Audubon Zoo's orangutan infant is continuing to progress in the right direction! His veterinary and care team are very pleased with his improved hydration and how much formula that he is consuming during his feedings. The team has decided that his feeding tube will be removed and that they will monitor him closely for 24 hours to gauge his caloric consumption. He is still slightly weaker than his care team would like, but they believe with his continual weight gain and other positive health advances that his stamina will improve. Audubon's dedicated team continues to work closely with Children's Hospital New Orleans and The Association of Zoos and Aquariums Orangutan Species Survival Plan advisors on next steps for this little warrior.
Audubon Zoo’s newborn male orangutan is receiving around-the-clock care by the Zoo’s veterinary and primate care staff under consultation from specialists from Children’s Hospital New Orleans and AZA Orangutan Species Survival Plan advisors.
On December 27, the infant showed signs of weakness and lack of nursing. Based on concerns about the infant’s body temperature and weight, the team intervened to hand-rear and bottle-feed the infant until it can safely be reunited with Menari.
“The infant’s care team also noticed that his suckling response was weak and inconsistent,” said Audubon’s Senior Veterinarian Bob MacLean. “Children’s Hospital New Orleans offered their support for the critically endangered infant by providing the expertise of a clinical speech pathologist and lactation specialists. The lactation specialists are working with the infant to assess his suckling reflex and train our team to stimulate the appropriate suckling response. So far, this has been very successful.”
On Saturday, November 13, Prague Zoo’s baby orangutan Kawi celebrated his first birthday. Keepers treated him and the other orangutans to special birthday enrichment.
"He is among our most popular animal personalities," said Prague Zoo Director Miroslav Bobek. “Kawi was born last November 17th."
The Sumatran orangutans got a birthday surprise from keepers. Throughout the day, visitors received a lot of interesting information about the lives of apes at the Prague Zoo and about orangutans in Sumatra. Winners of an art competition for the best portraits the birthday boy were also announced.
TORONTO, ON, Thursday, October 7, 2021: Twenty-nine-year-old Sumatran orangutan Sekali is going to be a mother again! She and father-to-be Budi (a fifteen-year-old male Sumatran orangutan) were paired at the recommendation of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP), and the Toronto Zoo is thrilled to further contribute to the future of this critically endangered species. Sekali has had one previous offspring (male Kembali, who still lives at the Toronto Zoo); Budi is a first-time father.
At last we can see her! About two weeks ago (July 10th) Tana, a 12-year-old Sumatran Orangutan at The Zoological Center Ramat Gan in Israel gave birth to a sweet little baby.
For many days it was almost impossible to see the baby, as mom held her close to her body and she "disappeared" in her long ginger fur.
Now as the baby is a bit bigger and mom more confident, we can get a glimpse of the adorable baby. Now mother and baby enjoy some peace and quiet while keepers keep a close eye.
The baby's father is male Rachamim, who will be celebrating its 11th birthday on July 31st. He is the last Orangutan born here at the zoo to his elderly parents Rochale and Mushon. His mother died when he was only 7 year old.
Soon after, Satu and Tana, two females, arrived from zoos in Germany to join Mushon and Rachamim at Ramat Gan to continue contributing to the Sumatran Orangutan breeding program.
Mushon did not manage to breed with the two. It may have been that he was too old. He died in 2018 at the age of 50.
As Rachamim grew older he got closer with Tana and finally we can see the sweet results of the bond between the two.
Tana is taking good care of her baby despite the fact that this is her first birth and she lacks experience. She is reluctant to get into her night chamber so the keepers throw food and water bottles for her into the exhibit. Both mother and baby look good and healthy.
During Tana's pregnancy we at the zoo experienced two major dramas:
During the last missile attacks Israel endured in May, a missile landed in the Zoo. Luckily it fell between the Orangutan exhibit and the Sulawesi Crested Macaques. One female Macaque was hit by a shrapnel in her back. She was hurried to the operation room and thankfully fully recovered. The exhibits however were damaged by the missile and had to be renovated. This month the Orangutan exhibit re-opened. That’s when the second drama took place. Tana and Mushon were very curious about the new plants in the exhibit and managed to climb and go out of the exhibit. Mushon went in when called, but Tana went up a tree with the baby. The vets were lifted to the tree top with firefighters’ assistance and managed to dart Tana and take her off the tree, back to the night chambers with the baby. That is also how the Zoo knows that the baby is a girl.
After such eventful times Ramat Gan officials are happy to see the mother and baby relaxing in the exhibit. We are delighted for this important addition to the European breeding program, as the critically endangered Orangutans really need our help!
The baby girl still does not have a name. According to tradition, her name should start with the letter T. any ideas?
The patients at Children’s Hospital New Orleans have spoken, and the votes are in. The female Sumatran orangutan infant born in February at Audubon Zoo has affectionately been named “Madu,” which means honey in Malay.
Audubon Zoo partnered with Children’s Hospital to name the newest member of its orangutan group. Staff and patients at the hospital voted for their favorite of a list of three names.
The three names included:
Madu - Malay word for honey
Bani – Indonesian word meaning “children”
Matahari - Malay word meaning sun
Children from the hospital exuberantly unveiled the winning name yesterday morning in a celebration at the Zoo. The event took place directly in front of the Sumatran orangutan habitat, so the orangutan group, including the infant and her mother, Reese, attended.
“Our patients had so much fun being invited to help name Audubon’s baby orangutan,” said President and CEO of Children’s Hospital New Orleans John R. Nickens IV. “Working together with our partners at Audubon, we love being able to bring enrichment opportunities to our patients at the hospital. This is a great example of finding creative ways to work together to deliver a little something extra for our patients and families. We’re so excited to watch the baby grow and thrive for many years to come.”
This infant is Reese’s first offspring and the second infant born at Audubon Zoo to dad Jambi since his arrival from Hanover Zoo in German in 2018. Jambi also fathered Bulan, the female born to orangutan matriarch Feliz in 2019.
“We were thrilled to have our long-time partners Children’s Hospital New Orleans help us make this big decision,” said Audubon Nature Institute President and CEO Ron Forman. “Throughout this last year, they have offered immense support that has been essential to the recovery of our attractions.”
Audubon is committed to helping create experiences that spark action and empower visitors to impact the natural world for the better. The orangutan group at the Zoo serves as ambassadors for their species, teaching guests about the plight of Sumatran orangutans in the wild due to human-wildlife conflict.
Maintaining a genetically diverse population in human care is important because Sumatran orangutans have been assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as “critically endangered” and therefore threatened with extinction—there are fewer than 14,000 living in the wild, and their numbers are declining, mainly due to human-wildlife conflict due to the spread of palm oil plantations into their forest habitat.
There are currently 95 Sumatran orangutans in human care across 27 Association of Zoos and Aquariums organizations.
To help orangutans in the wild, Audubon recommends purchasing products with sustainably grown palm oil. Around the world, those using sustainable practices in logging and agriculture are demonstrating that it is possible to conserve wildlife habitat while supporting the local economy.
You are witnessing the unusual bond between a 3-year-old Sumatran Orangutan (Cerah) and her father, Berani at Denver Zoo.
After Cerah’s mom and Berani’s mate Nias passed away suddenly from fatal heartcomplications, Berani stepped in as the most doting parent.
In the wild, male orangutans are not known to be involved in the raising of offspring at all.
Berani has always been an exception to the typical role of a male orangutan.
Well before Nias' (the mother) death, Berani was known for treating Hesty, Nias' first daughter, like his own offspring.
Hesty is not Berani's biological daughter, but he always treated her as such.
So it's no surprise now that he's stepped in to take care of Cerah.
Since Nias’ December death, Berani continues to be a source of comfort for Cerah.
The whole troop is doing well, and 11-year-old Hesty, who is only a few years away from being able to start having her own children, is doing a good job playing with Cerah throughout the day.
Early this morning, animal care staff at Audubon Zoo were welcomed by the arrival of a critically endangered Sumatran orangutan infant. Although early signs and physical changes pointed to an anticipated birth window between April and May, those signs appeared later than normal and the birth happened earlier than expected.
Mother and the infant appear to be doing well and are behind-the-scenes to give them time to bond and to allow the Zoo’s veterinary and primate team to care for them. Staff are monitoring the infant’s health closely for any signs of weakness or dehydration. The next 48 hours are critical as the newborn learns to nurse.
The Belgian animal park of Pairi Daiza – voted best zoo of Europe for three years in a row - is happy to announce the birth of a Sumatran orangutan in its orangutan conservancy. The little boy, named Mathaï by his keepers, is the newest member of our orangutan family, that consists of dad Ujian, mom Sari and big brother Berani. With another adult couple of two (Gempa and Sinta, also expecting a baby), Pairi Daiza now houses six of these critically endangered great apes. Orangutans are facing mass extinction in the wild because of deforestation. Only 14.000 of these unique, intelligent animals remain alive today. Pairi Daiza wishes to offer a new future to these apes, with whom we share 97% of our human DNA. We do this by reinforcing and conserving the genetic capital of orangutans in our conservancy in Belgium, but also by funding reforestation projects in the orangutans’ home country: Indonesia. Last year, Pairi Daiza Foundation has funded over 11.000 new trees on the island of Borneo.