A hot and balmy Monday saw Matang Wildlife Centre (MWC) come alive with groups of jungle cats, monkeys, gibbons, crocodiles and orangutans engaged in weird activities such as picking up drinking straws with their feet, measuring their hands and pulling faces in a mirror!

The ‘animals’ were in fact children (aged 10 to 12) from 2 local villages who were taking part in ‘The Magical World of Orangutans' Education Day developed, run and funded jointly by Sarawak Forestry Corporation and Way Out Experiences (WOX). The volunteers were enthusiastic and vital group leaders and guides and Matt and Keith were stationed at their orangutan enclosures to give informal chats about them.

Months in the planning, the programme represents the rekindling of regular activity/educational days held at MWC with the aim of promoting a deeper empathy and understanding of the local environment and its wildlife in local children.

The children had an action-packed day from Welcome and Registration at 8am to receiving a smart certificate from an SFC official around 5pm. They received a workbook full of activities to complete; answers were found on information boards or on completion of an activity. Facts and figures about orangutans were dutifully recorded (such as how long they live, what are threats in the wild, why orangutans are at MWC in the first place and so on)



Delicious locally made packed meals provided energy for the day’s activities, which included close observation of the Centre’s orangutans as well as fun games and serious discussions, all of which stimulated interest in this flagship species of Sarawak. Before and after attitude assessment questionnaires were completed by all participants.

A highlight was when, after each group measured their largest member’s arm span, an Aman sized shirt was modelled by one of the children…eyes were wide and jaws dropped (they did at the tailor shop too!!)

So by the end of the day each child had walked the Animal Enclosure Trail, been up close and personal with an orangutan, discussed serious local conservation issues, received a tree bark pencil case and certificate; the drawing competition had then heads down and the ‘Creating Corridors” game had some of them chopped down by a ‘chainsaw’!
Once again, an action packed day of cooperation and learning for all involved and I think at the end of it we were more exhausted than after a hard day’s building orangutan climbing frames! Thank you to everyone involved!

Well, must go now, we visit the Longhouse to have dinner with the locals tonight and then Matt, Keith and I will have a welcome break; Matt to Thailand and us to England. So, until next time, keep reading the blogs and supporting our wonderful animals!

(Caroline Bellhouse is our Education and Interpretation expert at Matang Wildlife Centre, along with our Primate expert Keith Lloyd and Facilitator Matt Simpson.)

Labels: Matang and local community education

In a nutshell, Matang Wildlife Centre is home to 7 estuarine crocodiles that are 7 to 9 feet long (they are the ones that will eat you) and 2 very rare, freshwater, False Gharials (who will not eat you), all of which are victims of habitat loss or conflict with humans. Two of the crocodiles lived in an outdoor pond with plenty of room to move, but 4 of them were cramped in individual ‘tubs’ where they could hardly stretch out, and one of them, Christian, was in a tiled area with no pond at all. Our September volunteers created a fantastic pond area adjacent to the main croc area and the time had come for help and advice on how to move and mix them (and whose job would it be to split them up if they weren’t happy …)

From this



We built this with volunteer help and money



And the result is this - croc love!




We called on the expert advice of Rozwan, who we’d met at Zoo Negara (literal meaning in Malay is National Zoo) last June. He proved to be a superb team leader for the weekend. He brought a vet Dr Reza, and another keeper/croc wrestler, Azman, affectionately known as the Sarawakian “Monkey Boy”. Rozwan was funded by volunteer money from Way Out experiences but the other two were so keen to help that they paid for the flights from Peninsular Malaysia themselves. On the drive from Kuching airport to the centre, Rozwan commented that the scenery and villages reminded him of Peninsular Malaysia in the 1970s.

Within half an hour of arriving, the guys were meeting the staff, volunteers and checking out the crocodile situation and Rozwan came up with a plan of action for the next day. The sex ratio of the crocodiles was crucial as males cannot be mixed, and we had no idea what sexes we were dealing with until we actually had them restrained. The evening was spent making croc carrying stretchers from Hessian bags, rope and hosepipe…ingenious!

So the following morning adrenaline was high among staff and volunteers alike as Rozwan explained carefully and clearly what we would be doing, how to stay safe and how to stress the animals as little as possible. Then it was all systems go for the nest 6 hours!

Catching a croc is sooo simple (well, of course it’s not, but here is the potted version):
1. Person 1 throws a rope noose over the crocs top jaw and holds it firmly, even when the croc rolls and twists.
2. Person 2 then places a damp Hessian bag over the croc’s eyes to calm him.
3. Persons 2, 3, 4 and 5 then sit/lie on croc’s head, body and tail on command.
4. They firmly tie the croc’s hands and feet behind his back. Easy!
5. The croc is then moved to a safe open area and draped with damp sacks to keep him cool and calm.

To sex a crocodile, you simply flip it over and with the help of a little KY jelly, feel inside its cloaca (opening). Luckily Dr Reza was very good at this and he also took blood samples from each one for DNA testing and to test for parasites. He also ‘notched' each one for identification purposes.

Steps 1 to 5 were repeated 5 times and our line up of sack draped crocs grew (and slithered across the yard in one case…). We couldn’t believe that the sex ratio – 2 males and 5 females- was just perfect! We were on a (crocodile) roll!!
Not wanting the crocs to be stressed more than necessary, we began the task of moving them to their new area…through the jungle. Crocodiles are heavy!!! We know that now! But with the help of a trolley (until the steep jungle path) and the stretchers we transferred them the 500m where one by one they were untied, uncovered and then left to discover their new surroundings and companions. They were all named after past and present volunteers, and I can happily report that Christian is happily living with Amber, Amy, Pauline and Shania while Marc and Charlotte are shacked up next door! There are now NO more crocodiles in cramped tubs, all are in spacious enclosures with running water. Another victory!

It was a fantastic day of excitement, learning, trust building, cooperation and achievement, and although it is hard to read a crocodiles thoughts, I believe that they are far happier where they are now. So massive thanks on their behalf go to all volunteers and staff who have contributed to their big move!

Caroline Bellhouse works for Way Out Experiences and is Education and Interpretation Officer for the Borneo Wildlife Volunteer Project.

Hello again. Another busy month full at the Wildlife Centre and a happy happy group of volunteers.

The 2 female orangutans, Lena and Ganti, were both living with the resident dominant male, Mr. Aman, and all were getting on well, with Lena (visually) confirmed pregnant and Ganti and Aman having some intimate moments… However, one day the girls came across a piece of wood which, when propped against the enclosure wall (not forgetting their enormous arm span) allowed them to escape into the forest. This was our plan for them too; they just beat us to it by a couple of months!
Anyhow, being fruiting season, they took off into the jungle and neither sight nor sound came from them for a week or so, and we became concerned. Some things had been moved near the animal area one night, and we thought that might be them, but that was probably an inquisitive bearded pig…

Happily, a couple of weeks ago Ganti appeared on the roof of her best orangutan friend, Chiam, and our hearts lifted. We even forgave her for nicking a pot of silver paint and doing some redecorating in the orangutan building …she was happily smearing it on her arms and lips and sharing it through the bars gleefully with Chiam and baby Mamu!






Ganti plotting her escape







We were still concerned for the quite heavily pregnant Lena who has never been known for her jungle survival techniques and has usually preferred home comforts in the past (a common problem in humanized ex-pet orangutans). Orangutans do not really face any non-human threats in the wild; they sensibly avoid potential conflict with dangerous neighbours such as snakes and crocodiles. But a humanized orangutan that approaches villages, plantations and human smells can face many threats from mankind and their traps and shotguns. So we were more than a little worried for her. So imagine our delight when we heard of a positive sighting of two female orangutans by the viewing platform last week…phew!!! We have yet to set eyes on Lena ourselves but we feel relieved that she is hanging around. Here’s hoping for a baby early next year!

Meanwhile Doris (our 6 year old girl orangutan) continues to delight and manipulate all her human entourage (as she seems to see us). Regarding our virtually blind dominant male, Aman, we are now in exciting discussions with the actual veterinary surgeon who may well do the cataract surgery to restore Aman’s eyesight! The vet sounds lovely and has amazing experience traveling the world performing surgery on rhinos, cheetahs and so on. Aman will be his first orangutan and poses interesting challenges for pre and post operative care (imagine giving eye drops to a 200 Kg male and asking him not to rub his eyes!) since he has hands and cannot be restrained in any way!!! We are hoping for patient compliance! There is a January option, however with so much preparation we may put it back to May. We need to assemble a team (surgeon, anaesthetist etc) equipment (anaesthetic machine, medical grade air, adjustable surgery table etc...) and so on in addition to conditioning Aman to accept eye drops for weeks on end. We will tell you more about this soon and let you know where you can donate money to help pay for the life changing surgery!

Labels: Orangutans and Rehabilitation