for me. I’ve cried, I’ve got mad, I’ve asked why so many times during my time here, I’ve been given amazing access by SOS to the work that’s going on here, I’ve seen the cruelty, the destruction for myself and you cannot fail to become angry.

The world really needs to see what’s going on and put pressure on this government to end this annihilation of the Orangutans and their habitat. If not these animals will disappear forever within a decade or sooner should current trends continue and then the forests will slowly die and the global warming, greenhouse gases and much more will impact every single one of us. If anyone thinks this is not the case take a flight out here and you’ll see what’s coming our way weather wise, with the sun being blocked out once they start the fires here again -something I’ve witnessed.

Never in all my life have I seen what I have seen out here, I’m moved to tears and all I want to do is help and go back into the jungles to see these guys. I’ve lived rough, washed with rainwater, climbed trees on ropes to gain a level viewpoint on them, joining them in their world on their terms, I’ve sweated in the intense heat and humidity to photograph these amazing animals.

I’ve seen wild, injured, ex pet Orangutans. I’ve witnessed a rescue in which mum and son where pulled apart while she was checked out by the vet. Images that I hope with the help of SOS will move the world to act.

I’ve hated mankind while I have been here but at the same time loved it, seeing the wonderful people that are helping these animals on a shoe string budget: cars that need repairing, equipment that needs updating. They have only just got a full time vet yet they work weeks and weeks sleeping on floors helping the Orangutans.

I am convinced that without the pressure from the few charities on the ground in Sumatra alot more Orangutans and forest would have vanished by now. And it’s to them all I give thanks and also Helen from SOS who has helped me to get out here and work alongside the teams. A trip I will never forget and its been an honour for me as a person to see these truly beautiful animals we share so much of our DNA with. I only hope the world can act and save them before its to late.

Thank you for reading everyone

Message from Craig Jones in Sumatra

Hello! It’s Monday evening in Sumatra as I type and I have just enjoyed my first proper shower for 8 days and its was magic! I am in a hotel in Medan after a truly amazing 7 days so far. The Orangutans are so beautiful, just so beautiful, the devastation of this country though is hard to believe once you see it. The palm plantations are massive and just everywhere, heart breaking to see.

Tomorrow I head out again until Saturday photographing different projects etc. My first three days in Sumatra were spent in and around Gunung Leuser National Park with Darma. A brilliant and very passionate naturist. Sleeping in a small hut and washing with rain water from a tank and a bucket. Have to say it wakes you up though. We walked 20km a day, up and down among primary rainforest, with my kit at around 70 pounds and daytime temp of 35c and the humidity at around 70-80% its truly been the toughest conditions I’ve faced photographic wise. The air you breath out feels like the same air you breath in is the best way I can explain, or go run a bath, close the door when you leave, go back after ten minutes, and thats what its like…

But every ounce of graft and sweat has been worth seeing these amazing Orangutans. For two days we tracked the Orangutans in the national park seeing a mixture of rescued ones and wild and on the third day Darma took me to a place where 18 Orangutans live and are hanging on. I saw some wonderful moments but more on that when I get back.
After those days with Darma that I truly loved and was sad to leave him and his family that had looked after me we headed to another place but on the way we had a call and everything changed. A female and her baby were trapped in an area known to SOS and OIC the guys on the ground here. I found myself on the way north to an area thats totally ravaged by palm oil. We stayed in a local’s house, almost ten of us sleeping on the floor on mats. I watched and photographed the vet and staff getting ready for the resue before getting a little sleep. Dawn broke and we were up, coffee is amazing in Sumatra one of their many exports. The team went through what everyone was going to do just before the final drop off as we all prepared to see if the female and her baby could be moved and in turn saved from the vile landscape that had surrounded her. The team were successful, but its was hard to watch as the Orangutans became very stressed. This is the very last resort the team have and try all other possibilities beforehand. Hearing their dislike and upset is tough and in the end they managed to dart the female and she dropped from the tree into the net below. She was then moved up on to flat land so the vet could do his checks. Before this though the baby has to be separated from its mother straight away. Both where released successfully in a safe place and lets hope they survive.

I won’t have much wifi now so this maybe the only images I post, I hope this image not only tells the story of that day but also shows theres hope and that people are working so hard to keep these animals alive.
Goodbye for now from Sumatra as I enjoy my first mattress too for 8 days :0) I hope you all like the image.

Hope for Sumatra’s orangutans: A supporter’s firsthand account

Chris Jarrett has been working in rainforest restoration for the past 13 years on the Gold Coast, Australia. In August Chris travelled to the Besitang forest restoration site in Sumatra, managed by our partners, the Orangutan Information Centre. Here Chris talks about his journey:

After many months fundraising and organising my trip to North Sumatra, I was jumping out of my skin. I was finally taking off on an adventure of a lifetime.

As I touched down in Medan I was welcomed by Founding Director Panut Hadiswoyo from the Orangutan Information Centre (OIC). His commitment to protecting and restoring orangutan habitat in the Gunung Leuser National Park is an inspiration. So much so that he was recognised by the United Nations as a finalist in its 2012 Forest Heroes Awards.

Chris with OIC Restoration Program Coordinator Ahmed Azhari (Ari)

When I arrived on the project site the next day I was greeted by all the OIC staff and the first thing I noticed as I explored the project site was the diversity of the natural regeneration coming up and how close the primary rainforest was to the project site.

Throughout my week I shared a two storey bamboo hut with the OIC Restoration Team (and the local insect population).

The Gunung Leuser National Park is an amazing place and I was lucky enough to see hornbills, gibbons and Thomas Leaf monkeys. In the afternoons I could hear the long call of a male orangutan, which was a memorable experience.

As it was the dry season I assisted the restoration team in seed collecting, nursery work and maintenance of previous plantings.

I was shown around the project site by head of the OIC Restoration Program Ahmed Azhari (Ari). His knowledge of rainforest restoration and commitment to the project is a great inspiration to anyone that visits the site.

Over the past four years the OIC have planted 398,692 trees over 196 hectares of national park land in this area. The growth rates of the trees throughout the project site are astounding. Some are now over four metres tall. The onsite nursery was also impressive with a wide diversity of plants ready to be planted out.

A highlight of my trip was when we were trekking in the nearby rainforest taking in the sounds and wildlife. We discovered some fresh orangutan nests and Ari noticed some orangutan poo on the ground so we collected it and took it back to the nursery. This was a great discovery as from these seeds the Restoration Team can discover what species of fruit the orangutan is feeding on.

Everyday I experienced amazing sunrises where early morning mist would creep through the valley, and sunsets slowly disappearing behind distant mountain peaks.

My trip to North Sumatra was a memorable adventure from start to finish. I really appreciate the work that is being achieved by the OIC and local community.

I would like to thank all the staff at the OIC, in particular Founding Director Panut for all his hospitality and for showing me around Medan and Forest Restoration Programme Coordinator Ari for making my stay on the project site a rewarding experience.

Having seen the project site for myself I now know that the Orangutan has a fighting chance to survive in the Gunung Leuser National Park. With continued support and awareness we can help fight the deforestation of Indonesia’s rainforests.

Chris Jarrett

There are many ways you can help us protect orangutans, their forests and their future. Find out more at http://www.orangutans-sos.org/help

 

Spotlight Sumatra

Sumatra is an incredibly special island. The Gunung Leuser National Park in the north is the only place in the world where orangutans, elephants, rhinos and tigers all coexist.

Spotlight Sumatra is a celebration of the breathtaking array of life found in the island’s unique rainforests, and a call to action to collectively do all that we can to save this fragile ecosystem, the last stronghold for many critically endangered species.

Wildlife photographer Craig Jones will be travelling to Sumatra in September 2012, capturing images which will help us show the world all that there is to lose if we don’t act now to protect Sumatra’s forests. This is the first of Craig’s guest blogs, as he prepares for the trip of a lifetime into the Sumatran rainforest.

I will be travelling to the island of Sumatra in mid September for two weeks. Alongside my guides, we will venture deep into the jungles for up to three or four days at a time, even longer if we are lucky, to track and photograph wild Sumatran orangutans. Jungle life will be basic but great, trekking by day and sleeping in hammocks by night. I have many ideas and plans for different images and photographs, that SOS can use to help raise awareness of the plight of this Great Ape – maybe the first Great Ape to become extinct should current trends continue in the destruction of their forest homes.

With many tour operators, photographers and members of the public venturing to the island of Borneo to see and photograph orangutans, I was shocked that very few people go to Sumatra. I hope to show the world Sumatra needs help just as much in saving its rainforests as the neighbouring island of Borneo.

Only 6600 critically endangered Sumatran orangutans remain in the wild. Most of these depend on the rainforest habitat provided by the Gunung Leuser National Park in northern Sumatra for their survival. Removal of illegal palm oil plantations, replanting and guarding the orangutans’ home territory along with education and public information campaigns are carried out by the Sumatran Orangutan Society and their partners in Sumatra, the Orangutan Information Centre.

SOS is dedicated to the conservation of Sumatran orangutans and their forest home and their work is helping to protect and conserve this area for the future. I first saw one of these amazing animals in the year 2000 in a rehabilitation centre in Thailand, where I saw a male orangutan, an experience that touched deep into my soul, as I watched and looked into the eyes of one of our closest living relatives in the animal kingdom.

This has stayed with me until the present day and now I am trying to help in my own way by using my photography to help SOS, in turn helping this animal. The principal focus of my trip will be the orangutan, capturing them within their natural habitat, looking for behaviours to capture and so on. I will be capturing some beautiful photographs of these animals, alongside images showing their rainforest home. I will visit some of the most magnificent forests on Earth, which are also the domain of many other beautiful and stunning animals and birds, some of which only live in this part of the world and nowhere else on the planet. I will be using my tracking skills and fieldcraft, camouflage and jungle survival, having spent some time in these environments previously as a member of the armed forces.

I will be reporting back once I reach the few places where there is internet access, and you’ll be able to read my updates from the field on this SOS blog. I will be capturing images of SOS and OIC’s different projects but on the whole my time will be spent in the jungle, listening and watching for clues of what wildlife is around us. I am looking forward to meeting and working with the locals there, whose knowledge of these jungles is second to none and without whose skills it would take me much longer to navigate this landscape.

I cannot wait to wake up to hear the sights and sounds of the jungle, the calls, the noise, the smells… It’s going to be an amazing two week adventure where I hope to capture the beauty of this animal with my lens, which is controlled with my heart and eyes. I will be getting involved also helping the locals, I will be presenting some short films and slideshows showing them wildlife outside of Sumatra. A lot of people will not have ventured outside of their native country but it’s my aim to bring wildlife to them during the time I am there using a small bicycle-powered cinema which is used for educational talks and film screenings.

The sole aim of this trip is to highlight the plight of this most beautiful of apes. I will be showing you the kit I’m taking, clothing and equipment, posting live updates and hopefully transporting you to this rarely visited part of the world.

We will soon be adding more details about special Spotlight Sumatra events and initiatives – watch this space!

Wild male orangutan pushed out of oil palm plantation and back into national park

Our partners in Sumatra, the Orangutan Information Centre (OIC), have pushed a wild male orangutan back to the Gunung Leuser National Park after he was found in a 3,000 hectare oil palm plantation next to our forest restoration site.

The orangutan was spotted last week by oil palm plantation staff, and was reported to the OIC’s Human Orangutan Conflict Response Unit (HOCRU).

When the HOCRU team arrived at the plantation, they quickly spotted the orangutan sitting at the top of an oil palm tree. However, pushing him out of the plantation and back into the forest was not a simple task – it took more than two hours of firing noise cannons before the orangutan finally moved out of the farmlands and into the edge of our forest restoration site.

Noise cannons are made using a simple bamboo or metal tube, calcium carbide and water to make loud bangs. They pose absolutely no risk to the animals. The team fired the cannons (which do not contain any projectiles) more than 50 times in order to encourage the orangutan to move out of the plantation and into the forest.

Once at the forest edge, they then continued to encourage the orangutan to move deeper into the national park. However, a herd of more than 15 wild elephants passing through the area meant that they had to stop using the noise cannons. The team stayed nearby and observed the orangutan until dusk, by which time the elephants had moved on, and the orangutan swung off into the national park.

Panut Hadisiswoyo, Founder and Director of the OIC, said: “It is crucial that our HOCRU team can quickly respond to orangutan conflict situations in plantation areas. If the big male orangutan had remained in the plantation for much longer, it is likely that he would have starved, or been killed by the plantation workers if he had caused damage to the crops.”

Helen Buckland, Director of SOS said: “When there are no buffer zones between farmlands and natural forests, it is not surprising that animals such as orangutans and elephants sometimes cross into plantations. They are seen as pests as they can damage crops, and may be captured or killed – there have been reports of four critically endangered Sumatran elephants having been poisoned in oil palm plantations in northern Sumatra this year.”

Together with the local communities, SOS and OIC have restored more than 280 hectares of forest after an illegal oil palm plantation was established inside the national park. Wild orangutans and herds of wild elephants have begun to return to the area, and seven orangutans have been translocated here so far this year after being rescued from small patches of forest that were about to be cleared and converted to oil palm plantations, including three mother and baby pairs.

Click here to watch a film of HOCRU in action!

HOCRU work on the frontline of orangutan protection, helping animals in peril to have a second chance at a life in the wild. This is vital, as there are so few Sumatran orangutans left. Together with the OIC, SOS works with local communities, businesses and government to tackle the root causes of deforestation. This is crucial if we are to save orangutans and the many other species sharing the rainforests. To find out more about how you can help, please visit www.orangutans-sos.org/help

Welcoming our new Patron: Suzi Eszterhas

We are proud to announce award-winning wildlife photographer Suzi Eszterhas as our new Patron. Suzi specialises in documenting the family life of wild animals, and you’ll recognise many of her gorgeous orangutan photos from the SOS website! She has won many awards, including in the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition.

Talking about her support for SOS, Suzi said:

“I’m thrilled to be a Patron of the Sumatran Orangutan Society. It is one of those small, grassroots charities that I really believe in. They are doing real work on the ground that I have witnessed with my own eyes. I am so impressed by the organisation’s ability to use its resources wisely and have such a broad reach.”

Thank you for your kind words Suzi! We were first introduced when Suzi was planning a trip to Sumatra to photograph orangutans in the Gunung Leuser National Park in 2010 – and she has been a supporter of the charity ever since, providing stunning images to help promote the cause and spreading the word about our work at every opportunity.

Orangutan conservation is a cause that is very close to Suzi’s heart:

 “I can’t imagine not wanting to save Sumatran orangutans. As one of the world’s most critically endangered great apes, they are a species that conservationists should target. What is happening to their habitat as we speak is so appalling; I just have to do something to stop it…I have no idea how someone could be passionate about wildlife photography and not desperately want to protect the species and habitats they photograph.”

The first orangutan Suzi ever saw and photographed in the wild was a Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) – a species that is distinct from the Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus). It was a memorable experience:

“It was a young sub-adult male sitting quietly, high in a tree. I remember his beautiful reddish fur being beautifully back-lit in the morning sun. He spent a lot of time gazing off into the forest and there was such a profound look in his eyes. I don’t want to sound too anthropomorphic, but I really think there were some incredibly deep thoughts floating around in his mind.”

We’re delighted to welcome Suzi as Patron of SOS. Her stunning images combined with her knowledge and passion for conservation make her a wonderful ambassador for the charity. SOS works hard to secure a brighter future for the Sumatran orangutan, and having Suzi on the team will help us raise awareness of the threats facing this critically endangered species, and our work to protect them.

Sumatran orangutans are critically endangered and without urgent action could be the first Great Ape species to become extinct. SOS is determined to turn this situation around through a combination of rainforest restoration, community-led conservation, and campaigning.  To find out how you can support SOS in its work to protect vital orangutan habitat please visit www.orangutans-sos.org/help

Find out more about Suzi and view her stunning portfolio of wildlife images from around the world at: http://www.suzieszterhas.com/

Rainforest restoration: New methods to speed-up recovery?

Rainforest restoration is crucial in the fight to save the Sumatran orangutan, a species facing horrifying rates of habitat loss. So our partners, the OIC, are always keen to develop their techniques. Thanks to the support of Japan’s Nagao Natural Environmental Foundation (NEF), they have been learning about some of the very latest approaches.

Panut with a tree planted back in 2009

In March, NEF enabled OIC Founding Director Panut Hadisiswoyo and Restoration Manager Ahmad Azhari (Ari) to participate in forest restoration training conducted by the Forest Restoration Research Unit (FORRU) in Chiang Mai,Thailand. During the visit, Panut also gave a talk about the OIC at Chiang Mai University.

The main goal of the training was to introduce what’s called Accelerated Natural Regeneration (ANR) and Framework Species Methods (FSM) and to encourage collaboration between restoration projects within southeast Asia.

“ANR is defined as any actions to protect and encourage the growth of ‘natural regenerants’ to accelerate forest recovery for local livelihoods, environmental protection and biodiversity conservation,” explains Panut; ‘natural regenerants’ referring to trees that grow naturally, i.e. without being planted. “And FSM is a method of forest restoration involving the planting of 20-30 indigenous tree species which enhance natural forest regeneration and accelerate biodiversity recovery.”

The OIC rainforest restoration team.

Such species boost diversity by attracting wildlife that then disperse seeds from the natural forest. “Ultimately, this will result in a diverse, multi-layered, vegetative cover,” explains Panut. “This then helps many different wildlife species.”

The first step is for OIC to complete a site survey to work out the density of regenerants and what stops them growing. “We have already starting doing this in our restoration site in Marike,” explains Panut. “Then we need to plan how to make sure weeds don’t prevent these trees from growing, and decide whether supplementary tree planting would help.”

The team will monitor tree survival rates and wildlife returning to the restoration site and James Cornwell, a member of FORRU, will also visit this month. “James is an Australian Youth Ambassador for Development and will be observing how FORRU can help further our restoration activities,” says Panut. “He will also run a restoration workshop for all restoration team members during his visit.” We’ll keep you updated!

To find out how we’re working to restore and protect precious orangutan habitat please visit www.orangutans-sos.org/projects. Or buy a Restore Rainforest Gift Pack.

Orangutan spotted in the OIC rainforest restoration site, Besitang.

Rob Ryan print, Maud Le Car surf board & exclusive Stornoway pics!

A limited edition screenprint donated by Rob Ryan

When we first started writing to red-headed celebrities, asking them to take part in our Jungle VIP Auction, we weren’t sure how they’d react. But what a response! From Tim MInchin, Nicole Kidman and Nicola Roberts to Chris Evans, Newton Faulkner and Radiohead, a long list of stars decided to take part. As a result of the items auctioned, sales of our 96.4% Orangutan t-shirts and donations, we have already raised more than £8,000!

Our 96.4% Orangutan t-shirt

While this is a fantastic amount – thank you to all who have got involved – the more we raise the more we can achieve. We’re aiming to hit £10k by the end of the month. So we’re excited to announce that yet more great items have been donated to help us reach our target. We’ve just added some fantastic new auction lots to http://www.ebay.co.uk/JungleVIP including a beautiful limited edition screenprint donated and signed by artist Rob Ryan, a surf board donated and signed by pro surfer Maud Le Car, Lucian Freud Portraits exhibition tickets plus dinner at the National Portrait Gallery, a behind the scenes tour at Kew Gardens and more.

“I am supporting the Sumatran Orangutan Society and the Jungle VIP Auction<link?> because the charity is working for a great cause and we need to worry about wildlife and save them from going extinct,” says Maud. “This is one of my surfboards that I’ve been surfing in France, it was my first ‘mini gun’ for big waves. I hope the person who buys it will have as much fun on it as I did!”

The unique surf board with Marilyn Monroe design, created, signed and donated by pro surfer Maud Le Car

There’s also a stunning photograph of Brian Briggs, lead singer of award-winning band Stornoway. The signed photo – the only one of its kind – was taken by Oxford-based photographer John Bullock at our Concert4Conservation. “I met Brian when we were both undergraduates at university, long before Stornoway formed, so I’ve known the band right from the beginning”, explains John. “I started taking photographs of them in 2007.”

The exclusive photo of Brian Briggs, lead singer of Stornoway

The Concert4Conservation took place in Oxford in 2011, raising funds for the Sumatran Orangutan Society, RSPB and the Earth Trust – causes Brian feels strongly about. “I’ve been passionate about wildlife conservation for longer than I’ve been passionate about making music,” he says.

John took a series of photographs at the fundraising gig, but likes this one in particular. “I like the star burst of light behind Brian and his facial expression. The band don’t move around a lot on stage, so things like that are important to differentiate shots from just being a guy singing with a guitar!”

100% of proceeds from the sale of these items go to the Sumatran Orangutan Society. Sumatran orangutans are critically endangered and without urgent action could be the first Great Ape species to become extinct. By bidding you can help SOS in our work to protect them – visit www.ebay.co.uk/JungleVIP. You can also sell your own items via the auction, buy a 96.4% Orangutan t-shirt, or make a donation. Any amount makes a difference. Please help us spread the word. Thank you.