Orangutans: Wizards of the Rain Forest
Can orangutans be called intelligent? And are they doomed? Russon, a psychologist at the University of Toronto, spent 10 years in Indonesia among these mellow and ruddy great apes, seeking definitive answers to the first question; her book touches inevitably on the second. Orangutans live in the forests of Borneo and Sumatra, where they "eat, rest, travel and occasionally socialize." Orangs, "reflective, meticulous and orderly" (at least compared to chimpanzees), can take 12 years to grow up and live to age 60. They're threatened by poachers, by kidnappers (who sell them as pets) and also (like most large tropical animals) by human encroachment on their habitat. Experts set up camps to care for former captives and help return them to the wild: the best-known, and during the '80s the most successful, was Camp Leakey, run by world-famous primate expert Birut? Galdikas. Russon spent much time around these camps: one chapter describes the complex and enjoyable life of orangs at Camp Leakey. The soft toys and changed policies Russon introduced at another rehab center "brightened a few orangutan days." But--as we learn when Russon moves to the forest-- those orangutan days may be numbered. If Indonesia can't preserve its wilderness, these great apes will have nowhere left to live. As for braininess, orangs can learn by observation how to "make pancakes" (crack eggs in cup, add flour, mix); how to make delicious lather from soap; even how to siphon kerosene and start a barbecue. One young adult female orang "hammered nails, sawed wood, sharpened axe blades, chopped wood... blew blowgun darts, lit cigarettes.... carried parasols against the sun, and applied insect repellent to herself." If that isn't smart, what is? More than 100 color photos. (Mar.)Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.