Camp Leakey

In the 1950s, Professor Leakey sent out three researchers out to Africa and Indonesia to study primates: Jane Goodall, Dian Foster, and Birute Galdikas. Galdikas still lives in Pangkalan Bun on Borneo and runs a hospital. Her research camp can be reached by boat up the Sekonyer river from Pangkalan Bun, and a little hiking over very rough paths through the rainforest. The camp has a feeding station.

Only the Orang-Utans here are not content with feeding on a platform. They are not shy and there is no reason why they should be. They are crashing through the woods, and walking right down the paths. One was walking past me just 20cm away while I was crouching to get a better view. They completely ignore those harmless three-eyed bipeds that make clicking noises.

They also have wild boar at the park, and they are dangerous to Orang-Utan babies while on the ground. One attacked a baby and would have killed it if the park rangers hadn’t come running and beaten it away. I also watched a gibbon stage a quick raid on the feeding platform, carrying away as much as he could carry in his hands, feet, and mouth.





Posted

in

by

Tags: