ORANG UTAN EXPERIENCES
6th March 09 – 20th March 2009
&
ZOO ASSISTANT
6th March 09 – 31st March 2009

TAIPING ZOO

By: Ili Dayana Sudirman

The Volunteers




From left:
- David Langdon (24, England, OUE)
- John Dennet (24, England, ZA)
- Kimberly Ellison (23, England, ZA)
- Emily Bowman (22, England, OUE)
- Sian Hutchby (20, England, ZA)
- Anne Oestherheld (22, German, OUE)
- Katrin Lahmer (22, German, OUE)

 This Month’s Activity

March 2009 was full of fun. All the volunteers got along very well and worked hard on each task given. For the OE program, routine husbandry work and enrichments for the great apes were carried out as usual with a bit more emphasis on the Chimpanzees. This month the chimps are stressed because of the mating phase: there are 5 females and only 1 male! By giving them lots more enrichment in the form of frozen fruits, the chimps’ attentions were distracted away from fighting over mating turns. Meanwhile, for the Orangutans, everything is as usual; cool, steady and relaxed. The orangutans are so calm we think they are monks; meditating! Wasabi was so happy to get 2 new boy-volunteer-friends (Dave and John) that she almost ignored the other girls and me!. We gave her lots of leaves and flowers to play with and eat. Then, later on everyone took turns to play with her while observing her behavior as well. Wasabi is so energetic that after everyone has done their part in turn, she sits there with sparkling eyes for another round of play chase and tickle! It seems as though what she really need is not another puzzle feeder or ice block but a friend as a playmate.

The ZA volunteers did not missed out on the fun time spent with Wasabi because they worked at other sections during the morning doing husbandry work and later joined the OE after lunch for enrichments. The ZA volunteers; John, Kim and Sian worked at a few sections: chimpanzees, elephants, tapirs and hippopotamus, savannah, vet clinic, primate section and sun bears. They enjoyed working with the sun bears the most. Other than that, all our volunteers participated on helping the Zoo transfer flamingoes to a new exhibit. Before releasing them to their new enclosure, we collected a f
some data (microchip number, length of their legs and their DNA sample from feathers) for the Wildlife Department/ PERHILITAN in determining whether the lengths of their legs are influenced by their gender. The flamingoes were tagged and given de-worming tablets as well.

Project Progress

During this month we collected a data through observing Wasabi; the 6 years old female Bornean orangutan. Emily Bowman helped us out because she has experience in observing animal behavior and collecting data. I have the hard copy of our observation data and later on will transfer it to Leo for futher discussion. Our main concern is Wasabi have been repeatedly regurgitating/ reindigesting for more than 3 months. At other section, volunteers enjoyed scrubbing the sun bear cage floor and walls for 2 days straight. They felt satisfied looking at the moss free floor and hope that the bears appreciate it as well. This month was actually the first month we had the opportunity to work with the sun bears and hopefully we can continue our effort here through husbandry work and enrichments activities.

Volunteers Feedback

The volunteers were very satisfied with their scrubbing work at the sun bear cages. They were actually hoping that they had more time to spend there working on cleaning the cages, make the cages a bit brighter and pleasant. The best part was when we were scrubbing enthusiastically; Jothee the sun bear zoo keeper joins us! It’s a really good thing when the zookeepers spend time with volunteers and show their effort. It is also a touching ending for the Zoo Assistant volunteers because they felt really accepted there.

Other News

Zoo Taiping’s tiger cubs are doing well and this month we got to pet them!It was an invitation from the zoo keeper himself and we did not take any pictures (not to exploit the cute cuddly cubs).

Labels: orangutan volunteers, sunbears, volunteer with orangutans

ZOO NEGARA FEBRUARY 2009
Orangutan Experience

Volunteers:
• Izzy Lim (UK)
• Jessica Atherden (UK)
• Tess McCarthy (UK)
• Conny Knudsen (Denmark)
• Michael Urup Christensen (Denmark)



Our month got off to a good start when we received packages from America! Some of our past volunteers had responded to my appeal for Boomer Balls (orang-utan proof toys!) and had 5 of the things sent over from the USA. Trying these out with Tsunami, Chokey and Ana was great fun! Chokey and Tsu were very frustrated at not being able to bite into the heavy duty plastic, whilst Ana treated her pretty pink ball as if it were the best thing that’s ever happened to her, cradling it under one arm, or sitting quietly threading leaves through the holes we had drilled in it. Thank you so much to Amy Parker, Jo Dixon and Jocelyn Howard for their kind sponsorship of these cool new toys!

Enrichment:
As well as the daily husbandry activities of cleaning out cages, raking the exhibits and preparing food, the group also took part in the following enrichment activities…..




• Dragon fruit and papaya smoothies –we used the blender donated by the November team to whip up a nice dragon fruit and papaya smoothie for the apes.
• Bottle treats –using 1.5l plastic bottles the volunteers created bottle treats by adding some flavouring, a few raisins and a blob of honey. As usual our chimp Joe kept his bottle for the next few days so he could refill it from the tap and carry it around in case he felt thirsty at any time!
• Sock treats –using brightly coloured football socks, we stuffed scrunched up newspaper inside and a few pieces of date or sunflower seeds, before tying them tightly in knots. Some of these were given directly to the apes, whilst others were tied on the outside of cages to encourage the boys and girls to work that bit harder for their treats!
• Box treats –a really favourite for our orangutans, we filled up large cardboard boxes with brightly coloured shredded paper plus lots of leaves and a few titbits to keep them occupied whilst in the exercise enclosures.
• Banana stumps –cutting down a big banana tree and then dividing up the stump into sections, these were given to the apes to supplement their diet and as a special treat. The chimps Joe and Max especially enjoy these!
• Ice Blocks –Another favourite of our apes, especially on a scorching hot day, the volunteers made ice blocks using cordial and cranberries, which went down very well.
• Boomer balls –we drilled holes in 3 of the 5 boomer balls donated by past volunteers and put titbits inside (right). Long after they had gotten their treats the orangutans had fun throwing the boomers around, catching them, rolling them, standing on them, filling them with water……. What fun to watch!
• Durian –this spiky fruit can make up a large proportion of a male orangutans diet in the wild (females are smaller and may lack the strength to open the fruit) when it is available. It is such a favourite Conny and Michael, our two Danish volunteers bought 2 of the smelly things for the apes. We made sure the females got their share too by opening the hard cases (they look like a giant conker) and distributing the flesh between all the orangutans and the chimpanzees too. They loved it!
• Mirrors and bubbles –as always playtime is encouraged by showing the younger apes their reflections and blowing bubbles for them to chase and play with.
• Ball cocks –specifically aimed at our overweight orang-utan, Awang, these plastic balls were drilled, filled with a few treats and wired to the ceiling to encourage him to climb. This he did, but he spread his activity out so thinly over the week that I’m not sure he burned many calories. Could be back to the drawing board in our effort to get him moving!
• Leaf collecting –we made sure that most days the orangutans were supplied with plenty of leaves. This not only enables them to make nests but also to supplement their diets and to self-medicate should they be feeling under the weather.

Labels: malaysia, orangutan volunteers, orangutans, volunteer with orangutans