Indonesian wildfires raging, endangered Borneo orangutans face survival crisis

(Central News Agency, Jakarta, Comprehensive Foreign Reports on the 26th) The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said today that wildfires raging in the vast tropical forests of Indonesian Borneo have caused tremendous pressure on the critically endangered Borneo orangutans.

Agence France-Presse reports that Indonesian authorities have been battling wildfires in parts of Borneo and Sumatra for weeks, causing choking smog that blankets these areas as well as neighboring Malaysia and Singapore.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature said that wildfires are currently burning in the habitats of 52% of Borneo's orangutan groups, including 13 of the 20 largest existing groups.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature states: “Exposure to fire and smoke has quantifiable physiological, behavioral and ecological costs for orangutans in peat forest habitats.”

The IUCN said that during the haze, orangutans showed signs of lipolysis despite eating more and resting more, suggesting their energy needs increased, possibly because their immune systems were forced to work harder.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature also said that wildfires were also reported in the habitats of five species of gibbons in Sumatra and Borneo.

"Gibbons breathe the same smoke-filled air as the people who live around them. In addition to habitat loss and the destruction of behaviors that sustain wild populations, we have every reason to expect that they will suffer similar respiratory harm."