The Biology Department of IPB Invites an Orangutan Expert from Swizterland

One of the hot issues in the industrial expansion of plantations phenomenon is on the topic of the endangering of the orangutan population towards extinction. The decrease of the orangutan population is mostly caused by the industrial expansion of Palm Oil Plantations, besides hunting which is done by humans. 

This issue is quite crutial and has been discussed by academic experts. Therefore, the Department of Biology of the Faculty of Mathematics and Sciences of Bogor Agricultural University (FMIPA IPB) held a Guest Lecture or a lecutre by a guest speaker about the conservation of Orangutans in the Sumatera region. This Guest Lecture had Olivia Wassmer as the speaker, a Mster of Science in Anthropology from the University of Zurich, Switzerland and was held in the Biology Building of FMIPA IPB (7/13). Olivia discussed the issue of Orangutans in the Sumatera region their behavior in adaptions towards new environments. This event was attended by students and also professors.

Olivia also explained the strategis that could be done to help the orangutans in facing their new environments. This was based off of an analysis of a research which was done in collaboration with acadmics from IPB, Dr. Puji Rianti and Dr. Dyah Perwitasari.

 “The Orangutans of Sumatera which were studied were the ones from Suaq Balimbing, Aceh. Their population is still quite large in Sumatera. Based off of our observation, the Sumateran Orangutan lives by moving around from one nest to the other. The type of food are fruits such as jackfruit, lychee, durian and the rest eat the tip of young leaves, tree bark, and small vertabrates,” she explained.

The threats towards orangutans such as the change of the lands functions from forests to plantations, has made the habitat of the orangutan more and more threatend which causes the orangutans to move to a new environment. Dr. Puji Rianti said that the observation on the behavior of the Sumateran Orangutan will give a picture on how to manage the orangutan population and give knowledge towards the adaptation of orangutans in new enviornments. (AVR)