My name is Mathilde, I’m from Belgium and I joined OuTrop as a volunteer in the first group of 2015. I’d like to share some of my orangutan experiences. Orangutans were one of the main reasons that I joined OuTrop and my expectations were definitely exceeded!
I first searched for orangutans in the Sabangau Forest with Azis, the Orangutan Project Coordinator. The process to find orangutans is really amazing, you just have to walk slowly and quietly, and listen out for any signs of an orangutan’s presence (falling fruit or branches, movements in the tree). As we searched, I even saw a group of gibbons, jumping tree to tree, and showing off their incredible agility. Then the moment finally came, and I saw my first orangutan: an adult male, with impressive flanges!
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| Unknown adult male orangutan. Photo by Mathilde Godefroid/OuTrop |
It was really exciting for me, but also for the team, because we discovered that he was a new male that they had never seen before in the study area. He was unsure about our presence and vocalised a lot (including kiss-squeaking – a vocalisation used as a warning). Twenti, a member of the behaviour team, and Leslie, a fellow volunteer, followed him until he made his nest for the night.
My second experience with orangutans was also full of surprises. With local field assistants, I followed Isabella (a 9 year old female) for the morning. She was feeding in a tree when we heard some branches moving behind us. We turned around and discovered another orangutan, a male! He didn’t have flanges, but did have a large throat sac, which was very interesting to see. He was really close to us. We were sitting in the middle of this scene so our view to this magical wildlife moment was perfect.
Later, the group were joined by another two female orangutans, a mother and her infant (a cute, tiny one year old baby)! This was literally a perfect time in the forest of Sabangau. We stayed with them for a while, sometimes they were very high in the trees and sometimes very close to us, and it felt like they were just posing for photos.
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| Adult female with her infant. Photo by Mathilde Godefroid/OuTrop |
Two follows, two incredible moments in less than two weeks in the Sabangau Forest. Each follow was full of discoveries and surprises, and each day was full of glorious adventures.
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| Glorious adventures: Mathilde [right] with fellow volunteer, Sruti [left]. Photo by Mathilde Godefroid/OuTrop |
