Guest guest Posted September 24, 2003 Report Share Posted September 24, 2003 This message was forwarded to you by yitzeling. Comment from sender: This article is from The Star Online URL: http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2003/9/23/features/6310464 & sec=f\ eatures ________________________ Tuesday September 23, 2003 Hanging on By TAN CHENG LI <b>Found exclusively on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra, orang utans may well be facing extinction in the wild as their habitat continues to shrink, leaving them vulnerable to starvation and poaching. An estimated 13,000 orang utans remain in Sabah today but they may all disappear over the next 20 years unless serious efforts are taken to protect these unique primates.</b> WE gawk at them in zoos and delight in their human-like antics. We make them mascots for tourism and a global sports event. Some of us even nurture them as if they were human babies. Most of the time, however, we fail to shelter orang utans and their habitat. We mock them by dressing them up in silly clothes to pose with tourists for souvenir snaps in theme parks. It is no wonder that the future of this species of great ape looks bleak. They are heading towards extinction, scientists predict. A conference in Kota Kinabalu last month focused attention on this long-neglected species and threw some light on their status. The picture is grim. Once they ranged from Southern Java to the Himalayan foothills and Southern China, but climate change and hunting has shrunk their range to pockets of forests in only two islands today: Sumatra and Borneo (Sabah, Sarawak and Kalimantan). “Most scientists estimate that no viable populations will be left in the world within a decade unless serious effort is taken to protect this species in the wild,” says veterinarian Dr Marc Ancrenaz. In Sabah, all that & #8217;s left is 13,000 individuals & #8211; not a big number considering that the primate once roamed the entire state. Sarawak is believed to have over 2,000. The situation is no better in Indonesia. Orang utan researcher Dr Sri Suci Utami Atmoko says preliminary estimates show that Sumatra has 7,300 orang utans and Kalimantan, 29,000. The plight of the orang utan is a familiar one. Human pressures have pushed the species into the endangered list. Forests felled for settlements, plantations and timber have left them marooned on small patches of degraded forests. Natives hunt them for their meat and purported medicinal value. Farmers shoot them for raiding crops. Poachers trap them for the pet trade. “Orang utan numbers in Sabah have dropped by 35% over the past 15 years,” reveals Ancrenaz, who has studied orang utans in Sabah since 1998. “If their numbers continue to plunge, there is a high chance that we will not see orang utans in the wild in 20 years & #8217; time.” As it is, orang utans have been hunted to extinction in northern and western Sabah. Eastern Sabah remains the species & #8217; last stronghold in the state. Of the 13,000 that remains, most are trapped in pockets of forests too small to assure long-term survival of the species. What is more troubling is that 70% of the orang utans are found outside protected areas. They are in commercial forests earmarked for logging and tree plantations. Scientists at the International Workshop of Orang Utan Conservation in Sabah say preventing further habitat loss is critical to halt the species & #8217; dwindling numbers. The Sabah Forestry Department data shows that primary forest cover shrank from 2.9 million ha to 0.3 million ha between 1975 and 1995 & #8211; a decline of almost 90%. All old-growth forests will be worked out by 2010. “Almost no original forest below 400m, the preferred habitat of orang utans, remains in Sabah,” pioneer orang utan researcher Dr John Mackinnon points out. “Their preferred fruit species are also declining and are no longer seen in markets,” says the author of In Search of the Red Ape who first studied orang utans in Sabah in the late 1960s in Ulu Segama. To safeguard their future survival, Mackinnon says forests with abundant orang utans must be protected and kept untouched. Better land-use planning is crucial. Scientists at the conference say orang utan distribution and numbers must be considered when deciding uses for the land, such as converting forests to oil palm or tree plantations. Plantations of Acacia mangium trees should be avoided as they are fire-prone. Areas known to have abundant orang utans should not be farmed. They say while poor knowledge hampered proper strategies for orang utan conservation in the past, this is no longer a valid reason today with the latest data on orang utan numbers. <b>At the mercy of loggers</b> It is hardly a comforting thought but the future of Sabah & #8217;s orang utans may well lie in the hands of loggers since timber concessions are where the biggest concentration of orang utans are found. The state & #8217;s 3.6 million ha commercial forest reserves are divided into 27 forest management units (FMU) managed by 15 concession holders under 99-year agreements. One FMU holder, the Sabah Foundation, may be the deciding factor. Its concessions harbour the largest contiguous group of orang utans & #8211; 6,300 individuals or 48% of the total population. The orang utans are spread over the Ulu Segama, Kalabakan, Kuamut, Malu-buk, Malua and Sungai Pinangah forest reserves in numbers ranging from as few as 50 to over 2,600 (as in Ulu Segama). Logging need not necessarily sound the knell for orang utans. Scientists have found that orang utans have adapted to a changed environment and survived in secondary forests & #8211; provided logging was done with minimal harm to the environment. A thriving population of 770 orang utans in the Deramakot Forest Reserve illustrates this possibility. Managed by the Sabah Forestry Department, Deramakot relies on reduced-impact logging techniques and is world-recognised as a model of sustainable forestry. It demonstrates that sustainable forestry and biodiversity conservation can be combined successfully. So in commercial forest reserves which host large numbers of orang utans, Ancrenaz says sustainable forestry is crucial as it leaves some room for the primate. Currently this is not the case. Soren Mark Jensen, chief technical adviser to the Sabah Wildlife Department (SWD), says a recent assessment shows that while some FMU holders have acted to improve their forest management and planning, most know little about biodiversity in their concessions and have done little to protect this biodiversity. He says zones set aside for conservation within the FMUs are mostly timber-poor and inaccessible forests on mountainous terrain. “Though important for soil and water protection, such areas have limited wildlife conservation value because wildlife primarily occurs in lowland dipterocarp forests and lowland riverine habitats. Furthermore, the conservation sites are mostly disconnected patches which further reduce their conservation significance.” Jensen says forest management practices that are sensitive to biodiversity protection will safeguard orang utan populations. Forest fires further threaten to destroy orang utan habitat. He says fires rarely occur in the humid tropical forests of Sabah but logging opens the forest canopy and leaves logging debris, which makes the forest prone to drying up and to fires. Forest fires have killed between 7,000 and 10,000 orang utans over the last five years in Borneo. <b>Splintered territories</b> Sabah & #8217;s orang utans now find themselves in perilously isolated forest remnants and patches. Orang utans require large ranging territories of between 3sqkm and 10sqkm. Some patches of forest hold as few as 50 orang utans, which are not viable populations. Large numbers are vital to preserve a genetically robust population. Unless their habitat can be enlarged or at the very least linked up, these orang utans can easily succumb to disease or inbreeding within decades. “If we accept recent estimates which put 1,000 individuals as the minimum viable population size, then none of Sabah & #8217;s protected populations are viable in the long term,” warns Mackinnon. Scientists agree that the Tabin, Kulamba and Kinabatangan reserves, which collectively hold some 3,000 orang utans, offer some refuge but they are isolated from each other. Connecting the three sites with a forested corridor will enable orang utans to migrate and locate additional food sources as well as reduce the risk of inbreeding and other genetic disorders which afflict small populations. Their shrinking habitats have pushed orang utans nearer to human settlements. Inevitably, they raid fruit orchards and oil palm plantations, and get trapped or shot. One orang utan can eat as many as 50 young oil palm shoots in one raid, thus the law provides for “legal killing” in defence of property. Such “human-wildlife conflicts” are commonplace in the Lower Kinabatangan where oil palm estates dominate the landscape. SWD deputy director Laurentius Ambu says hundreds of orang utans have been shot there over the last decade by farmers and estate workers protecting their crops. At one time, plantation managers offered a bounty of RM20 for each dead orang utan. There are plenty of horror stories. One resident of Sukau village in Kinabatangan recounts coming across six foul-smelling sacks in a plantation sometime in the late 1990s. Upon opening one bag, he found the maggot-infested carcass of an orang utan. In another case, Sukau villagers caught 14 orang utans in their farms but when the SWD failed to remove the animals after two weeks, they were killed and buried. The killing is needless and preventable. There are different ways to drive orang utans away from crops without harming them. Ditches can deter entry into plantations as orang utans cannot swim. In Kinabatangan, village wildlife squads keep orang utans away by lighting bonfires and frightening them with noise. Estate owners must have orang utan-sensitive management plans. Conflict can also be avoided by imposing strict control over conversion of land into oil palm plantations in areas known to be orang utan habitat. The last option would be to relocate the animals to other forests, as SWD did with some 400 orang utans. Most ended up in the Tabin Forest Reserve. Ancrenaz says the orang utans appear to fare well there as their numbers have risen from 500 in the mid-1980s to 1,200 today. However, he says new release sites must be identified to prevent overpopulating in Tabin. Relocation must be done with care to prevent overcrowding and introducing diseases to wild populations. <b>Caged up</b> Displaced orang utans also end up in zoos. SWD chief field veterinarian Dr Senthilvel Nathan says captive orang utans total 913 worldwide. The number of those held in private collections and for entertainment purposes is unknown. “A conservative estimate is 2,000 which is a lot,” he says. He also called for controlled captive breeding programmes as hybrids of the Borneon and Sumatran species now form a quarter of all captive-bred orang utans. Another 600 orang utans remain in the world & #8217;s four rehabilitation centres, a figure Senthilvel describes as “frightening” as it illustrates the extent of orphaned and displaced orang utans. The numbers sent to the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre in Sandakan peaked at 54 in 1998 (coinciding with a time of widespread forest fires and land clearing) and 53 in 1995. The good news is that only 12 orang utans were sent there last year and this year, 11. At Sepilok, orphaned orang utans are gradually weaned. Once able to find food on their own, which may take between four and nine years, they are considered “rehabilitated” and are returned into the wild. The centre has released 158 orang utans over the past 10 years. How many actually survived in the wild? “Your guess is as good as mine,” Nathan admits. “There is little monitoring of released orang utans. It needs manpower and training.” Established in 1964, Sepilok is the world & #8217;s oldest orang utan rehabilitation centre & #8211; that meant that orphaned and displaced orang utans were seen as a problem requiring attention as early as 40 years ago. Yet, orang utans in Sabah continue to come under threat. Mackinnon believes too much emphasis had been placed on rehabilitation of orang utans instead of safeguarding their habitats. But as Sue Sheward, chairman of the Sepilok Orang Utan Appeal, points out, such centres have a role. “What do you do otherwise with displaced orang utans? Sepilok has saved so many orang utans and also serves as an educational centre.” The three-year-old Britain-based nature group has raised £70,000 (RM420,000) so far for Sepilok. <b>Public apathy</b> Raising public awareness on the importance of orang utans and their protected status poses another challenge. Hunting, poaching and rearing of orang utans are prohibited under the Sabah Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997 but the problem persists. Even until now, there are reports of locals in Tongod and Karamuak using orang utan gall bladder as medicine. Ambu says the department has yet to prosecute any case due to inadequate evidence. Most cases involved possession of infants by plantation owners or workers. “In court, the magistrate would ask why we want to prosecute since they have surrendered the orang utan. That & #8217;s the dilemma we face.” Conference participants conclude that awareness campaigns need to target three key groups: politicians and policy-makers, plantation managers and workers, and FMU authorities. Continued killing and poaching can only push the species a step closer to extinction. Because of their slow breeding cycle, even small scale hunting can be critical, says Jensen. (Female orang utans produce one young every six to eight years). Studies show that for every infant captured for the pet trade, eight other orang utans die. In the last five years, the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre in Sandakan received 118 orphaned orang utans from villagers and plantation owners. Sabah still lacks data on orang utans. Ambu laments that Sabah & #8217;s orang utans have been overlooked by the world community in the past. “The focus was on Indonesia, with it getting more funding, research and media coverage.” Current donors include the Danish Agency for Development Assistance and the Japanese International Co-operation Agency. To fill the dearth of data, the conference singled out these priority research areas: an orang utan research database in Sabah; genetic analysis of all major orang utan population centres; and data-collection on population status and trend. Ambu says the SWD will conduct a statewide survey of orang utan hunting and poaching next year. Tourist dollars may provide another protection for orang utans. Tourists drawn to Rwanda by its gorillas have earned the nation US$10mil (RM38mil) annually, justifying ape conservation. In Kinabatangan, Sukau villagers intend to replicate the success of the Rwanda gorillas with a pilot orang utan tourism project. (See story on page 5.) It is hoped that eco-tourism will create incentives for locals and governments to protect the orang utans. It won & #8217;t be enough, however. With the majority of orang utans still foraging in forests which will be logged, and with many wandering into estates in search of food, their declining numbers can stop only if logging and plantation companies become allies of wildlife managers. Tackling public ignorance is equally important. As much as scientists and conservationists cry out for the preservation of this ape, ultimately it is the people & #8217;s appreciation and understanding that will protect the orang utans. As one of the last stronghold of orang utans, Sabah has a major stake in the future survival of the species. Barring drastic action, orang utans will inch closer to ecological disaster. As primatologist Dr Isabelle Lackman-Ancrenaz points out: “Orang utans are not winning the battle against humans. It is on the brink of losing it.” <b>Related Stories:</b> <a href= " http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2003/9/23/features/6308307\ & sec=features " >Wildlife wardens</a> <a href= " http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2003/9/23/features/6308305\ & sec=features " >A ray of hope</a> <p> ________________________ Your one-stop information portal: The Star Online http://thestar.com.my http://biz.thestar.com.my http://classifieds.thestar.com.my http://cards.thestar.com.my http://search.thestar.com.my http://star-motoring.com http://star-space.com http://star-jobs.com http://star-ecentral.com http://star-techcentral.com 1995-2003 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Star Publications is prohibited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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