Wildfires raging across parts of Indonesia’s Borneo island are threatening endangered orangutans, forcing rescuers to evacuate animals found injured, stranded or struggling to survive amid thick smoke and scorched forests.
Among dozens of orangutans rescued from fires across Sumatra and Borneo in recent months was a female Bornean orangutan known as Novita.
Rescuers found her clinging to a nearly leafless tree as dense smoke engulfed the charred landscape of the Katune forest in Central Kalimantan province, said Jamartin Sihite, chairman of the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation.
"The palms of her hands and the soles of her feet suffered burns that were likely sustained when Novita crossed a burned area while trying to reach a tree,” Sihite told The Associated Press in an interview. He said Novita, estimated to be 3 to 4 years old, was tranquilized, given oxygen and intravenous fluids, and taken to the rehabilitation center in Nyaru Menteng.
Once her burns have healed, Novita will be evaluated to determine whether she can climb and survive in her natural environment, Sihite said.
"We have previously released orangutans missing several fingers, and they were still able to survive in the forest, so we remain hopeful that Novita can eventually return to the wild.”
Forest and land fires in Indonesia have worsened this year as El Niño intensifies a prolonged dry season, affecting not only the Indonesian part of Borneo but also some regions of Sumatra. Water shortages in affected areas have hampered firefighting efforts, while Japan has provided firefighting assistance on the island.
A male orangutan named Sampurna, believed to be around 20 years old, was found struggling to breathe by residents early last month on a palm oil plantation in West Kalimantan’s Ketapang district, an area affected by wildfires. He died hours after being rescued, Indonesia’s Forestry Ministry said.
More than 270 wild animals in Kalimantan had been rescued, rehabilitated or guided to safer habitats as of Saturday, the ministry said.
Government data showed that more than 202,000 hectares (499,000 acres) of land burned between January and July. The independent Nusantara Atlas project, which monitors fires using satellite imagery, estimated that nearly 896,000 hectares (2.2 million acres) had burned by the end of August.
Toxic haze and smoke have also caused a health crisis in neighboring countries. The smoke has drifted as far as the Philippines, more than 800 kilometers (500 miles) away. In Malaysia, authorities declared an emergency last week in Sarawak, on the Malaysian part of Borneo.
Novita’s case highlights the impact of forest and peatland fires on wildlife as well as people, said Andi Muhammad Kadhafi, head of the Central Kalimantan Natural Resources Conservation Agency, a government body.
"Wildfires do not only affect humans but can also threaten wildlife and their habitats,” he said. "Fire prevention, habitat protection, monitoring and rapid response need to go hand in hand.”