Rare Sumatran orangutans dying by the hundreds

[wautd]

Rare Sumatran orangutans dying as fires rage in Indonesian swamp forestA third of the population of 200 might already be dead – with the remainder in severe danger, say conservationists
Fires raging in an Indonesian swamp forest may have killed a third of the rare Sumatran orangutans living there and the rest could die this year, conservationists warned on Wednesday.

The Tripa forest in Aceh province is home to the world's densest population of the critically endangered species. At last count, about 200 lived there, out of a world population of 6,600, the conservationists said.

Cloud-free images from December showed that just over 12,000 hectares (30,000 acres) of the original 60,000 hectares of forest remains, said Graham Usher of the Foundation for a Sustainable Ecosystem.

The rest has been broken up and degraded as palm oil companies drain the swamp, he said. He said a total of 92 fire hot spots were recorded between 19 and 25 March in several of the palm oil plantations in the area.

"If there is a prolonged drought and the fire continues … then orangutans, tigers and sun bears within it will be exterminated before the end of 2012," he told a news conference, held by the Coalition to Save Tripa, which includes Greenpeace.

The number of orangutans killed in recent months could be 100 or more, the groups estimated. Another 100 died between 2009 and 2011 – killed either in the conversion process or by starvation and malnutrition.

Ian Singleton, conservation director of the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme, said there are fewer than 200 orangutans still in Tripa, which was home to 3,000 individuals in early 1990.

"It is no longer several years away, but just a few months or even weeks before this iconic creature disappears," he said. "We are currently watching a global tragedy."
He described those kept illegally as pets as the "lucky" ones but said they will be refugees from a forest that no longer exists.

Last year, Aceh's governor, Irwandi Yusuf, gave a licence to PT Kallista Alam, a palm oil company, to convert 1,600 hectares of the Tripa peat swamp, home of orangutans, tigers and bears. Three other companies are already operating in the area.

An environmental group has filed both a criminal complaint and a lawsuit against the government. The Aceh administrative court is expected to rule on this next week.

Again a sad case where man is raping nature for economical gains. Hard to imagine such wonderful creature will soon have died out.

[Darth Fanboy]

As if the Sumatrans needed any more problems. Damn it all to hell.

If anyone on this forum reading this article wants to do anything meaningful, figure out a way to reduce your palm oil consumption ASAP. Responsible Palm Oil is a very good alternative but it doesn't have nearly the same impact.

[Vehrec]

I don't think I consume any palm oil at all-but I'll try to cut back even more.

[Block]

I don't think I consume any palm oil at all-but I'll try to cut back even more.

The only thing I can think of that it's in is Reeses pb cups.

[The Yosemite Bear]

I hear that PTerry is out there trying to help save them...

[SpaceMarine93]

I would find some of these primates, do some sampling and start preserving some of their DNA. Actually, let's just evacuate some of them to some Conservation complex before they all die out.

[The Yosemite Bear]

Thats actually what the group that Pterry's part of is doing there right now, yes, Sir Terry is actually saving the lives of a real life Librarian Expy....

[Irbis]

How they can be dying by the hundreds if the original population was just 200?

Though, if anything, it makes the story even more sad, and it sort of makes me ashamed of actions of my own country. It also proves how brainless/ruthless humans are.

Oh, well, another victory for pure, predatory capitalism, I guess

[Eulogy]

Thats actually what the group that Pterry's part of is doing there right now, yes, Sir Terry is actually saving the lives of a real life Librarian Expy....

Do you think he could organize a boycott of Indonesian palm oil?

[Irbis]

Did you guys knew 300.000 tons of palm oil buys you brand new battle tanks [page 8]?

Boycott? Hah.

[The Yosemite Bear]

Pterry wife & daughter are senior members of an animal sanctuary network...

[Darth Fanboy]

I believe the 200 number is the population in this affected forest, one of the more dense populations of this species. And palm oil is in all kinds of products we don't even think much about.

Edit:

Forgot to mention, but successful captive breeding programs are in place for Sumatran Orangs but that is not a reason to give up on these animals in the wild.

[AniThyng]

Did you guys knew 300.000 tons of palm oil buys you brand new battle tanks [page 8]?

Boycott? Hah.

You do know Malaysia != Indonesia right? Anyway, I'm sure Poland can find it in its heart to just give us the Tanks in exchange for a promise not to cut down the jungle to plant 300000 tons of palm oil, right?

Though there are Malaysian companies operating in Indonesia and there's quite enough issues also with deforestation in Borneo. But Palm Oil in general is a pretty big business, and yes, can be used to offset the cost of big ticket defense items (and other things, like Russian space launches), so yeah. There's been quite a few attempts to preserve land in exchange for money but as I recall those were plagued by corruption and broken promises.