Baby Mathaï. Source: bulletin.be.
On November 28, 2020, the Belgian animal park Pairi Daiza welcomed the arrival of a male Sumatran orangutan named Mathaï. The ape was born to his mother Sari and father Ujian. He also has an older brother named Berani, the only other orangutan that has been born in Pairi Daiza. Berani is four years older than Mathaï, and spokesperson Mathiew Goedefroy said that Berani is already “showing great and positive interest in the new baby.” Mathaï will remain with his family until he turns ten, after which Mathaï will partake in the European Endangered Species Program’s orangutan conservation effort. Experts there will study Mathaï’s DNA, as well as that of many female orangutans, in order to find the best match to ensure healthy offspring.
Experts will study Mathaï's DNA. Source: cnn.org.
In the Malay language, orangutan means “man of the forest,” a name the apes certainly live up to. In the lowland rain forests of the Southeast Asian islands of Borneo and Sumatra, orangutans live solitary existences, subsisting on fruits such as lychees, mangosteens, and figs and drinking water from the holes in trees. Bornean and Sumatran orangutans differ slightly in both behavior and appearance, with Sumatran orangutans having longer facial hair and generally closer social bonds than Bornean orangutans. Additionally, Bornean orangutans more commonly descend from the trees to move around on the ground, as opposed to traveling from tree branch to tree branch.
Both species of orangutan have experienced a tragically sharp population decline over recent years. While a century ago there were an estimated 230,000 orangutans in the world, the Bornean orangutan’s population is now estimated to be around 104,700 (endangered), and the Sumatran orangutan’s population is estimated to be around 7,500 (critically endangered). The primary threat these apes face is rampant deforestation; in the last three decades, according to the wildlife charity Born Free, 80 percent of irreplaceable orangutan habitat had been lost. There is also a third species of orangutan, which was classified in November of 2017: the Tapanuli orangutan. With fewer than 800 in existence, the Tapanuli orangutan is the rarest and most endangered species of great ape in the world.
The captive breeding efforts that led to Mathaï’s birth are intended to safeguard the survival of these magnificent apes even if severe deforestation continues. According to spokesperson Mathiew Godefroy, Pairi Daiza’s orangutan program is going “extremely well.” The Belgian animal park is now home to a growing number of Sumatran orangutans; after welcoming Mathaï, they currently hold six members of the critically endangered species with more on the way. Two other orangutans in the park, Gempa and Sinta, are expecting their first offspring sometime in 2021. In addition to these captive breeding conservation efforts, Pairi Daiza also says that they fund restoration projects in the orangutans’ natural habitats, such as a program in Indonesia that planted over 11,000 trees in 2019.
To learn more about orangutans and how you can help out, visit wildlife charity Born Free’s website: Orangutans | Facts & Endangered Status | Born Free.
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