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| Sonia was one of three primates set free into the small uninhabited BJ Island yesterday. - NST picture by Nik Hariff Hassan |
Sonia, Ah Ling and Nicky, aged 8, 17, and 23, respectively, from the Bukit Merah Orang Utan Island Sanctuary, were freed on BJ Island, a small uninhabited islet that is a five-minute boat ride from the sanctuary.
The sanctuary's resident veterinarian, Dr D. Sabapathy, who had studied and cared for the three primates over the past decade, said the time had come for them to return to their natural environment and away from human interaction.
"It has never been our plan to keep them in captivity or semi-captivity forever. They need to be able to survive and propagate on their own," he told the New Straits Times.
He said the 5.6ha islet was chosen to enable a small team of researchers, led by Assistant Professor Dr Misato Hayashi of Kyoto University, to observe and study the ecological, sociological and behavioural changes as the orang utans adapted to their new environment.
"BJ Island is small and it will allow us to monitor and study them in their natural state, with little to no human contact.
"It is also close to the sanctuary, so we can take them back any time if anything goes wrong or if they fail to adjust," he said, adding the team would include researchers from local universities such as Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) and Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM).
Two rangers and a research officer will be stationed at one end of the islet at all times, while the rest of the island would be free for the orang utans to roam, forage for food and make their home.
The sanctuary staff has also identified more than 250 different fruit and tree species on the island which can satisfy the primates' diet.
The release, he said, was the sanctuary's sixth of seven-stage orang utan rehabilitation programme, aimed at eventually returning all its primates to the wild by gradually minimising human contact at every stage of the process.
"At each stage, we train them to climb, nest, and look for food, and to depend less and less on the rangers and sanctuary staff.
"The sixth, called the wild release training stage, is when the orang utans learn to acclimatise themselves to conditions similar to the final stage, when they are finally returned to their native habitat in Sarawak.
"This is a long-term study, with the sixth stage expected to last at least five to six years.
"At the end of our work, we hope to have comprehensive knowledge of the orang utans -- everything from their physiology, diet, behaviour, sociological and ecological effects and ability to adapt.
"At the same time, we hope it will help us to improve veterinary medicine and conservation efforts."
The release ceremony was performed by MK Land executive director Felina Mustapha Kamal and Japanese Ambassador to Malaysia Kyoto University Primate Research Institute director Professor Tetsuro Matsuzawa.
Dr Sabapathy said: "After 11 years, data collected by the Bukit Merah Orang Utan Island Sanctuary is ready to be compiled and published.
Dr Sabapathy, who has been stationed there for nine years, said the facility was working out a possible agreement with the Veterinary Medical Institute to publish the research findings, first as a series of journal articles which may then be followed up with a book.
He said plans were under way to publish the findings by December, which will focus on the progress made in orang utan veterinary medicine.
Dr Sabapathy hoped the findings would be a valuable contribution to Malaysian research and education, and that the sanctuary would continue to be a productive base for orang utan science and study in Peninsular Malaysia.
"Every year, I get about 200 requests from local universities to take in students for study or field work. Many can't afford to send them to Sabah or Sarawak for such opportunities."
Read more: Sonia, Ah Ling and Nicky back to the wild http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/13free/Article#ixzz1E7mawZ4J
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