Orangutan and Her Baby Luckily Survived a Forest Fire, Only to be Stoned by Villagers

“We have put a great deal of effort into preserving orangutan habitats and believed the orangutans in protected areas would be safe, but now we find they are still in danger,” Sanchez said in a press release.

“Orangutans and other animals are being burnt alive, left without food and starving to death, or being pushed out of their habitat into plantations and villages where they are at risk of being killed.”

The IAR team performed a veterinary examination on Gito and his mother. Aside from the mother being extremely thin, both were quite in good health.

“The mother was quite skinny because she had not been eating for at least a month since the fires started,” Sanchez said.

As the adult orangutan began to emerge from sedation, the IAR vets transported the pair to the conservation area of PT KAL, an area they believed the orangutans will have an abundant supply of food.

When they released the mother, she climbed a tree and began to scour in the branches. Gito was still clinging to her side.

The oil palm company’s conservation team monitors the pair, and they say that both are adapting well to their new home.

“We are thrilled with Gito’s progress so far,” the chief executive of IAR, Alan Knight OBE said.

“Of course, he has a very long way to go in his recovery—and a long journey ahead if he is to be rehabilitated and eventually return to the wild—but he is in safe hands now.

“Tragically, Gito won’t be the last baby we rescue.

“Our rescue team are risking their lives every day to save orangutans, and there will be more babies orphaned.

“I would just urge the public to continue supporting our work so we can save as many orangutans as possible.”

For the past two months, the UK-based group ran more than a dozen operations to rescue orangutans, which have wandered off their natural habitats.

H/T: Buzzfeed, Daily Mail

Related

50 Million Red Crabs to Migrate from Land to Sea in Christmas Island