ZooBorns

Aurora, Houston Zoo's Orphaned Baby Orangutan, Gets a Mom

After months of tender loving care and sleepless nights, a team of 50 trained Houston Zoo care givers who have been hand-raising baby orangutan Aurora, achieved its ultimate goal – Aurora’s ‘adoption’ by the Zoo’s experienced surrogate orangutan mom Cheyenne.

Aurora was born on March 2 of 2011. After the first 12 hours, birth mom Kelly abandoned the infant and refused repeated attempts by zoo staff to return the baby to her. Concerned for Aurora’s welfare, the primate care team made the decision to hand rear the baby.

For 9 months, always in view of the Zoo’s other orangutans, a total 50 different volunteers assisted the Houston Zoo’s primate care team in that process. Aurora clung to her care givers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can see a remarkable video about that process in our ZooBorns article published last April. When Aurora was thriving and ready to move on, the care team closely monitored Kelly and Cheyenne to gauge their interest in the baby.

“As Aurora became more independent of her care givers, we taught her to go through what’s called a ‘creep door’, a very small opening in doors between rooms in the off-exhibit night house,” said Killam.

On December 28, the creep door between Cheyenne and Aurora was opened for the first time. “Aurora chose not to go completely through it, instead touching and playing with Cheyenne, who reached her arm through,” said Killam. The next day, Cheyenne chose not to play with Aurora through the creep door, but instead sat just outside it. She waited patiently until Aurora came through the on her own and then Cheyenne picked Aurora up and carried her across the room.  

Cheyenne carried Aurora around for the next 7 hours, even allowing Aurora to ride on her head. The two shared produce and cereal and fruit juice together; the primate care team was able to give Aurora her bottles right next to Cheyenne. Several times Cheyenne would do somersaults around Aurora as the little orangutan watched in amazement. “It was a wonderful day,” said Killam. 

The two can now be seen in the outdoor habitat together and all is well.

Photo Credits: Stephanie Adams/Houston Zoo

Orange is In This Fall!

Los Angeles Zoo's little Bornean Orangutan baby is the star attraction these days. She's the second baby for mom Kalim, who is one of four adult females in their Red Ape Rainforest. Father to the new arrival is Minyak, one of two Orangutan males at the Zoo. 

Orangutans are native to the Indonesian islands of Borneo and Sumatra.  In the Malay language orang means person and utan means forest.  Decked out in long, shaggy, orange-red hair, orangutans are the largest tree-dwelling mammals. Bornean orangutans are endangered and Sumatran orangutans are critically endangered.  In the last 60 years, it’s estimated that there has been more than a 50 percent decline in the orangutan population.  This decline is primarily attributed to habitat loss.

Photo Credit: Tad Motoyama

Zoo"Born"ean Orangutan at L.A. Zoo!

Orange is everywhere to be found at the Los Angeles Zoo this Halloween season starting with the newest orange-red, shaggy haired addition to the Red Ape Rainforest – a newly born Bornean Orangutan. This is the second baby for the Zoo’s female Bornean Orangutan, Kalim. She is one of four adult females in the Red Ape Rainforest. Father to the new arrival is Minyak, one of  two orangutan males at the Zoo. Guests can see the baby Orangutan and her older sister Berani who was born in 2005.

Photo credits: Tad Motoyama

 

Orangutans are native to the Indonesian islands of Borneo and Sumatra.  In the Malay language orang means person and utan means forest.  Decked out in long, shaggy, orange-red hair, orangutans are the largest tree-dwelling mammals. Bornean orangutans are endangered and Sumatran orangutans are critically endangered.  In the last 60 years, it’s estimated that there has been more than a 50 percent decline in the orangutan population.  This decline is primarily attributed to habitat loss.

Hand-rearing a Baby Orangutan at Sedgwick County Zoo

It’s a boy! On May 19th, the Sedgwick County Zoo welcomed a baby Orangutan to mother Daisy. Unfortunately Daisy did not show much interest in caring for her newborn so the baby is now being raised by hand with round-the-clock keeper care. However, Zoo officials aren't giving up and are coaching Daisy on mothering behaviors in the hopes of returning the baby to her care soon. Zookeeper Devin Bailey explained, ”Being hand-raised might make the infant more people-oriented like his mother. Zookeepers want to make sure that this infant orangutan knows he’s an orangutan. Zookeepers are providing for the physical and psychological well-being of the orangutan instead of mom, for now. However, keepers are still working on maternal care behaviors with Daisy and are thinking positive. We believe we’re on the right track and hope that Daisy might show more interest in taking on some of her infant care responsibilities,” Bailey said. "Daisy is showing some progress. She’s interested. She’s not mean. But she’s just not sure if she should pick up this new arrival"

Newborn Orangutan Doing Well With Keepers' Help

On Thursday, May 19 at approximately 6:30 a.m. Sedgwick County Zoo welcomed a baby Orangutan into the world. Baby is doing fine while mom, Daisy, is recovering nicely. However, she hasn’t shown much interest in being a mom or caring for her newborn. Zookeepers worked with Daisy to encourage an early bond with the newborn and continue working with her on maternal care behaviors. Daisy and the newborn Orangutan remain off exhibit so keepers can work with Daisy and care for the infant.

Photo credits: Sedgwick County Zoo

Precious Primate Premieres at Dudley Zoo

This little Bornean Orangutan, born six weeks ago, made her debut to the public late last week when mom Jazz brought her into the viewing area of the great ape house at Dudley Zoological Gardens. Jazz held her tiny baby close in her arms and could be seen patting Sprout's back as visitors looked on.

Sprout had been nurtured in a quiet, private area since her birth - until Thursday.  Keeper David Zebedee said of Jazz, ”She’s now doing the proud mum bit and showing Sprout to visitors."

Sprout weighs approximately four pounds (1.81 kilos), but she’s growing fast. Once weaned (at approximately eight to 12 months), she can begin to add solids to her diet along with mothers milk, which she'll continue until she's three.

Photo Credit courtesy of Dudley Zoological Gardens

David added, “She’s a beautiful baby, and very special too, as the species is so endangered in the wild.” Bornean orangutans only give birth every eight years, adding to the species endangerment caused by the pet trade and habitat loss due to logging and the palm oil business. Not long ago it was thought there was only one species of orangutan, but genetic research found that there are two - Bornean and Sumatran. Both live in Southeast Asia.

Remy the Orangutan Finds a Surrogate Mother

An infant ape who journeyed from Texas to be fostered by one of the nation’s best surrogate mothers is now beginning to explore his outdoor habitat. Remy, a 4-month-old male Sumatran Orangutan from the Fort Worth Zoo, is adjusting well and has been accepted by Madu, a 27-year-old Sumatran Orangutan at Zoo Atlanta. The infant, whose full name is Rembulan Wajah (Rembulan means “moon;” Wajah, “face,” in Indonesian) was born on November 26, 2010. His biological mother became very ill and was unable to care for Remy. Although she has since improved, she remains under close veterinary supervision. The Orangutan Species Survival Plan (SSP) identified Madu as the top candidate for surrogacy, as she has successfully reared two previous foster infants.

Photo credits: Courtesy of Zoo Atlanta

Holding a Baby Orangutan... for 24 Hours a Day

On March 2nd, primate staff at the Houston Zoo were thrilled to discover that mother orangutan Kelly had given birth overnight. Unfortunately Kelly neglected her baby within the first 24 hours so Zoo staff were forced to intervene and care for the infant. Fortunately the baby is doing quite well and the Houston Zoo is optimistic that the one month old ape can be reunited with mom or introduced to a surrogate who will raise the baby as its own. Since infant orangutans cling to their mothers for their first few months of life, zoo staff currently carry the baby for 24 hours a day! Learn more on the Houston Zoo's blog and do not miss the video below.

Photo credit © Stephanie Adams/Houston Zoo and Video credit © Kara Masharani/Houston Zoo

Two Baby Orangutans Make Their Public Debut

The Fresno Chaffee Zoo proudly debuted two Sumatran Orangutan babies on Friday, March 18th. The male, Labu, was born on October 31st, 2010, and the female, Ndari, on December 18th, 2010. Both births are a significant accomplishment given the species' endangered status due to logging for palm oil and illegal pet trade.

Photo credits: Fresno Chaffee Zoo

Help Name Singapore Zoo's Baby Orangutan!

The legacy of Singapore Zoo’s most iconic resident, Ah Meng, continues to grow with the recent birth of her first great grandson earlier this year. Chomel, Ah Meng’s granddaughter, gave birth to the male Orangutan on 31 Jan at about 4.20am. Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) is inviting Singaporeans to pick his name via an online voting system on Facebook.

Photo credits: Bjorn Olesen / Singapore Zoo

The Zoology team at the Singapore Zoo has shortlisted four names for the newborn and is asking members of the public to choose their favourite. The names are:

1.    Ah Boy: A common term of endearment for many boys at home in Singapore
2.    Bino: Meaning ‘Brave’ in Bahasa Indonesia
3.    Terang: Meaning ‘Bright’ in Malay
4.    Xing Xing: In Chinese, this means both ‘star’ and ‘ape

The contest on the WRS Facebook page is open to everyone who is a fan of the page. Voting will end 31 March 2011 and the name which earns the most number of ‘likes’ on Facebook will be the chosen name for the baby Orangutan.