Orangutans in Crisis

"The study of wild orangutans provides us with a unique window on the kinds of conditions that favored origins of human culture. Losing the orangutan would forever close that window. If we act now, we can still save enough populations from oblivion, but we cannot afford to waste any time." -- Carel van Schaik, WCS Research Associate

How would you feel if you knew that one of your closest relatives was about to become extinct?

The orangutan, one of our closest relatives in the animal kingdom, is the only great ape found in all of Asia. Research conducted by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has shown that this majestic and peaceful species creates and uses tools, and is an irreplaceable link and invaluable model to the evolution of human culture.

Research also points to another startling fact: the orangutan may vanish from the wild in less than 10 years.

The grim truth is the orangutan is in a state of crisis.

Once distributed across Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, the orangutan has been hunted to extinction in mainland Southeast Asia, and today survives only in pockets of refuge forest on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo.

Even within this limited range, scientists have documented a tremendous decline in orangutan numbers.

In 1993, Gunung Leuser National Park (Leuser) in Sumatra supported 12,000 orangutans, the largest population in the world. Since then more than half of this population disappeared with losses occurring at around 1,000 animals per year in both 1998 and 1999.

Although Leuser is Sumatra's largest protected area, safety within the national park has become nothing more than a façade. Political instability has given rise to rampant, unregulated logging. All remaining forests that are accessible by road or river are subject to a seemingly unstoppable pandemic of illegal logging, regardless of their protection status.

In areas that are selectively logged, orangutan densities have dropped more than 60%, due mostly to a decline in trees that produce fruit - a critical food source for orangutans - as well as the loss of canopy trees they use for travel. The illegal logging that inevitably follows selective cutting has caused densities to drop by as much as 90%.

The orangutan's fate on the island of Borneo is equally uncertain. In the aftermath of forest fires that swept through the island in 1997 and 1998, as many as one third of Borneo's orangutans may have died. And in Sumatra, illegal logging continues to affect the species in this region - all fueled by the state of political instability throughout Indonesia.

For the past decade, the Wildlife Conservation Society, the only organization in the world focused on the plight of the Sumatran orangutan, has proven its commitment to orangutan conservation. With WCS support, Dr. Carel van Schaik and Dr. Beth Fox have trained Indonesian scientists, discovered new populations of orangutans in Sumatra and worked with local people to ensure orangutan survival.

Current efforts include...

RESEARCH

After years of research, WCS has led the charge to bring the plight of orangs to the forefront of wildlife conservation.

Surveys supported by WCS pointed to the need to focus intense efforts in Gunung Leuser National Park. This resulted in the establishment of 2 research initiatives within the park: Suaq Balimbing, a peat-swamp forest, and Agusan, a submontane river valley.

WCS is also active at 2 additional sites within the park, Ketambe and Besitang, making Leuser the world's only area in which orangutan research is being conducted in 4 contiguous, but ecologically distinct, areas.

For the first time, comprehensive research on orangutan ecology and conservation is possible on a large scale within a single protected area. This research is essential for both monitoring orangutan populations and predicting the effects of human disturbance on overall population survival.

TRAINING

The Wildlife Conservation Society has also invested considerable funds and energy into the training of young Indonesian scientists. With WCS sponsorship, Indonesian students and post-graduates have participated in field training courses, conducted research for their university degrees and continued to work actively in conservation both as WCS employees and for the staff of other organizations.

Within Indonesia, nationals who have received training from WCS are among the most competitive in job placement in the biological sciences and conservation disciplines.

Unfortunately, these efforts are not enough to put an end to this current environmental crisis and ensure a future for the wild orangutan.

We need your help to implement the next phase of orangutan conservation. In light of the recent state of political crisis in Indonesia, WCS proposes to take a two-step approach to save this great ape...

First, identify areas of immediate threat through a close monitoring of habitat destruction using remote sensing, make enforcement agencies aware of those areas and monitor those who are responsible for enforcing environmental law.

Second, proactively prepare the next generation of lawmakers and enforcers to protect this threatened species. As the balance of power is transferred from the national to the regional level, regional authorities need to be adequately educated and trained.

The commitment of caring members like you has helped the Wildlife Conservation Society make incredible strides over the years in orangutan research and conservation.

Your support has meant so much, but the truth is the job is far from over. This is truly a state of emergency. We need your help to protect these magnificent apes from the ongoing political conflict that threatens their very existence.

Without these proposed efforts and member support, the orangutan will disappear from the wild in a few short years.

Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to help save the remaining populations of Asia's only great ape. With your help, we will put a stop to this crisis.

Joshua Ginsberg, Ph. D.
Director of Asia Programs

P.S. The orangutan, one of human's closest genetic relatives and Asia's only great ape, will be lost forever in only 10 short years if we don't do something to help right now!!