Posts Tagged ‘Borneo’

Apr
18

Why Should We Care? By Peter Riger, Vice-President of Conservation

Posted by in Borneo,community-based conservation,Conservation,Endangered Species,Series,Staff assisting wildlife protection in the wild,Travel

Vice President of Conservation, Peter Riger is visiting Borneo to find out how the Houston Zoo can be of further assistance in the race to save Asian wildlife.

Why should I care?  That is an odd question, but extremely relevant in today’s world. Some of the challenges we face are growing human population, water and food shortages, and competition for other natural resources between human-to-human and wildlife-to-human.

Why should we care about wildlife and wild places? There has to be some value in protecting not only species but complete ecosystems. Believe it or not, they really do sustain life and without animals – from insects to elephants – these systems will falter.

But if you live in a country that does not have a wild population of elephants, why should you care? They do not walk through your crops, threaten your livelihoods and other than viewing them at a zoo or on tv, they most likely are not something you think about.

I worry about this constantly. How do we make you care enough to want elephants or any other species to survive? I am not really sure of the answer. We can inspire you to care, individualize the animal, tell you it’s story and let you look into it’s eyes through photography or even a visit to the zoo. Your children can care enough to make you care but what is the conservation action that someone living in the US can take part in to protect elephants? Donate to a worthy project? Take a stand on banning ivory products? Is just caring enough? I do not have the answer.

This thought began again when I was at a colleague’s home here in Borneo and I picked up a book called London Zoo from Old Photographs 1859-1914 ( if you find a copy please let me know as Amazon has a used one listed for $265.00 which is $230.00 more than I am willing to pay). The photo depictions by today’s standards of zoo’s were not great by any means. Zoos in the late 1800′s collected an individual, did what they could to keep it alive, and then replaced it. Sad, tragic, and consistent with a mentality that prevailed 150 years ago.

What I was looking for were certain animals that they might have kept, species that are now extinct, and I thought to myself if they could have held on to these just a decade or two more until they could figure out their care and management, those species would still be with us. It was not the collecting of 5 individual Quagga that drove the animal to extinction, it was already gone from the wild. The last Thylacines on the planet, known as a Tasmanian Tiger, lived longer in the zoo then it’s wild counterparts. There were subspecies in the book I am sure are gone. There was a monk seal photo, if it was the Caribbean, then it is also extinct.

A few others I was amazed they had were collected back in the 1800′s. The Saiga Antelope most likely numbered near one million when London Zoo displayed theirs. Now the population is on the brink of extinction. The “Hairy” Sumatran Rhino, of which only ~100 now exist, is speculated to be in the numbers of 20-25 in Borneo. They had the Madagascar Aye-Aye and Fossa (both survive in the wild today) and some odd looking equids and antelope I fear may be gone.

I guess what I am rambling on about is if we have the ability to save a species, then we need to do so. It is on our collective conscience to do so if we can. As individuals or conservation organizations, we need to find a way to make it happen regardless of the delicate nature of local politics. We have enough tools at hand to work with local communities to protect their wildlife and reduce the illegal trade in wildlife parts as well as protect necessary habitat.

The last thing I want to do ten years from now is look at a book called Zoo Photos from the Year 1975-2015 and count the number of species that have gone extinct knowing we could have kept it from happening.

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Apr
17

Danger from above! By Peter Riger, Houston Zoo’s, Vice-President of Conservation reporting from Borneo

Posted by in Borneo,Bumblebees,community-based conservation,Conservation,Elephant,Endangered Species,Field Research,Series,Staff assisting wildlife protection in the wild,Travel

Vice President of Conservation, Peter Riger is visiting Borneo to find out how the Houston Zoo can be of further assistance in the race to save Asian wildlife.

I woke up this morning to what sounded like a helicopter outside my screen window but it was only the largest bee I had ever seen and he was not happy that it was 5:30am and I was still asleep. When he finally went away I could hear a pair of gibbons calling from across the river. Although difficult to see, they can be heard for miles, usually in the very early morning, and it would have been a great sound to wake up to, if not for the bee.

Everything seems to fly here; Proboscis Monkeys and Red leaf Monkey fly overhead as they jump from tree to tree, there are flying snakes, flying frogs, flying giant squirrels and the  little seen colugo which is also called the flying lemur.

So when walking here, your eyes have to be on the trail as well as in the trees as witnessed this morning by two research students walking to the station when an orangutan mother and baby decided to drop things from above we will not talk about here and just miss them by a few feet. By the time I arrived on the trail a minute later, dung beetles were already busy at work “cleaning up”. How did they know so quickly? They must have a poo alert early warning system.  The forest is alive in Borneo, as are the skies.

There is a fairly straightforward routine here for everyone except the nocturnal prosimians researcher who spends her time looking for slow loris and tarsier from midnight to 6am. Whether you are a crocodile researcher or checking cameras  for bears, you get up early and either hit the trail or grab a boat and head out to your site, some of which overlap. Hopefully you return by lunch and then repeat or work on projects at the centre before dinner, then try and get a working Internet signal to catch up with the outside world and the lights out when generator goes off at 11pm. Some of these projects go on for years and everyone genuinely enjoys being here despite what would seem like difficult conditions at times.

Outside of the projects, there is another initiative here managed by local staff called River Keepers who patrol the Kinabatangan to make sure there are no illegal activities in the reserve here ( hunting, logging, etc.). They are as much part of the team and live here at the centre along with all the visiting students and guests. I mentioned the other day there were 6 countries represented here thus year (so far) which include Canada Malaysia, France, US, Spain, UK, Belgium and Mexico – okay, that’s 8 countries.

These, along with wildlife health units, are part of a larger network to look at how to protect this region on a landscape level. That is, not simply focus on one species at a time but understand how all these species interact within their habitat and what is needed to support everything together.

Stay tuned for more from Peter in Borneo.

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Apr
16

Traveling to our field projects in Borneo By Peter Riger, reporting from Borneo

Posted by in Borneo,community-based conservation,Conservation,Elephant,Endangered Species,Field Research,Series,Staff assisting wildlife protection in the wild,Travel

Vice-President of Conservation, Peter Riger is visiting Borneo to find out how the Houston Zoo can be of further assistance in the race to save asian wildlife.

Back in 2005, traveling to the Kinabatangan River region was not so easy but both palm oil plantations and tourism have literally paved the roads to the eastern side of the island. It is still 6 hours by car and boat but the paved roads wind their way across the island making it a bit less difficult to get around.

Then of course this occurred in February and early March:

A group of about 200 followers of the Sultanate of Sulu had entered the coastal village of Lahad Datu in Sabah on Borneo island on February 9 to claim the territory as their own, citing ownership documents from the late 1800s. The group is asking Malaysia to renegotiate the original terms of a lease on Sabah by the Sultanate to a British trading company in the 19th century.

This unfortunate incident led to loss of lives on both sides and some security concerns for foreign travelers. That region – about 3 hours south of the Kinabatangan field sites, is a gateway to tourism for Danum Valley and the coral reefs and scuba diving off Semporna and although we are not heading out that way, there are still some concerns about foreigners moving about but tensions are down enough that everything is getting back to normal at most of the field sites.

What is most striking traveling across the island the past few years is the never-ending views of palm oil plantations. You read about it on our websites and social media but it is another thing to see and have to drive through for most of the day. Palm oil has become the most difficult of scenarios here; It is the islands cash crop and is in the majority of the products we (consumers) use in one form or another. It is also the reason for loss of habitat and fragmentation among the forested areas which has out pressure on all wildlife species here as well as the local communities and fishing villages. The argument over what is sustainable use and what is not will go on for years and it is critically important the local government set aside corridors for wildlife through and around these plantations if there is ever to be success in protecting orangutans, clouded leopards, hornbills, elephants, rhinos and the hundreds of other species dependent on thus landscape.

We will be out in the Kinabatangan the next few days to catch up with a number of project partners we support including carnivores, elephant, banteng (wild cattle) and a number of other field researchers and report back at the end of the week.

Stay tuned for more from Peter Riger.

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Apr
15

Why am I in Borneo? By Peter Riger, Vice-President of Conservation, Houston Zoo

Posted by in Borneo,community-based conservation,Conservation,Elephant,Endangered Species,Field Research,orangutan,Series,Staff assisting wildlife protection in the wild,Travel

We have had three main partners in Sabah since 2004;

1) Hutan which runs the Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Project and Elephant Conservation Unit as well as a number of other programs.

2) Danau Girang Field Centre which is a partnership of the Sabah Wildlife Department and Cardiff University.  They conduct field research with a focus on priority species that will lead to conservation management plans for the region.

 3)The Sabah Wildlife Department itself.

 

Radio collared Bornean Elephant

The Houston Zoo has supported numerous conservation efforts in Sabah which include Orangutan, Elephant, Banteng, small carnivores, amphibians, and have assisted with projects ranging from education to ecotourism. The reason for this latest visit is to look at new priority projects to partner with over the next few years. Although we keep in constant email and SKYPE contact with our international conservation partners we try to visit thier sites and the people involved at least once a year to see how we can enhance our support.

Proboscis Monkey Photo courtesy of Paul Swen

 

Sabah is an amazing region and is considered a biodiversity hotspot. There are 10 species of primates including the Bornean Orangutan and Proboscis Monkey, 5 species of cats: Leopard cat, Clouded Leopard, Marbled cat, Flat-headed cat and the extremely rare Borneo Bay cat ( I can guarantee most people have only heard of one of those cat species). There are actually two dozen carnivores on the island ranging from otters and civets to Bornean Sun Bears. Bird life is just as diverse including 7 different species of Hornbills as well as pheasants, storm storks, and sea eagles. But all these species are threatened by fragmented habitat due to land use for agricultural purposes such as Palm Oil which is a blog unto itself one day. The species in the most trouble here is the Sumatran Rhino whose worldwide population us around 100-150 with potentially 20-25animals on the island of Borneo and the rest on the island of Sumatra. I was lucky enough to visit a young male Sumatran rhino named Tam in the Tabin Reserve a few years ago who had been rescued in a palm oil plantation, and it really was a special day for us.

 

Photo courtesy of Paul Swen

 

The goal for conservation in this region is to protect as much of the remaining habitat as possible, and develop corridors between the fragmented forests, while keeping conflict between the local communities and wildlife to a minimum.  Although I will spend time in meetings in the city, there will be time to hit the field so expect at least one note  about leeches and or getting caught in a tropical downpours along the way. And no, I do not mind either, they are part of life here on the island and easy enough to work around.

If want to learn about how you can help our conservaiton partners in Borneo click here.  Stay tuned for more updates from Peter in Borneo!

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Apr
11

Houston Zoo staff in Borneo assisting with wildlife protection

Posted by in Borneo,community-based conservation,Conservation,Endangered Species,Field Research,Series,Staff assisting wildlife protection in the wild

Vice President of Conservation, Peter Riger is visiting Borneo to find out how the Houston zoo can be of further assistance in the race to save asian wildlife.

Houston Zoo staff  visit conservation partners all over the world to assist in thier efforts to protect species and I have very fulfilling trips over the past few years. My favorite island to come back to is Borneo.   The island of Borneo sits just below the Philippines and the mainland of Malaysia.  It is divided into three countries: the two northern states of Sabah and Sarawak ate Malaysian. We assist in Sabah. A small country called Brunei sits on the northern edge of the island and southern region of Borneo is called Kalimantan which is Indonesian. It is not the easiest place to explain geographically and even the lady at the check-in counter at the airport looked at me oddly and said “Where?” this gave me great confidence since they were flying me there.

Map curtousy of wikipedia

Once your airline learns to pronounce Kota Kinabalu, it is easiest enough to get here. A quick flight to LA, then a not so quick 12-13 hour flight to Incheon/Seoul South Korea and then a 6 hour flight to Borneo landing around 2am in someone’s time zone other than your own. Yes, I am 12 hours ahead of all of you. It’s never the flights but the half dozen security screenings that seem the most stressful. We will spend a day or two meeting colleagues in the city before a 5 hour drive and 30-45 minute boat ride to the Danau Girang Field Centre which is as easy as Houston rush hour except for the finding your way up and around Mount Kinabalu which is the highest peak in Southeast Asia at over 10,000 feet.

Stay tuned for more from Peter in Borneo.

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Jul
25

Freeze Frame

Posted by in Africa,Chimpanzee,community-based conservation,Conservation,Elephant,Endangered Species,Featured,Field Research

Last week we posted an image of a monkey, a long-tailed macaque, in Borneo using a camera trap of one our partners to check his teeth before going to his dentist. I am sure monkeys have dentists so just humour me. I then heard that this monkey had gone viral and immediately panicked thinking “oh great, another emergining zoonotic disease to plague humans” but later found out they just meant social media viral as this little photo was seen on ABC, London papers, across the US and NBC nightly news: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nightly-news/48233798/#48233798

Macaque saying "hello to the ladies"

I think the word camera trap is confusing for some so basically it is a motion sensor camera used by researchers and hunters to gather data on wildlife. Our colleagues at Danau Girang Field Centre in Sabah, Borneo use them to look at both the types of and quantity of carnivores along the Kinabatangan River. Further south at the Tabin Wildlife Reserve, we support the same group looking at populations of Banteng, an endangered species of wild cow -yes – I said wild cow and endangered species in the same sentence.

Banteng cow with males in background

Normally wildife ignore these camers although the primates like to see their reflection in the small camera lens. Sometimes they pose for a photo whereas elephants may not be as happy with their profile and tear the camera off the tree, testing the patience (these are fairly expensive pieces of equipment) of researchers. Others, like this curious chimpanzee from the Faleme Chimpanzee Conservation Project in Senegal, well, I am just not sure what he was thinking:
There is so much more going on out in the world of animals then we ever realize. They go about their day to day business of eating, sleeping, eating some more, trying not to get eaten, and then sleeping again. But in between that busy schedule, these “not so hidden” cameras are catching wonderful photos of their personalities, even if the photo is not so clear like this Civet carrying her cub in her mouth courtesy of Danau Girang Field Centre.

Civet and baby - look in her mouth. No, she is not eating it, she is carrying it.

So next time you see a wacky animal photo, we may not know what they are thinking – ok maybe they are thinking “I will smash you camera and your glass eye!” like this elephant below, but they all have personalities and clearly they have appointments to keep just like the rest of us.

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Mar
02

The Origin of the Orangutan

Posted by in Animal Origins & Fun Facts,Borneo,community-based conservation,Conservation,Elephant,Endangered Species,Featured,Field Research,orangutan

A timely note as we prepare for our next Pongos Helping Pongs: Art by Orangutans for Orangutan Conservation Event

As told to me by a colleague in Malaysia:

The origins of the orang-utan

Long ago, human beings (or orangs) lived in the virgin jungles of Borneo. They stayed in groups, sharing their long houses, subsisting on plants and animals provided by Mother Nature. Within the different groups, this peaceful way of life was however troubled by all sorts of troubles and conflicts involving treacheries, malices, gossips and other problems that are specific to our species.

A peace-loving minority of orangs decided to split from the major group in order to escape the clamors of the village life and went deep into the jungle. They established a new home and lived happily for years. More and more orangs from their former community decided to join this idyllic existence, up to a point that the newly created village became overcrowded and full with problems that follow humans at all times and places (pollution, noise, habitat destruction, cruelty and meanness).

The original group decided to break up from their conspecifics one more time and wandered far away from this place. They established themselves on the mountains where life was paradise. Of course they didn’t stay on their own for long: more and more people joined them and troubled this peaceful existence. Fed up beyond belief, the original oranges decided that enough was enough: because they wouldn’t be able to find peace below the trees, they decided to climb up to the treetop and to settle down in the forest canopy. They also decided to not have any kind of relations with ground-dwelling orangs any more.

From this day on, this group became the orang-utans, or “people of the forest”.

Join us March 10th at The G Gallery in The Heights in support of orangutan conservation. http://www.houstonzoo.org/php/

Learn more about the effects of Palm Oil on Orangutan habitat: http://www.houstonzoo.org/palm-oil/

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Oct
28

A message from a Houston Zoo intern in Borneo

Posted by in Borneo,Carnivores,Conservation,Field Research

Lyndsey Stanton is an intern in the carnivore section at the Houston Zoo.  She was searching for an opportunity to see conservation in action and gain some field experience.  She approached us in July and inquired about our conservation partners.  After some discussion she felt the Borneo project was ideal.  We connected her with the Borneo folks, and the next thing we knew she was booking her flights. 

Enjoy Lyndsey’s message below. 

Orangutan using rope bridge

Hello from Borneo! I have been in Borneo for a little over two weeks and have already learned and seen so much! I’ve spent a great amount of time in the jungle helping with research. I’ve helped with small mammal trapping, used for measurements and blood samples in order to attempt to learn how many small mammals are in the area, camera trapping animals in the jungle, and tracking a radio-collared slow loris. I’ve also participated in a few other activities including learning to climb very tall trees up to the canopy, and helping to build a rope bridge for orangutans needing to cross nearby tributaries. I’ve seen many animals including, elephants, crocodiles, proboscis monkeys, orangutans, macaques, hornbills, monitor lizards, a slow loris, civets, and more.

 

This has been the most amazing experience of my life! I’ve become friends with the other students (all from different countries) and even learned a little Malay. Danau Girang Field Center is simply wonderful and I just don’t want to leave. Thankfully I have another two weeks here! I’ll update more soon.

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Feb
07

Valentines Day Candy

Posted by in Conservation,Elephant,Endangered Species,orangutan

How is this related to Wildlife Conservation – really? Yes, there is a method and message, to our madness…

Palm Oil and The Great Chocolate Debate. It can help save the lives of Orangutans and many other species living on Borneo and Sumatra. Palm oil is a form of edible vegetable oil produced from the African oil plam tree (Elaeis guineensis) which has been planted on plantations throughout Malaysia and Indonesia, home to some of the world’s most endangered wildlife. These plantations replace tropical rainforest acreage in staggering numbers.

Rainforest? No. Palm Oil Plantation? Yes.

What we are asking you to do is to be a responsible consumer and purchase products from companies which either do not use palm oil or are part of the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm oil. You can do that by taking a quick look at this Orangutan Friendly Palm Oil Valentine Guide.

To learn more about the issues facing wildlife and palm oil just link here.

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Dec
06

Exciting new Bornean elephant pictures from the field

Posted by in Borneo,Conservation,Elephant,Endangered Species,Field Research

In the state of Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, the Houston Zoo has partnered with the French non-governmental organization Hutan and the Sabah Wildlife Department - both of which support conservation programs in and around the 27,000-hectare Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary.   Dr. Marc Ancrenaz is the Director of the Kinabatangan Orang-utan Conservation Project.  KOCP participates in Bornean elephant conservation.  Dr. Ancrenaz took these beautiful Bornean Elephant shots the other day in Sabah.

Secondary forests of the Lower Kinabatangan are also home to approximately 200 of the 1200 to 1500 Asian elephants believed to remain in northeastern Borneo.  Recent research indicates that they may be genetically distinct and potentially separated from mainland Asian populations thousands of years.  Today this subspecies is only found in Sabah (although some individuals roam in Northern Kalimantan), making the State of Sabah the sole custodian of a unique sub-species of elephant.

If you would like to help support Borneo’s Elephant Conservation Unit, link here for more information and follow the page down to the support button.

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