Posts Tagged ‘Borneo’

May
21

Bornean Orangutan update

Posted by Peter in Endangered Species,Field Research,community-based conservation,orangutan

Bornean Orangutan photo by KOCP

Our partners at the Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Project (KOCP) are developing a new website focused on their activities. Now, instead of waiting for me to randomly toss out an wild orangutan or elephant update, you can visit them anytime you like at this site: http://www.hutan.org.my/Orangutans.html

 The work carried out by KOCP in Sukau marked a landmark in the scope of orang-utan research. It was the first time that orang-utan research was carried out in secondary (that had been previously logged or disturbed) forest. The conventional thinking among primatologists studying orang-utan in the wild was that they could only live and survive in primarily (un-logged or disturbed) forest.

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May
17

Clouded Leopards

Posted by Peter in Animal Origins & Fun Facts,Endangered Species

Few animals rival the beauty of the clouded leopard, one of nature’s most mysterious felines and a species which can be seen at the Houston Zoo.

Named for its cloud-shaped spots or “ellipses,” this nocturnal creature makes its home in the tropical rainforests and dry woodlands of Southeast Asia, and is considered one of the most acrobatic climbers in the cat family.  “Cloudeds” can leap from tree to tree, maneuver quite well both above and beneath branches, hang upside-down by their hind feet, and even race head-first down vertical trunks. The cat’s long tail, which can reach three feet and is equal in length to the body, helps the animal maintain its balance high up in the forest canopy. Another unique feature of this species is its long canines, which are longer in proportion to body size than those of any other living cats.  In a sense, the clouded leopard is a medium sized saber-toothed tiger designed for the treetops.

Bornean Clouded Leopard, photo Wilting&Mohamed, ConCaSa

Although widely distributed and found in Indonesia, Burma, Nepal, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Sumatra, southern China and Borneo, the clouded leopard is still categorized as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.  Its numbers are believed to be declining throughout its range and the population on Taiwan was recently extirpated – that is, wiped out.  Being nocturnal and largely solitary in nature, this species has revealed little of its social behavior to even the most determined field researchers.  However, recent genetic studies suggest that what was once thought to be a single species is actually two; populations inhabiting the islands of Borneo and Sumatra are significantly distinct from those of the mainland.  This doesn’t come as a total surprise to evolutionary biologists, but it does give higher priority to conservation actions that target these isolated populations. The Houston Zoo currently supports several wildlife projects in the state of Sabah, Malaysian Borneo: orangutan field research, human-elephant conflict mitigation, and camera-trapping surveys for native cat species including the clouded leopard.    

For more information about clouded leopards, go to www.cloudedleopard.org.

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Feb
22

Spain has Picasso. France has Monet. The Houston Zoo has Cheyenne

Posted by Peter in Endangered Species,Uncategorized,What You Can Do,orangutan

Cheyenne's Electric Passion, 2008

Cheyenne's Electric Passion, 2008

Artists come in all shapes and sizes, all ages and skill levels, and now – in all species. Cheyenne, a 36-year-old orangutan, is our local art scholar. She is known for having a multi-faceted personality, which is reflected in the wide-range of art she has produced.

Whether she is being silly, serious, or serene, Cheyenne’s art is widely considered to be the most beautiful and impressive at the Zoo. So much so that one of her paintings was once featured on the Late Show with David Letterman.

Cheyenne’s limited edition artwork will be part of our next Pongos Helping Pongos Art Event and Auction to raise funds for Orangutan and Elephant conservation programs in Borneo. Visit Cheyenne’s webpage at https://www.houstonzoo.org/meet-cheyenne/

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Feb
18

Clouded Leopards and wild cats of Borneo

Posted by Peter in Animal Origins & Fun Facts,Endangered Species,What You Can Do

The Houston Zoo is involved in a number of efforts in Borneo focusing on elephants and orangutans and help out where we can in other areas. One of those areas is the Conservation of Carnivores in Sabah managed by our friends from Leibniz Institute for Wildlife Research and The Institute for Tropical Biology and Conservation (ITBC). The two primary investigators have recently shared some amazing footage with us from the project which can be seen here on the BBC Earth News Website.

The website notes: The film, the first footage of the cat in the wild to be made public, has been released by scientists working in the Dermakot Forest Reserve in Malaysia. The Sundaland clouded leopard, only discovered to be a distinct species three years ago, is one of the least known and elusive of all cat species. Two more rare cats, the flat-headed cat and bay cat, were also photographed.

There are 5  species of cats in Borneo and all five can be found at the research site which is pretty unique in itself. That the project has turned up a species known as the (Borneo) bay cat is newsworthy as the cat is little known and rarely seen, and even more rarely photographed. Other cats on the island include the Marbled cat and the Leopard cat.

We need to take this opportunity to thank our supporters in “Wildcat” conservation – the students of Velasquez Elementary in Richmond, Texas who for the second time in three years, have held a fundraiser to support wildcat (which is the school mascot) conservation in Borneo.

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Feb
05

Hornbills I have known…

Posted by Peter in Animal Origins & Fun Facts

I am not a birder. Birding takes patience, binoculars and the ability to stare skyward for hours looking for unidentified flying birds. But sometimes, you just cannot help it. Two places I have found birds particularly easy to see, even if I am not looking straight up, was Brazil’s Pantanal region and Borneo’s Kinabatangan River.

The Kinabatangan River region of Borneo contains 8 species of Hornbills: Rhinoceros, Papuan, Oriental Pied, Wreathed, Wrinkled, Black, White-crowned and Bushy Crested. I think. You recall earlier – I am not a birder. I have been lucky enough to visit this region a number of times and have seen at least 7 species of Hornbill there including 5 species on one trip. My favorite is the White-crowned but the most impressive is the Rhino Hornbill whose wingbeats you can hear coming out of the forest far before you can see them.

Rhinoceros Hornbill photo credit Paul Swen

Rhinoceros Hornbill photo credit Paul Swen

The Rhinoceros Hornbill is one of the largest, weighing in at up to 6lbs with a 40-50inch wingspan.  The ultimate resource to everything we want to know (Wikipedia) tells us that the courtship and bonding of these birds are critical, as the female must trust the male to provide her with everything when she is incubating and raising chicks. These Hornbills lay their eggs inside tree trunks, the females stay inside with the eggs, while the male will bring her and the young food. After the eggs are laid the male collects mud, and the male and female pack that mud, food, and feces to ‘mud-up’ the tree cavity entrance. This creates a very small hole, only large enough for the male to feed the female (and later chicks) and for the female to defecate out the hole. Once the babies are old enough (fully feathered) to leave the nest the female and male chip away the dry mud so the babies can get out.

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Jan
29

Life Aquatic: Borneo in the rainy season

Posted by Peter in Elephant,Featured,Field Research,orangutan

logodanauTypically when you work in a seasonal floodplain, you expect nothing less than seasonal flooding. But sometimes, the river overflows its banks and intrudes like rarely seen before.

Our partners in Elephant Conservation work out of the Danau Girang Field Centre in the Malaysian State of Sabah on the island of Borneo. Geography Assigment – google a map on find Sabah on the island. The Centre sits on the banks of the Kinabatangan River, a 560km river which runs from the mountains of SW Sabah down to the Sulu Sea. Find this on the map as well, I will wait…

Danau Girang underwater...

Danau Girang underwater...

When I visited last October, the giant meandering river was easily 10feet below the bank. The field house photo below is then another 100-150 yards into the forest. All travel in the area is thankfully by boat but you can imagine how difficult it must be to track elephants, orangutans, and other animals in this environment. Not to mention issues with clean drinking water, flooding generators and whether your clothesline will float away in the night.

I of course cannot forget to mention how much closer this flooding will be bring crocodiles, who normally stay on the riverbanks, to your door now that they think your door is the riverbank.

“Good morning dear, there is a 15 foot crocodile on our front porch”.

“Oh, lovely, invite him in for tea…”

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Jan
22

Last Call for Borneo!

Posted by Peter in Elephant,Endangered Species,Travel,What You Can Do

DSC_0407Reservation for our Borneo’s Elephants and Orangutans Tour will be closing soon with limited spaces available. The Houston Zoo is offering a one-of-a-kind experience on the island of Borneo. An encounter with  elephants and orangutans in the wild along the Kinabatangan River May 13-24, 2010.

The Kinabatangan River is 560km long and the Lower Kinabatangan region is estimated to have the largest concentration of wildlife in all of Malaysia. The area is renowned for its tropical birds including all 8 species of Hornbill found in Borneo. Crocodiles, monitor lizards, wild pigs, otters, civets, 10 species of primates including the island’s own proboscis monkey and Bornean Orang-utan , and of course, Borneo’s  elephants.
Contact conservation@houstonzoo.org for more information or go to our travel webpage
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Jan
20

Orangutans vs Palm Oil in Malaysia

Posted by Peter in Endangered Species,Featured,What You Can Do,orangutan

The Houston Zoo has supported the Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Project since 2005 with a primary focus on the orang-utans use of secondary forest. Recently, program co-director Dr. Marc Ancrenaz was interviewed about orangutans and the palm oil issue in Malaysia on the website Mongabay.

The conflict between Palm Oil Industry and the protection of wildlife  habitat is a difficult one and has led to PR campaigns on both sides. For the full article, click over to http://news.mongabay.com/2010/0116-orangutans.html.

If you would like to help protect orang-utans and elephants in the wild, join us on March 27th for our 4th Pongos Helping Pongos Auction event.

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Jan
01

Art for Orangutans by Orangutans?

Posted by Peter in Elephant,orangutan

2008 Event Painting "I-Ching"

2008 Event Painting "I-Ching"

The Houston Zoo’s 4th Pongos Helping Pongos Art Event will be held at the G Gallery beginning at 6:00 p.m. on March 27th. This very special evening will feature over 40 individual paintings done by our orangutans, elephants, siamangs babirusa and clouded leopards. Each painting will be professionally framed thanks to our partners YolArt Framing and accompanied by conservation information, an animal artist biography and photograph. The paintings will be displayed at G Gallery in the Heights for a single night in a fine arts setting, including refreshments and stunning photographic portraits of the featured artists. This special event concludes at 8:00 p.m.

All the paintings, portraits  and photography will be sold by silent auction with all the proceeds donated to the preservation of orangutans and other animals in their natural habitat on the island of Borneo.

The benefits of this program are many. It provides Zoo animals an outlet to express their intelligence, personalities, and creative abilities. It allows them to fulfill their mission as ambassadors for their species by generating precious funds that support conservation actions on the ground and behavioral enrichment initiatives at the Zoo. At the same time, this program engages the local community, creating a deeper appreciation for the lives of all animals and inspiring a greater concern for their well-being. And all of this is achieved through the exhibition and sale of the animals’ own art work through the annual event that we call Pongos Helping Pongos. (Pongo pygmaeus is the scientific name for orangutans, so this translates to Orangutans Helping Orangutans.) 

Since 2004, Pongos Helping Pongos has raised over $100,000 for the Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Project and Elephant Conservation Program in Sukau, Sabah, Malaysia and almost $20,000 in support of field conservation efforts at Indonesia’s Gunung Palung National Park. Both projects are located on the island of Borneo and represent some of the last remaining habitats for wild orangutans. In addition, a portion of the the funds are applied toward continuing orangutan behavioral enrichment projects at the Houston Zoo. We are very proud to be a partner of the Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Program, supporting critical research, education, and awareness programs for orangutans, elephants, and habitat protection in the region.

We look forward to hosting the best Pongos Helping Pongos event we have ever held, so call your friends and save the date on your calendar for a truly memorable evening. Come and enjoy the wine and, appetizers and join us for this unique event that supports our artistic animals and the field conservation efforts focused on their wild counterparts.

For more information or to help support this event please contact conservation@houstonzoo.org

Bornean Orangutan, Sabah, Malaysia. Photo courtesy Paul Swen. Available at 2010 event.

Bornean Orangutan, Sabah, Malaysia. Photo courtesy Paul Swen. Available at 2010 event.

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