LEANN, THE BABY WHO LIKES TO BUILD NESTS!

Unlike birds and other forest animals for orangutans living in the wild a nest is not  permanent home.  Instead it is a place in which to rest and where they are safe from terrestrial predators and protected from the elements.  Generally orangutans make a new night nest each evening in which to sleep, but they also make day nests in which to rest during certain periods of the day.  Day nests are, more often than not, less well built than night nests since they are normally only used for a short period of time.  But nest (or beds as they are sometimes referred to) building takes time to learn and are finely crafted by bending and twisting branches together to form a circular, comfy, springy mattress in which to lie in.

Orangutans living in our rehabilitation centers usually start to build nests in trees from the age of 4-5 years, or after they enter the Forest School.  But often even little babies like to pretend to build nests by tucking bits of vegetation together and sitting on it – albeit when they are still on the ground and not in trees. But that is not the case with LeAnn.

LeAnn is about 2-3 years old and currently in the baby group at the the nursery, a group for really young orangutans, some of which have not even started climbing, a basic skill. LeAnn on the other hand rushes to climb the nearest tree first thing in the morning and prefers to spend most of her day at the top of these trees.  Perched on her spot up in the tree she sits and observes her friends Yordanka, Pedrosa or Sally, who prefer to stick to the lower end of the playground ropes or the smaller trees around the nursery.

The orangutan playground is made up of various climbing devices like swings or rope towers built to help train young orangutans to climb. The average height of these constructions is around 2.5 meter off the ground.

Le Ann is more adventurous and the relatively low height of these swings does not interest her whatsoever.  She tends to focus on the highest tree and at such a young age even builds nests when she needs a short rest.

According to Naomi, one of our babysitters “Once LeAnn comes out of the nursery, she heads straight to the nearest tree. And if she’s  tired of playing, she builds a nest and takes a rest. Her behaviour is remarkably different from other babies in the nursery as they prefer to play at lower heights and then come back to our laps for a nap.”

LeAnn’s ability to build tree nests at such a young age might be attributed to her having spent some time in the wild.

Wiwik, our Coordinator for Animal Welfare at our Rehabilitation Center at  Samboja Lestari says that “LeAnn’s ability to build tree nests at such a young age indicates that she might have lived for some time in the wild and still retains those memories, but was undoubtedly forcibly separated from her mother”. This rings true as Le Ann has a sad past; she was found  on display at a a local bazaar in Bontang city and was rescued from Bengalon, a place known for a high rate deforestation, both to accommodate coal mines and oil palm plantations.

We hope that LeAnn clings onto those memories and continues to grow her forest skills so will soon be able to be released back into her natural habitat.