New population of 2000+ Orangutans found in Borneo

10-day old baby orangutan is held by its mother at the Pringen Safar Park in east Java, Indonesia
10-day old baby orangutan is held by its mother at the Pringen Safar Park in east Java, Indonesia

A previously unknown population of rare orangutans has been discovered in the forests of Indonesian Borneo, raising hopes for the species’ survival, conservationists said Monday.

Up to 5,000 endangered Bornean orangutans are believed to be living in limestone mountains in East Kalimantan province after surveyors in December found 219 orangutan “nests”, Nature Conservancy scientist Erik Meijaard told AFP.

The nests, sleeping platforms made of branches and leaves suspended in the trees, indicate there could be “several hundred to several thousand” orangutans living in the 2,500 square kilometre (965 square mile) area, Meijaard said.

Nardiyono, who headed the survey team by the US-based conservation group, said the discovery will aid efforts to conserve the apes.

Source: BBC, National Geographic and AP.

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CW Staff
CW Staff

In the late 80s I started investigating UFOs and crop circles and joined the CCCS (Centre for Crop Circle Studies) and a local group researching strange sightings and reports along the south coast of Dorset (UK). In the early ’90s I started my own research group called SPS (Strange Phenomena Studies), this was renamed in 2004 to Cryptoworld.

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