Incredible albino orangutan rescued from captivity in Indonesia
- 7 years ago
CENTRAL KALIMANTAN, INDONESIA — An incredibly rare female albino orangutan has been freed from captivity by conservationists after she was captured by villagers in Indonesia and held for two days.
The 5-year-old orangutan was found on April 27, imprisoned in a cage in a remote district of central Kalimantan, the island also known as Borneo.
After receiving a tip-off, workers from The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation arrived at the village to find the young orangutan weak, dehydrated and infected with worms.
That dried blood on her nose? The conservationists say it appears she was injured as she fought back during her capture.
Albinos of any species are rare. And as orangutans are endangered, finding a white-haired, blue-eyed orangutan is a rare moment indeed.
Luckily for this young female, her future looks bright. She’s being nursed back to health at the Foundation’s rehabilitation centre, along with some 500 other orangutans.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the species is critically endangered.
Around 100,000 orangutans thought to still live in Kalimantan’s forests which span areas in Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia
But that already low number declining. Between 1950 and 2010, the Kalimantan orangutan population shrank by 60%.
And due to continuing deforestation to make way for palm oil and rubber plantations, the number is forecast to fall a further 22% between 2010 and 2025.
If that isn’t troubling enough, the docile and majestic creatures are also killed by local people who regard them as pests.
The 5-year-old orangutan was found on April 27, imprisoned in a cage in a remote district of central Kalimantan, the island also known as Borneo.
After receiving a tip-off, workers from The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation arrived at the village to find the young orangutan weak, dehydrated and infected with worms.
That dried blood on her nose? The conservationists say it appears she was injured as she fought back during her capture.
Albinos of any species are rare. And as orangutans are endangered, finding a white-haired, blue-eyed orangutan is a rare moment indeed.
Luckily for this young female, her future looks bright. She’s being nursed back to health at the Foundation’s rehabilitation centre, along with some 500 other orangutans.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the species is critically endangered.
Around 100,000 orangutans thought to still live in Kalimantan’s forests which span areas in Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia
But that already low number declining. Between 1950 and 2010, the Kalimantan orangutan population shrank by 60%.
And due to continuing deforestation to make way for palm oil and rubber plantations, the number is forecast to fall a further 22% between 2010 and 2025.
If that isn’t troubling enough, the docile and majestic creatures are also killed by local people who regard them as pests.