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Orangutan spotted in East Kalimantan coal mine returned to the wild
A 17-year-old male Bornean orangutan was recently seen roaming a coal mine in East Kutai regency, East Kalimantan.
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Family time: A Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) plays with her baby on Aug. 12, 2020, at the Prigen Safari Park in the East Java regency of Pasuruan. (Antara/Umarul Faruq)
Authorities in East Kutai, East Kalimantan rescued a Bornean orangutan recently seen roaming around a coal mining site in the regency and released him in a forest far from human settlements and activities.
Footage taken in January by a local resident showed a seemingly confused male orangutan roaming across a chasm of sand streaked with white and black rocks at a coal mine, only several meters from excavators. The video, whose authenticity has been verified by AFP, later went viral on social media.
The coal mine is located about nine hours by car from the construction site of the Nusantara Capital City (IKN) in North Penajam Paser regency.
After his appearance at the mine on Feb. 5, authorities received reports on Feb. 11 from local residents that the same orangutan had reappeared, this time, at a local plantation.
“Our team immediately answered the report and evacuated the orangutan,” said Matheas Ari Wibawanto, the head of East Kalimantan Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA), on Tuesday, as quoted by Kompas.
The team later captured the primate and examined his condition. From the examination, they discovered that the orangutan was a 17-year-old male and confirmed that he was in good condition for release in the wild.
