At Samboja Lestari, once lonely Leo has recently been blessed by the company of several female orangutans, as reported on in previous blogs! Well it must be Leo's lucky year, because in the last few weeks he has had the great fortune to be joined by another female, Titin, and her baby Tinatoon.

Labels: orangutan, orangutan volunteer, samboja lestari, volunteer

Thanks to the hard work of our volunteers at the end of last year, a few months ago we were able to transfer a new sun bear from Semenggoh to Matang to join the existing group of bears in the hill enclosure. These bears are a feisty group, so she is currently spending most of her days in the night dens and attempting to get used to the company of the other bears through the cage.



Earlier this month, she was let into the outdoor space on her own to see what she thought of the outside world. We are not sure if this bear has set foot outside in the last 20 years, so this was a very exciting day. She appeared to really enjoy being in the larger space, climbing a couple of trees and destroying some wooden structures with relish.




It is extremely encouraging when animals that have been long term captive display their natural behaviours without having to be taught. There was no sign of stress from this bear, and no unnatural, stereotypic behaviours. She will continue to enjoy days with the enclosure to herself for a few more weeks until she is mixed with one other male to begin with. Hopefully it will be a peaceful meeting!

Now, the arrival of kittens at the centre is not actually a rare event, as many past volunteers will be aware. However this particular kitten is, no offense to regular cats, a bit more special than the average.



It's a very young leopard cat, estimated to be around 3-4 weeks of age. He needs to be syringe-fed, which he was not very keen on originally but is now a bit more accepting of the strange instrument. He has recently started trying small pieces of meat, and shows a great appetite for it, guarding the food with an aggression that is a bit hard to take seriously, considering his size.



These cats are offically listed by IUCN as Least Concern, though precious little academic research exists with regards to them, particularly the Bornean subspecies. They are solitary, as with most wild cats, though we hope with a careful integration process this kitten will be able to join the existing pair at Matang in time.

With thanks to Kuno and Lauren Schiffermuller for the images, volunteers in September 10.

Labels: great orangutan project, leopard cat, orangutan volunteer, sarawak orangutan volunteer

With thanks to Paul Brand and Leisa Woodhouse, two of our volunteers in July :)

To volunteer here please check out www.orangutanproject.com

The most recent development in the ongoing story of Komeng and Jovans wonderful friendship is that they have been joined by wonderful Nania.

To volunteer at samboja lestari visit http://www.orangutanproject.com/

Labels: Borneo, orangutan, samboja lestari, the great orangutan project, volunteer with orangutans

The sun bear known as ‘Baby bear’ to many volunteers has recently moved house out of the quarantine area and into the larger sun bear enclosure housing the other ‘quarantine bears’. Though she is still significantly smaller than these other adults, it was deemed time to begin the familiarisation process. She currently has one of the night dens to herself, and we are giving her and the other bears time to get used to each other through the safety of the cage. She was pretty scared for the first couple of days, and her defensive shouting at the other bears provoked some aggressive responses, but she soon calmed down and the others now seem at peace with their new neighbour. It may still be some time before she is let out with the others though.



Though she is still spending the majority of her time in a cage, every now and then we are keeping the four adults in and letting her enjoy the outdoor enclosure by herself. Letting her out for the first time was incredibly exciting, and she seemed incredibly pleased by the experience.



The picture below shows her following and enjoying a honey trail leading out of the night den. Baby bear has always showed great natural behaviour, even though she has been confined to a small, unnatural area. She did not disappoint in the outdoor space, foraging for most of the day, digging vigorously at the ground and climbing trees with ease.



Her next stage is obviously full integration with the existing group, and until then she will continue to enjoy days exploring the outdoor space. We also have a video of her first outdoor excursion, which will be posted soon.

Labels: great orangutan project, matang wildlife centre, orangutan volunteer, sun bear

Some new photos of the clouded leopard, one of the newer arrivals at Matang Wildlife Centre. These wonderful pictures are credited to Paul Brand and Leisa Woodhouse, volunteers in July 2010. Many thanks for these.

Labels: clouded leopard, matang wildlife centre, orangutan volunteer, the great orangutan project, volunteer

Boboy, the long tail macaque with a big personality, was released from Matang Wildlife Centre last year. He was chosen as a monkey to test a possible release site for all long tail macaques because he was not coping well with the stress of captivity. He was released onto an island in Kuching Wetlands Park, a site away from human habitation which is key for macaque release.



Though we visited the site regularly, we were not lucky enough to spot Boboy for a long time. However, recently has was seen enjoying the natural habitat on the island, and looking in excellent health. This is incredibly good news, both for the welfare of this one individual, and for the potential of the area to accept more of his species.



Boboy was a favourite character of many volunteers that met him, and to those with fond memories of him, please enjoy the images of him enjoying his new lease of life.

Labels: great orangutan project, Long tail macaque, matang wildlife centre, orangutan volunteer, sarawak orangutan volunteer