Orangutan Jungle School Notes

Morning Routine:
- The school day starts at 7 a.m.
- Orangutans, aged 2-8 years old, are eager to begin their classes.
- Teachers wear masks to prevent transmitting human germs.
- Examples of orangutans and their habits:
  - Madara is always in a hurry.
  - Valentino acts as the gate monitor.
  - Kajora requires her comfort sack.
Assembly:
- Orangutans greet each other, highlighting deep bonds.
- Orphans like Utus and Madara were rescued as infants.
- They would typically stay with their mothers until around 8 years old.
- $Dependency_on_mothers \approx 8 \, years$
Threats to Orangutans:
- Deforestation and killing of adult orangutans by plantation owners and poachers lead to the species being on the brink of extinction.
- The school provides a chance for these orphans to return to the wild.

History: The school began in 1999 with a few orphans and has grown since then.
Current Population: 68 orangutans are divided into five groups based on age and skills.
Group Divisions:
- Groups 1 & 2: Elementary level learning together.
- Group 3: Middle school level, more independence.
- Groups 4 & 5: Junior high level, deep jungle exploration.
Classroom Dynamics:
- Orangutans pair up, often holding hands with trained babysitters.

Location: A short walk from dorms.
First Lesson: "Buo" (fruit time), serves as a learning opportunity.
Curriculum:
- Foraging for food: naturally, orangutans spend up to 6 hours a day foraging.
- Coconut cracking: caregivers demonstrate techniques.
Individual differences:
- Mumut learns quickly.
- Valentino is the class clown, often seeking help.
Foster Mother Role: Babysitter Lettera encourages independence in tasks like coconut cracking.
Group Ability: Group 2 exhibits more skill.
*Example: Merill can husk coconuts, but Valentino shares her reward.
Social Dynamics:
- Valentino learns to benefit from others' work.
- Benny is laid-back.

Location: 100 meters up the jungle boardwalk.
Teaching Style: More freedom for students to learn independently.
Example Lesson:
- Visiting a forest stream, pupils use coconuts for drinking and bathing.
  Weeoo demonstrates learned behavior from being an illegal pet (mimicking owners).
Progression: Weeoo's mimicking skills will likely lead to promotion to group 4.

Location: Classroom is high up in the trees.
Orangutan Size: 4-8-year-olds weigh around 30 kg; adult males up to 140 kg.
Lifestyle: Primarily tree-dwelling, foraging for about 300 types of fruit.
Continuing Needs: They still enjoy milk time, reflecting nursing behavior until almost 8 years old in the wild.
Babysitter Rotation: Staff rotates to prevent over-attachment.

Location: 2 kilometers up the road from Forest School
Environment: Baskets replace mothers' arms for cuddling at night.
Daily Routine: Diapers are used, and mornings begin with soy milk formula (better for digestion than cow's milk).
Individual Personalities: Despite their small size, the orangutans exhibit big personalities:
- Boomie wants to dominate the bottle.
- Colis plays with his surrogate mom.

Transportation: The babies are taken to class via bus.
Group Division: They are divided into "biggies" (1-2 years old) and "littles" (under one year old).
Backgrounds: Many have faced extreme hardship, like Boomie, who was found alone as a 2-week-old, and Jelat, who was rescued from being smuggled.
Activities:
- Planting fruit in hanging baskets encourage searching for food in trees.
- Introducing foods like yellow sand holes and green oranges.
- Exploring honey with Mulo to teach how to eat it.
Tool Use: Introduction to tool use, as orangutans are known to be inventive tool users.

Location: Upriver from Naru Menang, monitored by a 24-hour security station.
Purpose: The final stage of Jungle School, where teenage students live independently.
Current Status: Sanctuaries for 126 potential release candidates.
Threats to Habitat: Timber and palm oil industries have destroyed over 50% of Borneo's rainforests in the last 20 years.

Feeding Platforms: Daily fruit delivery supplements their foraging.
Social Dynamics:
- Fina prefers eating in trees.
  *Bruny, Ping, and Lopu use the platform, joined by dominant male Jaa.
- Peaceful food sharing reflects bonds forged as orphans.
- Kadic, who didn't attend Jungle School, is more hesitant to join.
Monitoring: Technicians observe orangutan behavior to determine release suitability.
Releases: Since 2012, over 250 orangutans have been released into protected wilderness areas.
Orangutans are semi-solitary apes and must learn hierarchy on their own.

Foraging: Caregivers create fruit kebabs to teach climbing and foraging in swaying canopies.
Individual Learning: Utus forages for leaves independently, potentially leading to promotion.
Practice: Merill practices tree-dwelling skills.

Clara's Story: 11-year-old Clara was brought back from a pre-release island after giving birth; her baby was snatched by a dominant male.
Reintroduction Attempt: Vets try to reunite Clara with her baby Clarita.

Surrogate Parenting: Rinto, an older female, practices parenting with Kajora.
Friendship and comfort are fostered at Naru Menang.
Dominance: Daryl is possessive of his girlfriend, Litty.

Valentino practices tool use after struggling during the day.
*Persistence pays off.

Bedtime: Babies are diapered and given watermelon.
Clarita's Reintroduction: Vet Arus tries to reunite Clara and Clarita after Clarita suffered a rash; successful reintroduction is uncertain.