Orangutans rescued from fire-damaged plantation in West Kalimantan

Conservationists and the YIARI Foundation have rescued a 15-year-old mother orangutan and her infant from a fire-damaged oil palm plantation in West Kalimantan, Indonesia.

The pair was discovered in Pelang Village, Matan Hilir Selatan District, surviving in a small, 400-square-meter patch of acacia trees surrounded by burnt land and plantations. Local residents alerted the West Kalimantan Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) to the sighting on September 16.

Rescuers used a tranquilizer gun to safely evacuate the animals on September 18. While the orangutans showed no physical burns, the mother was treated for a fever of 39.5 degrees Celsius with intravenous fluids and supplemental oxygen. The infant, estimated to be one to two months old, was also rescued.