World's First Video of Sumatran Orangutan Giving Birth

Dana cleaning her daughter moments after giving birth. Photo from BBC News.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have the world's first video of a Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) giving birth. Why have we not have any videos of them giving birth? Well, Sumatran orangutans give birth at night (pitch black) and also high above the forest canopy. So, that's probably why. 

So we have the mother, Dana, who is a 25 year old Sumatran orangutan from Jersey's Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust (this Jersey is in the UK, not US). Dana suffered complications in her previous pregnancy in 2009 and resulted in a stillborn. These complications left her with blocked fallopian tubes, making her infertile. However, experts from Jersey General Hospital’s head obstetrician intervened in 2012 to help Dana conceive and a little help from the 27 year-old male, Dagu. On June 9th, Dana give birth to a female infant which was named KeaJaiban (you see, "KeaJaiban" is Indonesian for "miracle"). The birth of KeaJaiban (or Kea for short) was indeed miraculous, owing mostly to the surgery to unblocked Dana's fallopian tubes.

The video below might be not safe for work (NSFW) and I thoroughly recommend that you don't watch this after or before a meal. But then if you are like me, this will not phase you. 

 

 World's  first video of a Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) giving birth. Video from YouTube.

Age at first birth for female Sumatran orangutans is about 15 years old. Interbirth intervals are about 8 to 9 years old while gestation period is between 7.5 to 8.5 months. Sumatran orangutan gestation period is very close to those of human females. (Singleton et al., 2008)

Orangutan birth is relatively quick (as are most primates). The baby comes out of the birth canal and immediately held on by the mother. A few licks on the baby to make sure that the baby is alright, the mother then clears the baby's airway. The baby then starts to cry and scream (like a human baby). The mother then ingests the placenta (placentophagy) and bites off the umbilical cord. Placentophagy is very common in mammals, even in humans. I think the most amazing (and coolest) part of the video is when Dana brought her baby and presented her to the staff!

References:

Singleton, I., Wich, S.A. & Griffiths, M. 2008. Pongo abelii. In: IUCN 2013. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.1. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 10 August 2013.

Second orangutan born at Jersey wildlife park on BBC News

Never-before-seen footage of orangutan birth in Refugees Of The Lost Rain Forest on BBC One

Jersey orangutan baby named 'KeaJaiban' on BBC News

Meat-Eating in Sumatran Orangutans

Caught in the act. Mother and infant Sumatran Orangutan sharing their kill, a slow loris.
Photo from NewScientist.

Well, well, well ... it seems like we have another great ape species who can't stay on a vegetarian diet. I mean, who in their right mind would want be an obligate herbivore right? Right? Actually ... contrary to popular belief, orangutans are not strictly frugivores (fruit eater). They also subsist on plant parts (leaves, buds, flowers, bark, sap, etc) and the occasional bird eggs and insects. Thus it came as to no surprise for me that some orangutans have acquired taste for meat. A varied diet is a good diet. A flexible diet in response to scarce food resources is an even better diet! Yes, I'm looking at you Giant Panda. Eat something else will ya? Edit: A rep from Giant Pandas did confirm that they do eat something else.

Sumatran Orangutans (Pongo abelii) are not the first great ape to have a taste for meat. Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) from Gombe Stream National Park were observed hunting and eating red colobus monkeys (Colobus badius tephrosceles) by Dr. Jane Goodall while savannah chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) in Fongoli have been observed hunting and eating lesser bushbabies (Galago senegalensis) by Dr. Jill Pruetz.



A new paper published in International Journal of Primatology, Behavioral, Ecological, and Evolutionary Aspects of Meat-Eating by Sumatran Orangutans (Pongo abelii), by Hardus et al. (2012) describes 3 rare cases of meat-eating by a mother and infant dyad Sumatran Orangutans. This pair was observed eating slow lorises (Nycticebus coucang), which the authors posit that meat-eating is a fallback strategy when food source (ripe fruits) are scarce. 
The authors also touched on very fundamental yet intriguing questions about meat-eating and hominid evolution in this paper. What are the minimum time on chewing is necessary for an adult female Australopithecus africanus to reach its daily energy requirement when subsisting partially on raw meat?  How did meat became a substantial component of hominid diet?

A. africanus needs 1202–1507 calories per day for their daily energy requirement. By using the chewing rate of P. abelii as a model, the authors estimate that A. africanus have to chew about 2 hours on raw meat to achieve 25% of their caloric needs while the remaining 75% were subsisted from easier to chew food sources such as leaves and insects.  Raw meat does not seem to be an efficient way to satisfy caloric needs but seemed to be a "fallback" resource when other food source are scarce. As to when meat became a substantial component of hominid diet, it is probably after the "discovery" of fire by Homo erectus. Cooked meat are easier to chew and provides more nutrient than from raw meat. The rate of mastication also decreases because most fibers within raw meat are broken down after it's cooked.

Apes Walking Upright: That's Just How They Roll (or Walk).

Orangutans, gorillas and chimpanzees do it. Bonobos seem to love doing it. Apparently gibbons do it really well. Indeed, bipedalism is not unique to humans and is quite common among apes. Apes are known to walk upright once in awhile, although bonobos seem to do it more frequently than other apes. Bipedalism is just one of the natural repertoire of ape locomotion.

(From left to right) Upright Apes Brigade: Gibbon, Orangutan, Gorilla, Chimpanzee and Bonobo. Click photo for larger image.

Upright Gorilla Goes Viral: 

Ambam the gorilla. Photo from Dailymail.

Currently going viral on the internet is a video of Ambam, a Western lowland gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) that was filmed walking upright in his enclosure. This 21 year-old, 485 lb. ape currently resides at Port Lympne wild animal park in Kent, England.

If you have not heard of Ambam or caught on to this internet sensation, you can read about him on :
Ambam, the swaggering silverback gorilla who walks around his pen on two legs (DailyMail)
Yes, he can walk. But just how close IS he to being human? (DailyMail)
Walk like a man: Gorilla strolls on hind legs (MSNBC).

It is not uncommon to see a gorilla walk upright but what's unique about Ambam is that he seems to walk upright quite frequently and good at it too. Bipedal locomotion is common in gorillas but they spend most of their time knuckle-walking. Ambam's upright gait and locomotion is definitely not an upright display to intimidate. Instead, it is most probably in response to curiosity and foraging in his enclosure. One of his keeper, Phil Ridges said:

"We think he might use it to get a height advantage to look over the wall when keepers come to feed him and standing up can also help him in looking for food generally in his enclosure as it gives him a better vantage point." Ridges added that Ambam could also carry more food if his hands were freed from walking and it also meant "he doesn't get his hands wet when it is raining."

It seems that the penchant for bipedalism runs deep in Ambam's family. His father, sister and half-sister (same father) prefer to walk upright and stand the same way as Ambam.

Ambam standing upright. Photo from Dailymail.

Is this a novel behavior in response to being in captivity? Is his skeletal and muscular structure (and in some sense his father, sister and half-sister) different than other gorillas? I think it would be interesting to see a behavioral study and an ethogram on Ambam's choice of locomotion. What are the percentage (or time spent) of him walking upright compared to knuckle-walking. Will his offspring be a fan of bipedality as well?

The Other Upright Ape:
While Ambam seem to prefer walking upright once in awhile, there is another ape that came before him who is a habitual biped. This ape is a chimpanzee named Oliver.

Oliver was a media (and science) sensation in the 60s and 70s for his preferred upright locomotion, having 47 chromosomes and a less prognathic face compared to other chimpanzees. Humans have 46 chromosomes while chimpanzees have 48 chromosomes. It was thought that Oliver is a "missing link" between chimpanzees and humans, thus nicknamed the "humanzee". While Oliver is not the missing link (Ely et al.,1998), he is truly a habitual biped.

The 52 year-old Oliver currently resides at Primarily Primates, a sanctuary in San Antonio, Texas. Below is a really good video of Oliver from his early years to his retirement. Seeing what happened to Oliver, I hope that they will not parade Ambam around like a freak of nature.

UPDATE: Oliver passed away on June 2nd 2012 at Primarily Primates. Read more here.

Reference:
Ely, J.J. Leland, M. Martino, M. Swett, W. Moore, C.M. 1998. Technical note: Chromosomal and mtDNA analysis of Oliver. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 105(3) 395-403. DOI: http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/28165/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0

Philadelphia's Baby Sumatran Orangutan Gets A Name!

After two months of being born, the female baby Sumatran orangutan from Philadelphia Zoo finally gets a name! The baby is given the name Batu, named after a group of islands of the coast of Sumatra. The other two choices were Kadoa (small gift) and Anoano (blessing). Over half of the 3.400 online votes favor the name Batu, myself included. Batu was born in October 2nd, 2009 to father Sugi and mother Tua.

Batu, in the embrace of her mother Tua. Photo from Philadelphia Inquirer.

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer:

"PECO is sponsoring an Orangutan Baby Naming Weekend from 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. tomorrow and Sunday which will include special activities at the PECO Primate Reserve and giveaways to first 200 people to arrive at the zoo each day."

 So, go on down to Philadelphia Zoo and celebrate the merriment! Unfortunately I'll be at the American Anthropological Association (AAA)'s Student Saturday today and will be going to Mutter Museum with my friends on Sunday (though I might be able to persuade them to go to the zoo instead).

Read more about Batu: Baby Sumatran Orangutan Born In Philadelphia Zoo & Name The Female Baby Sumatran Orangutan.

American Anthropological Association (AAA): Student Saturday and Nonja, The Orangutan

Packing and getting ready for AAA's Student Saturday in Philadelphia this Saturday. Will blog about the event so stay tune!

Nonja and her camera.

In the mean time, I'm gonna leave you with Nonja, a female orangutan from Schönbrunn Zoo, Vienna. Nonja made headlines and became a sensation on Facebook for using a camera to take photo of herself and her enclosure. She probably doesn't know what a camera is but she knows that every snap of the camera dispenses a raisin as a treat. So you can say she's camera happy because she's raisin happy.

Nonja and her Facebook pose.

This is the "info" on Nonja's Facebook profile, in German.

"Nonja ist ein 33-jähriges Orang-Utan Weibchen. Die Fotos auf dieser Website sind von ihr fotografiert und zeigen das neue Gehege mit 750qm Freianlage im Tiergarten Schönbrunn. Die passende Kamera wurde von der Firma Samsung zur Verfügung gestellt."

"Nonja is a 33-year-old female orangutan. The photos on this website are photographs taken by her and shows the new enclosure with 750qm open area in the Schönbrunn Zoo. The camera was provided by the company Samsung."

Read the full story from Reuters here. Also, check out Nonja's Facebook profile!

Name The Female Baby Sumatran Orangutan!

The Philadelphia Zoo's Sumatran orangutans, Tua and Sugi, welcomed their first baby last month. I've blogged about the announcement and press release here at Prancing Papio.

 Tua and her baby. Photo from Philadelphia Zoo.

Now the Philadelphia Zoo is giving you an opportunity to name this female orangutan baby by voting on the names available on the zoo's website. Personally, I'm partial to the name "Batu" because it's cute. Also because both her parent's names are two syllable as well. The baby orangutan debuts with her mother to the public on Thursday, Nov 12th. Click here for more photos of Tua and her baby from 6ABC.

A closeup photo of Tua and her baby. Photo from 6ABC.

Female Orangutan Mating Strategies

There is a published paper by Knott et al. (2009) from next month's Proceedings of The Royal Society B about female Bornean orangutans and their reproductive strategies. The authors propose that female orangutan's mating strategies is a product of coevolution from male coercion and also selective resistance.

There are two morphs in male orangutans; flanged or unflanged. Both are secondary sexual characteristics (traits that distinguish the two sexes of a species but are not part of the genitalia). Flanged males are usually adult dominant males. Unflanged males are either juveniles (who haven't developed their secondary sexual characteristics) or non-dominant adult males. These adult unflanged males might develop a flange when they become a "dominant" male or might never develop one in their lifetime. High levels of forced copulation in orangutan is common, especially by unflanged males. Orangutans are polygamous and males generally do not spend anytime with the female after copulation. Orangutans are usually solitary (with the exception of mother and infant pair), due to scarcity of food sources.

The authors found that females, when near ovulation, mated cooperatively only with prime flanged males. When the conception risk for these females was low, they willingly associate and mate with unflanged males. These observations supported the hypothesis that, together with concealed ovulation, facultative association is a mechanism of female choice in a species where females can rarely avoid coercive mating attempts. Female resistance reduces copulation time and may provide an additional mechanism for mate selection. However, female mating strategies is important to avoid aggressive interactions from flanged males and also as infanticide avoidance.

Reference:
Knott, CD. Thompson, ME. Stumpf, RM. McIntyre, MH. 2009. Female reproductive strategies in orangutans, evidence for female choice and counterstrategies to infanticide in a species with frequent sexual coercion. Proceedings of The Royal Society B Retrieved October 9, 2009, from http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/early/2009/10/06/rspb.2009.1552 [doi:10.1098/rspb.2009.1552]

Baby Sumatran Orangutan Born in Philadelphia Zoo

While Ardipithecus ramidus was all abuzz in the paleontology, physical anthropology, primatology and science blogosphere yesterday, the folks at Philadelphia Zoo were keeping themselves busy for another addition to their PECO Primate Reserve.

 Sugi, the proud father. Flickr photo from Kevin Burkett.

A baby was born to the zoo's resident Sumatran orangutan family (Pongo abelii), Tua (16 years old) and Sugi (13 years old), on Oct 2nd at around 8am. This is the first orangutan baby born at PECO Primate Reserve since it was opened in 1999 and also the first offspring for both Tua and Sugi. No words yet whether the baby is a boy or a girl.

According to Philadelphia Zoo's press release, both mother and baby appear to be doing well. The first 48 hours are crucial for the baby so zoo staff and veterinarians are closely monitoring both Tua and her baby. They do not know when Tua and her baby will make their debut at the PECO Primate Reserve.

Congratulations Tua and Sugi! See you soon.

Rehabilitation Not Enough to Solve Orangutan Crisis in Indonesia by Rhett A. Butler

Not much to write about today but I want to share an article by Rhett A. Butler "Rehabilitation Not Enough to Solve Orangutan Crisis in Indonesia" from mongabay.com.

This is a really good article about orangutans in Indonesia and their future in the wild. While orphaned orangutans are brought in to be rehabilitate, there are growing concerns that they are destined to live in captivity for the rest of their life because of the dwindling habitat in Indonesia and Sumatra.

New Study Suggests That Humans are More Closely Related to Orangutans, Not Chimps

Sorry, been traveling here and there lately so don't really have time to post blog updates. Found this interesting article on EurekAlert!

A new study suggests that humans share a common ancestor with orangutans, not chimpanzees according to shared physical characteristics.

Comparing physical characteristics instead of DNA, researchers Jeffrey H. Schwartz and John Grehan found that humans shared 28 unique physical characteristics with orangutans, share only two features with chimpanzees and seven with gorillas. Humans share seven characteristics with all three apes (chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans). Gorillas and chimpanzees shared 11 unique characteristics.

Schwartz and Grehan proposed to have a new "grouping" or classification for humans, orangutans and last common ancestor call "dental hominoids" because they all share similar thick-enameled dental.

Read more about this study at EurekAlert! Humans related to orangutans, not chimps, says new Pitt, Buffalo Museum of Science study.

Great Apes LOL Like Human Too

A baby orangutan being tickled. Photo from Discovery News.

We're not the only species that are capable of laughing according to new study. Great apes are able to laugh like humans too, and they do it frequenty. This finding suggests that the last common ancestor of humans and apes also laughed around 10 to 16 million years ago. The ability to laugh subsequently evolved among apes and human, resulting in distinctive ways of laughing among them.

"Orangutans produce a short laugh series of noisy calls. Gorillas, chimps and bonobos produce longer laugh series and the calls are produced more rapidly" said project leader Marina Davila Ross, a primatologist from University of Portsmouth. With partners Michael Owren and Elke Zimmermann, Davila Ross recorded over 800 recordings of 22 juvenile and infant apes, and also three human babies laughing as they were tickled in their palms, feet, necks and armpits.

Presented in the latest edition of Current Biology, the study shows that human laughter is most similar to that of chimpanzees and bonobos, followed by gorillas and orangutans. Human laughter is least similar to those of siamangs, a lesser ape. "These results coincide with the genetic topology of great apes and humans," said Davila Ross. She doesn't rule out if apes or monkeys have a sense of humor but said that "it is difficult to find a method to accurately test it".

Read the rest of the article from Discovery News: Chimps, Other Apes Laugh Like People.

I wonder what function does laughing serve in primates.

Orangutans Found Cannibalizing Own Babies

Sorry for not updating this blog for almost 2 weeks. I just finished my finals and I am currently busy finishing my thesis. Oh, I also graduate this Thursday!
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Reported in gorillas and documented in chimpanzees, some apes actually cannibalize their own species. However, there were reports of orangutans cannibalizing their own babies were reported in the same forest area of Indonesia, just one month apart from each other. This might be the first report of an ape eating its own offspring.

"Cannibalism has been documented in chimpanzees and reported in gorillas. Never before has any ape species been seen treating its own offspring as a consumable resource", said David Dellatore of Oxford Brookes University. Dellatore suspects that the mothers' stressed upbringing may have triggered their later actions.

Read the article from BBC - Earth News "Orangutans cannibalise own babies".

New Orangutan Population Found In Borneo

Pongo pygmaeus morio or the Black Bornean Orangutan. Photo from Associated Press.

A population of the rare orangutan subspecies Pongo pygmaeus morio or the Black Bornean Orangutan named because of its black fur was found by scientists in a remote, mountainous area of Borneo. The population is estimated between 1000 to 2000 individuals though there is no confirmation of an exact number, said Erik Meijaard, senior ecologist at the The Nature Conservancy. There are currently two species of orangutans; Pongo pygmaeus sp. (Bornean orangutan) and Pongo abelii (Sumatran orangutan). Bornean orangutans are endangered and Sumatran orangutans are critically endangered according to the IUCN Red List of mammals.

This is indeed good news as Bornean orangutans are considered endangered and any newly discovered population is good news to conservation. I wonder what will they find in Borneo next. Read the rest of the article from Associated Press.

Female Orangutans Steal From Potential Mates

It seems that female orangutans steal from potential mates to test them, according to a new study. Females prefer males that do not fight back when they steal their food. This behavior evolved so that females can choose males that are not overly aggressive. Being aggressive towards other males to protect the females is a good thing. Males that are aggressive towards their females, however, is not. Male's aggression towards a female limits their choice to choose whom or when they mate, according to Maria van Noordwijk from the University of Zurich. So, when a female steals from her potential mate, it is an evolutionary adaption to test out their potential mate's aggression and tolerance towards her. Read the full article from National Geographic.

Orangutan Turns 50, Thanks To Kitty

Everyone that knows me knows that I love cats. Cats are the perfect companion and the perfect friend. They never beg for you to drag them out on a snow storm to do their business and they even have the decency to cover their poop! OK enough talk about my cats, that's for my personal blog.

T.K. and Tonda at Zooworld, Fl. Photo from Cat Channel

An orangutan from ZooWorld, Florida named Tonda had adopted a cat name T.K. (short for Tonda's Kitty). Tonda went into depression four years ago after her mate, Yakut died. Faced with the facts that Tonda was too old for another male orangutan and was too fragile to be moved to another location, zookeepers tried a non-conventional method ... giving her a pet cat. Drawing inspiration from Koko, the gorilla who herself had a few pet cats, zookeepers began introducing T.K. to Tonda. It was a success. T.K. had been living with Tonda for the past four years and zookeepers think that he was the reason Tonda celebrated her 50th birthday. Read the article here.




What we can draw from this example, I think, is the power of pets or companion animals. Having a companion animal when we are lonely and sad seems inherent to humans but do great apes feel the same as well? Can pets really help rehabilitate other great apes, maybe even other primates when they are depressed, sad or when they just need a companion? One thing for sure, primates DO NOT MAKE GOOD PETS.

Bonnie The Whistling Orangutan

A female orangutan named Bonnie from the National Zoo in Washington DC knows how to whistle and she does it because she can. Bonnie's whistling was documented by Great Ape Trust of Iowa early last December. Her self-taught talent shed new light on the evolution of speech, said Bonnie's keeper Erin Stromberg. "Sounds aren't necessarily all genetic ... they also can be behavioral or ecological, and they are also voluntary", Stromberg added. BBC picked up the story last Thursday.

Bonnie whistles because she feels like it, not because for potential food reward. Researchers thought that orangutans have a limited number of sounds that they can make, all are involuntary responses based on emotions or to avoid predators. Bonnie's whistling certainly changed this perception. It turns out that Bonnie's friend, Indah also knew how to whistle. Scientists believe that Indah learned how to whistle from Bonnie. Indah died in 2004.

Bonnie's vocal plasticity might be the answer for the evolution of speech in orangutans or even the great apes.



"Orangutan’s spontaneous whistling opens new chapter in study of evolution of speech". Click on the Great Ape Trust of Iowa website or the .pdf version to read more.

Mirror Mirror On The Wall, Who Is That Other Gibbon?

Gibbons (lesser apes) have no use for mirrors, studies had shown (Suddendorf and Collier-Baker, 2008). They are not able to recognize themselves in front of a mirror. Typical human children starts to recognize themselves in front of the mirror around two-years-old. Mirror self recognition or visual self recognition is not unique to humans, it was only documented in great apes (chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans and gorillas). Humans and great apes are different than other primates because they can recognize themselves in front of a mirror. Self recognition in front of a mirror enable them to see areas of the body where they cannot see directly. Self recognition probably evolved in the common ancestors of great apes around 18 million years ago.

Primate phylogeny. The ability of mirror self awareness probably evolved around 18 million years ago with great apes (chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans and gorillas) common ancestors Image from www. mun.ca

A gibbon seems to be interested in itself, but none tried to get at icing on their own faces (Image: Emma Collier-Baker) Photo from www.newscientist.com

The gibbons sometimes tried to reach around the mirror to get at the ape on the other side (Image: Emma Collier-Baker) Photo from www.newscientist.com

Read more about "The evolution of primate visual self-recognition: evidence of absence in lesser apes" by Suddendorf and Collier-Baker, 2008 (full article) (abstract).

"King of the swingers has no use for mirrors" by Ewen Callaway on Newscientist.com

Citation:
Suddendorf T. Collier-Baker E. 2008. The evolution of primate visual self-recognition: evidence of absence in lesser apes. Proceedings of the Royal Society B (doi: 10.1098/rspb.2008.1754 ) http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/early/2009/02/21/rspb.2008.1754.full