Perth Zoo’s ground-breaking project to establish a Sumatran Orangutan open sanctuary at Bukit Tigapuluh National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia, is now a reality. The sanctuary opened in February 2009 and has its first residents. 

Following on from the historic release of Perth Zoo-born orangutan Temara into the protected Bukit Tigapuluh National Park in Indonesia in November 2006, Perth Zoo has funded the construction of an open sanctuary for orangutans at Bukit Tigapuluh.

Bukit Tigapuluh National Park is home to over 100 rescued ex-pet and orphaned Sumatran Orangutans that have been reintroduced to the wild as part of international efforts to re-establish a population of these critically endangered animals in the park.

However, not all rescued orangutans are able to adapt to life in the wild and require specialist care.

The aim of the sanctuary is to provide ongoing care in a rainforest setting for rescued ex-pet and orphaned orangutans that have not been able to be successfully rehabilitated for release into Bukit Tigapuluh National Park as part of the Sumatran Orangutan reintroduction program. 

The sanctuary aims to provide expert care for the resident orangutans in natural environments and to foster natural behaviours with the aim of reintroducing these animals or their offspring into the Park. 

The sanctuary development so far includes holding and release facilities for incoming orangutans and staff facilities that allow full-time location of staff on site. Trail systems are being developed in the area around the sanctuary to allow for easy tracking of the sanctuary orangutans.

In late January 2009, Perth Zoo’s Curator of Exotic Mammals, Leif Cocks, and Perth Zoo’s Supervisor of Primates, Clare Campbell, travelled to Bukit Tigapuluh to assist with the transfer of the first two orangutans to the sanctuary.

A female Dekong and male Bobo were transferred from the Sumatran Orangutan reintroduction program release station to the open orangutan sanctuary on 1 February.

A male named Rencang was also transported for release near the sanctuary, as he was wandering too close to the village near the release station. Rencang was released into the rainforest some distance away from the sanctuary and across a major river so that he would not interfere with the orangutans at the sanctuary. However, it is hoped that in the long-term rehabilitated males such as Rencang will sire the offspring of the females living permanently at the sanctuary with the aim that these offspring can be released into the Park.

In addition to funding the sanctuary, Perth Zoo – a world leader in breeding Sumatran Orangutans – and its staff have played a key role in providing advice and expertise for the establishment of the sanctuary including the development of individual management plans for the orangutans.

Perth Zoo staff have been involved in developing husbandry routines, care techniques suited to individual orangutans, forest skills training, staff training and enrichment programs for the orangutans.

The orangutans in the sanctuary are part of an intensive program, tailored to the animals’ individual needs to help them develop independence. Each orangutan is assessed to see whether they explore their environment effectively and find enough food to survive. The residents receive daily care and supplementary food, and have access to night quarters if required.

Perth Zoo staff will visit the sanctuary twice a year to help staff assess the orangutans’ behaviour, create new enrichment programs and develop management plans for incoming orangutans.

Employees working with the orangutans at the sanctuary will have minimal contact with older infants brought to the sanctuary to encourage natural behaviours and reduce their reliance on humans.

It is hoped that the care they receive at the sanctuary will lead to some orangutans being able to return to the wild permanently.

The sanctuary is located in the buffer zone surrounding Bukit Tigapuluh National Park. The buffer zone is important to the effectiveness of the park and used for projects that are complimentary to the outcomes of the park including sustainable logging and the open sanctuary.

The strategically selected site is significant in terms of habitat protection and the permanent presence of sanctuary staff provides the added bonus of helping to prevent illegal exploitation of the land.

The sanctuary also provides a base for law enforcement surveillance including anti-poaching and anti-logging surveillance, as well as a conservation research facility.

The sanctuary is also providing local employment. Local community involvement is a critical factor in the success of habitat and wildlife conservation initiatives.

This project has been possible thanks to the co-operation and joint efforts of Perth Zoo, the Indonesian Government, the Frankfurt Zoological Society and the Australian Orangutan Project.

The sanctuary is an important part of Perth Zoo’s in situ research and field work and supports the Zoo’s mission to secure long term populations of species in natural environments, while engaging the community in global conservation action.

Bukit Tigapuluh National Park is an extremely important area of land. Guarded by specially trained anti-logging and anti-poaching Wildlife Protection Units, it is the only National Park in Sumatra with a complete representation of Sumatran mega fauna including Sumatran Tiger, Sumatran Elephant, Sun Bear, tapir, possibly Sumatran Rhinoceros and now the re-established population of Sumatran Orangutan.

Over 100 Sumatran Orangutans have been released into Bukit Tigapuluh since December 2002 including Perth Zoo born Temara (see link for more information). The target is to release 200 orangutans into the park to provide an adequate genetic base for the population to be self-sustaining in the future. The national park has the capacity to support up to 1,000 orangutans.

The Wildlife Protection Units monitor and guard the reintroduced orangutans, and have been responsible for halting logging and poaching activities within the park boundaries.

Bukit Tigapuluh National Park currently spans 140,000 ha.
 
Thanks to generous community support, Perth Zoo’s fundraising program, Wildlife Conservation Action, raised over $216,000 in 2007/08 for the conservation of threatened species in the wild. This included conservation projects in Bukit Tigapuluh National Park and contributed to the funding of the orangutan sanctuary.

---

Perth Zoo thanks sponsor Garuda Indonesia for providing six return economy class airfares to Indonesia. Perth Zoo staff will use these tickets to visit Bukit Tigapuluh where they will check on Temara's progress and work with orangutans at the open sanctuary.