We are focused on the long-term survival of the orangutan in the wild by securing designated and safe forest habitats.
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by Georgia Allen Deep within the peat-swamp forests of Central Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo, wild orangutans navigate one of the most complex and biodiverse ecosystems on Earth. Alongside finding food, avoiding dangers, and raising their young, they may also be doing something remarkably familiar to us: using the natural resources around them to maintain their health. For decades, researchers…
Behind the Book: I was reading about the deforestation, destruction and wildlife in Borneo, and the effect of unsustainable palm oil production. So it prompted me to reach out and look at the situation from a younger person’s perspective. When I was younger, I always let my mind wonder off and out the classroom. Hence Peter fell asleep and woke up in the jungle with two of his friends. They met…
Written by Hannah Trayford The King of the Swingers isn't just a lyric. It's a physics puzzle orangutans solve every day. Did you know that despite weighing between 40–130kg, adult orangutans can move across branches, and ropes, as thin as 4cm? I've watched them do it. They don't just swing; they clamber up trunks, ride the sway of a branch, and oscillate it to bridge gaps in the canopy you're…
Written by: Serge Wich and Paul Fergus, of Liverpool John Moores University Above the dense forest canopies of Borneo and Sumatra, a silent transformation is taking place to monitor orangutans. For decades, the monitoring of the three critically endangered orangutan species has depended largely on a simple but challenging task: researchers trekking through forests that are rarely easy to walk in…
By Dr Andrea Permana Today feels a little surreal. Back in 2007, on my very first day at Suaq Balimbing in the Leuser Ecosystem, I met and named a young orangutan: Ellie. Today, albeit with a faux name, she is featured in the new Orangutan documentary released by DisneyNature — all grown up, and a mother of two. Seeing her story on screen is genuinely special. It’s a reminder of just how long-term…
By Dr Hannah Trayford Early in my career, I was told I would eventually have to choose. Choose between welfare - focused on the individual animal - and conservation - focused on populations, scale, and protection. It was framed as a clean divide: caring for individual orangutans versus saving the species. Sentiment versus science. The implication was clear: welfare was the soft option, something…
Latest Research on Cultural Learning in Orangutans to Recognise Foods Have you had a chance to read our blog from guest author Dr Elliot Howard-Spink of the Max Planck Institute whose research focusses on how apes structure ecologically-relevant skills, and how they acquire and retain skills throughout their lifetimes? His latest paper investigates how different forms of social learning influence…
With your support, Orangutan Land Trust has been able to send vital funding for the conservation activities of our trusted partner in the field, Conservation Action Network (CAN) Borneo. They have sent us this short update to share with you: “The loss of forest habitat has increasingly pushed wildlife into conflict situations across Kalimantan. In several areas, this situation has become severe,…
It is with a heavy heart we inform the passing of Professor David Chivers, Trustee of Orangutan Land Trust. David passed away peacefully on 5th March 2025 at the age of 81. David first came to Cambridge University in 1963 and completed his PhD in Physical Anthropology, focusing on primates in the Malaysian rain forests. His research included pioneering fieldwork on siamangs in Peninsular Malaysia…
Interview with Jane Griffiths and Emma Lokuciejewski Jane Griffiths Jane: Can you tell us a little about your background, and what inspired you to write The Rimba? (You can also say why it is called the Rimba - I don’tmean to mention me, but what does Rimba mean and why that is fitting.) I am a retired Head of English, and have lived in Cornwall for over 40 years. I first became aware of the…
