1 00:00:02,580 --> 00:00:07,740 This programme contains some scenes which some viewers may find upsetting 2 00:00:07,940 --> 00:00:09,980 SIRENS WAIL 3 00:00:14,500 --> 00:00:16,900 INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER 4 00:00:16,900 --> 00:00:18,940 GUN CLICKS 5 00:00:21,860 --> 00:00:23,900 SIREN WAILS 6 00:00:29,140 --> 00:00:31,100 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 7 00:00:44,980 --> 00:00:46,980 CAMERA CLICKS 8 00:01:09,100 --> 00:01:12,740 The poor orangutans have been caught in one of the most devastating 9 00:01:12,740 --> 00:01:15,100 ecological war zones on our planet. 10 00:01:21,700 --> 00:01:24,940 The illegal pet trade is just one of many threats. 11 00:01:26,340 --> 00:01:27,980 In the last 20 years, 12 00:01:27,980 --> 00:01:31,180 over half of Borneo's orangutans have been lost from the wild. 13 00:01:32,740 --> 00:01:36,300 They are now on the critically endangered list, 14 00:01:36,300 --> 00:01:38,860 and I think that that is a huge wake-up call. 15 00:01:40,380 --> 00:01:43,820 We are in a crisis and we are running out of time. 16 00:01:45,060 --> 00:01:47,860 Every day we're sitting here and we're not addressing conservation 17 00:01:47,860 --> 00:01:50,420 issues, 20 orangutans will disappear from the face of the earth. 18 00:01:52,780 --> 00:01:56,420 With expert opinion and unprecedented access to footage 19 00:01:56,420 --> 00:01:59,580 filmed by rescue teams on the front line... 20 00:01:59,580 --> 00:02:01,220 IN OWN LANGUAGE: 21 00:02:02,540 --> 00:02:05,140 GUN CLICKS ..this is the story of how orangutans have been 22 00:02:05,140 --> 00:02:06,300 pushed to the brink... 23 00:02:07,620 --> 00:02:10,460 They really are staring over the precipice into extinction. 24 00:02:10,460 --> 00:02:12,580 IN OWN LANGUAGE: 25 00:02:14,460 --> 00:02:18,780 ..and the specialist medics fighting to save them. 26 00:02:18,780 --> 00:02:20,380 Come on, come on, come on... 27 00:02:38,660 --> 00:02:40,700 BIRDSONG 28 00:02:48,620 --> 00:02:51,100 Orangutans are incredibly closely related to us, 29 00:02:51,100 --> 00:02:53,500 and because of that, they're very similar. 30 00:02:55,420 --> 00:02:57,940 And you can see that in the way they behave and the way they act, 31 00:02:57,940 --> 00:02:59,860 their genetics, everything about them. 32 00:03:02,740 --> 00:03:07,340 You can't really look an orangutan in the eye and not see 33 00:03:07,340 --> 00:03:10,060 some quite deep emotional connection with them. 34 00:03:14,300 --> 00:03:16,420 It's a being - it's someone staring back at you. 35 00:03:20,100 --> 00:03:24,020 I've been lucky enough to see an orangutan in the wild, 36 00:03:24,020 --> 00:03:25,780 and it just overwhelmed me... 37 00:03:29,460 --> 00:03:31,980 ..and the more you know about them, the more wonderful it is. 38 00:03:41,460 --> 00:03:46,500 They have an incredibly complex relationship with the forest, 39 00:03:46,700 --> 00:03:49,260 and they can identify several hundred species of plant that 40 00:03:49,260 --> 00:03:52,220 they're able to use not only for food, but also medicinally. 41 00:03:53,820 --> 00:03:56,460 They remind you of your friends, your family... 42 00:03:56,460 --> 00:03:58,940 They're incredibly intelligent. 43 00:03:58,940 --> 00:04:01,340 They are one of the most remarkable creatures on the planet. 44 00:04:07,220 --> 00:04:11,700 Orangutans are only found on two islands in Southeast Asia - 45 00:04:11,700 --> 00:04:13,540 Sumatra and Borneo. 46 00:04:16,260 --> 00:04:19,420 Borneo mostly falls within the borders of Indonesia, 47 00:04:19,420 --> 00:04:24,580 and 85% of orangutans live on this one island 48 00:04:25,100 --> 00:04:27,140 but, over the last six decades, 49 00:04:27,140 --> 00:04:30,140 their numbers have been declining rapidly, 50 00:04:30,140 --> 00:04:33,300 and in 2016 51 00:04:33,300 --> 00:04:35,180 they were declared critically endangered. 52 00:04:38,540 --> 00:04:42,060 For a million years, orangutans thrived, 53 00:04:42,060 --> 00:04:45,420 and then, in the blink of an eye, 54 00:04:45,420 --> 00:04:48,060 the orangutans are being wiped off the face of the earth. 55 00:04:48,060 --> 00:04:50,100 THUNDER RUMBLES 56 00:04:53,140 --> 00:04:55,100 HEART MONITOR BEEPS 57 00:04:55,100 --> 00:04:58,020 The fight to save them has never been more important. 58 00:05:05,220 --> 00:05:08,380 I think what really changed me as a person is the first experience 59 00:05:08,380 --> 00:05:09,860 that I had in Indonesia. 60 00:05:17,300 --> 00:05:21,700 It was also the first time that I really saw what was happening to 61 00:05:21,700 --> 00:05:26,060 the orangutans, and the very critical situation 62 00:05:26,060 --> 00:05:29,300 they were going through. 63 00:05:29,300 --> 00:05:31,940 It really impacted me as a person, 64 00:05:31,940 --> 00:05:35,580 as a professional, as a vet, 65 00:05:35,580 --> 00:05:39,260 and really made me think that I had to do something about it. 66 00:05:42,900 --> 00:05:48,180 In 2008, Dr Karmele Llano Sanchez was working as a vet in Borneo 67 00:05:49,940 --> 00:05:54,100 when she was called to treat an orangutan called JoJo, 68 00:05:54,100 --> 00:05:57,140 being illegally kept as a pet. 69 00:05:57,140 --> 00:06:00,780 JoJo was chained up from his ankle... 70 00:06:04,700 --> 00:06:08,940 ..and below him there was sewage, 71 00:06:08,940 --> 00:06:10,900 and it was all this dirty water. 72 00:06:14,820 --> 00:06:18,900 He was also about 12 years old, and had spent his whole life there. 73 00:06:22,500 --> 00:06:26,780 And I remember, to look at JoJo, it's not sadness - 74 00:06:26,780 --> 00:06:28,020 it's desperation. 75 00:06:33,900 --> 00:06:37,340 I had to give some medication. 76 00:06:37,340 --> 00:06:39,700 I opened the chain... 77 00:06:42,420 --> 00:06:45,820 ..but I had to put back the chain on the other ankle, 78 00:06:45,820 --> 00:06:47,140 and I had to leave... 79 00:06:51,540 --> 00:06:54,300 ..and I left JoJo there, 80 00:06:54,300 --> 00:06:56,180 because there was no place to take him. 81 00:07:01,180 --> 00:07:03,740 It impacted me so much, 82 00:07:03,740 --> 00:07:08,660 and this was our main motivation to build this centre. 83 00:07:08,660 --> 00:07:10,780 JOJO GRUNTS 84 00:07:12,220 --> 00:07:16,740 One year after meeting JoJo, Karmele returned to rescue him, 85 00:07:16,740 --> 00:07:19,180 housing him in a temporary enclosure, 86 00:07:19,180 --> 00:07:22,220 away from the horror of his previous life. 87 00:07:24,860 --> 00:07:28,860 His bones hadn't grown properly. He had rickets. 88 00:07:28,860 --> 00:07:32,180 It's a disease when you don't have proper nutrition, 89 00:07:32,180 --> 00:07:34,740 so he's handicapped. 90 00:07:36,340 --> 00:07:39,340 JoJo's disability meant he couldn't survive in the wild... 91 00:07:42,660 --> 00:07:45,580 ..so Karmele has been caring for him for the last ten years. 92 00:07:50,260 --> 00:07:52,700 And now you would not believe that it's the same orangutan. 93 00:07:57,380 --> 00:08:00,620 Good boy, good boy, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah... 94 00:08:00,620 --> 00:08:01,900 Good boy. 95 00:08:08,420 --> 00:08:10,900 It's just a cage where he lives now. 96 00:08:10,900 --> 00:08:13,660 He deserves a much better place, 97 00:08:13,660 --> 00:08:16,460 but, you know, it's far, far, very far from 98 00:08:16,460 --> 00:08:18,740 where we rescued this orangutan. 99 00:08:26,460 --> 00:08:29,460 JoJo was the first orangutan Karmele saved, 100 00:08:29,460 --> 00:08:32,980 but today the centre she founded has grown. 101 00:08:39,020 --> 00:08:43,260 International Animal Rescue now cares for over 100 orangutans. 102 00:08:49,700 --> 00:08:52,340 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 103 00:08:52,340 --> 00:08:54,860 Every ape has an incredible story of survival. 104 00:08:54,860 --> 00:08:56,700 ORANGUTAN SQUEALS 105 00:08:56,700 --> 00:08:58,740 MACHINE BEEPS STEADILY 106 00:09:09,660 --> 00:09:13,340 The latest arrivals are the pair rescued by the police 107 00:09:13,340 --> 00:09:14,780 from the illegal pet trade. 108 00:09:19,660 --> 00:09:24,500 One is a year-old male that has been named Gakkum. 109 00:09:24,500 --> 00:09:28,220 The other, a female of eight months, has been called Korwas. 110 00:09:33,180 --> 00:09:36,180 After their ordeal at the hands of wildlife traffickers... 111 00:09:36,180 --> 00:09:38,540 Shh, shh, shh, shh, shh, shh. 112 00:09:38,540 --> 00:09:40,860 ..they face over two months in quarantine 113 00:09:40,860 --> 00:09:43,380 before they can join the other babies at the centre. 114 00:09:50,860 --> 00:09:53,740 In five years, the number of orangutans cared for 115 00:09:53,740 --> 00:09:56,100 by Karmele and her team has doubled... 116 00:10:00,540 --> 00:10:03,100 ..and this is just one of six rescue centres across Borneo. 117 00:10:09,500 --> 00:10:11,460 All are stretched to breaking point. 118 00:10:14,900 --> 00:10:20,180 I think the centre is just a treatment for the symptoms, 119 00:10:20,620 --> 00:10:24,260 but it's not really a cure for the root of the problem. 120 00:10:31,340 --> 00:10:34,020 When it comes to saving orangutans, 121 00:10:34,020 --> 00:10:35,860 what you've got to do is save their home, 122 00:10:35,860 --> 00:10:37,340 and their home is the rainforest. 123 00:10:37,340 --> 00:10:39,300 TREE CREAKS 124 00:10:49,060 --> 00:10:51,060 CHAINSAW BUZZES 125 00:10:55,300 --> 00:10:58,980 The question we have to ask ourselves is, how did we get here? 126 00:11:03,460 --> 00:11:06,700 In the 1960s, a military officer named Suharto 127 00:11:06,700 --> 00:11:08,900 establishes this military dictatorship, 128 00:11:08,900 --> 00:11:12,060 and he exercises his control with ruthless violence. 129 00:11:12,060 --> 00:11:14,220 He has a vice-like grip across Indonesia. 130 00:11:18,820 --> 00:11:21,740 So he claims all of the forests for the state. 131 00:11:23,500 --> 00:11:26,020 ANIMALS CHIRP 132 00:11:26,020 --> 00:11:28,300 Borneo's forests are very rich in hardwoods 133 00:11:28,300 --> 00:11:32,300 that make really good, really durable, really strong timber. 134 00:11:32,300 --> 00:11:34,100 These species are really valuable. 135 00:11:36,980 --> 00:11:39,820 Before, people, of course, were cutting down trees to build houses 136 00:11:39,820 --> 00:11:42,060 and so on, but it could only happen on a limited scale 137 00:11:42,060 --> 00:11:44,580 because the technology wasn't there. 138 00:11:44,580 --> 00:11:47,540 And if you think you're going to try and hack your way through 139 00:11:47,540 --> 00:11:52,020 that one-metre-diameter hardwood tree with an axe, and then tug it 140 00:11:52,020 --> 00:11:55,420 kilometres down the road, that's a really difficult thing to do. 141 00:11:57,180 --> 00:12:01,860 In the 1960s, the logging industry in Borneo took a turn. 142 00:12:01,860 --> 00:12:04,780 MUSIC: Gimme Shelter by The Rolling Stones 143 00:12:05,980 --> 00:12:08,420 The chainsaws came in, 144 00:12:08,420 --> 00:12:10,900 the bulldozers came in, 145 00:12:10,900 --> 00:12:15,500 and all of a sudden you actually had major timber barons. 146 00:12:19,820 --> 00:12:22,860 The companies went in very quickly and they ripped out this timber. 147 00:12:22,860 --> 00:12:26,180 148 00:12:26,180 --> 00:12:31,020 The volumes of logs coming out of Borneo surpassed the volumes 149 00:12:31,020 --> 00:12:33,020 coming out of the Amazon and the Congo. 150 00:12:34,260 --> 00:12:38,900 For a period of time it was the logging epicentre of the planet. 151 00:12:38,900 --> 00:12:40,980 152 00:12:40,980 --> 00:12:43,420 153 00:12:45,180 --> 00:12:49,460 Within years, this became a multi-billion-dollar industry. 154 00:12:49,460 --> 00:12:52,340 There were people becoming super-rich off the back of it. 155 00:13:03,100 --> 00:13:08,180 Logging had a huge impact on the environment of Borneo. 156 00:13:08,180 --> 00:13:10,140 SAW BUZZES 157 00:13:11,740 --> 00:13:15,660 Tall hardwood trees were targeted by the early logging industry. 158 00:13:18,940 --> 00:13:23,380 When you remove a tree species, you change the forest dramatically - 159 00:13:23,380 --> 00:13:24,820 if you remove, for instance, 160 00:13:24,820 --> 00:13:29,620 the organisms that are utterly dependent on that species of tree, 161 00:13:29,620 --> 00:13:31,220 you generally screw things up. 162 00:13:33,780 --> 00:13:36,180 The era of industrial logging took a huge toll. 163 00:13:38,820 --> 00:13:43,460 Borneo's pristine forests started to be exploited at a breathtaking rate. 164 00:13:46,980 --> 00:13:50,820 Satellite data reveals that, in less than three decades, 165 00:13:50,820 --> 00:13:53,260 an area larger than England was logged. 166 00:13:56,300 --> 00:13:58,980 The orangutan population went into freefall. 167 00:14:02,220 --> 00:14:04,220 HEART MONITOR BEEPS 168 00:14:09,140 --> 00:14:11,140 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 169 00:14:17,220 --> 00:14:21,900 Today, degraded areas of forest are the number-one reason rescue centres 170 00:14:21,900 --> 00:14:23,700 deploy emergency extraction teams. 171 00:14:32,460 --> 00:14:34,660 In these small fragmentary areas, 172 00:14:34,660 --> 00:14:37,980 you don't get that whole yearly cycle of fruiting trees, 173 00:14:37,980 --> 00:14:39,660 and you don't get enough food all the time. 174 00:14:39,660 --> 00:14:42,220 You're not getting enough water, there's not enough habitat, 175 00:14:42,220 --> 00:14:45,580 and nine times out of ten, if they're stuck, they're going to die. 176 00:14:50,460 --> 00:14:52,580 Using cameras to document their work, 177 00:14:52,580 --> 00:14:57,220 this team faces a particularly challenging rescue - 178 00:14:57,220 --> 00:14:59,260 a mother with a baby. 179 00:15:01,100 --> 00:15:04,540 They must capture both without injuring them. 180 00:15:07,140 --> 00:15:09,500 For us to capture a wild orangutan, 181 00:15:09,500 --> 00:15:14,100 the only way is if we sedate them first, 182 00:15:14,100 --> 00:15:17,820 so we have to use guns to deliver the drug. 183 00:15:20,620 --> 00:15:23,980 Argitoe Ranting is the team's most experienced marksman. 184 00:15:29,540 --> 00:15:32,140 IN OWN LANGUAGE: 185 00:15:37,060 --> 00:15:41,140 If a dart hits the wrong part of an orangutan's body, 186 00:15:41,140 --> 00:15:42,940 it can cause internal damage. 187 00:15:51,500 --> 00:15:56,180 You have to be really careful not to hit the baby orangutan by mistake. 188 00:16:04,340 --> 00:16:06,340 SCREECHING 189 00:16:18,100 --> 00:16:19,700 GUN CLICKS 190 00:16:19,700 --> 00:16:20,740 OK. 191 00:16:25,780 --> 00:16:28,420 The dart has hit its mark. 192 00:16:28,420 --> 00:16:31,340 When the female falls asleep, she should drop into the net... 193 00:16:36,860 --> 00:16:39,420 ..but she's become wedged in the branches. 194 00:16:39,420 --> 00:16:41,380 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 195 00:16:46,340 --> 00:16:49,180 They must get them down quickly before the drugs wear off. 196 00:16:53,420 --> 00:16:55,460 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 197 00:16:55,460 --> 00:16:57,420 TREE CREAKS 198 00:17:22,180 --> 00:17:24,660 Babies are carried on their mothers for the first two years. 199 00:17:27,340 --> 00:17:30,060 Wide awake, this one clings on instinctively. 200 00:17:34,220 --> 00:17:38,740 We found them in a really horrible condition, 201 00:17:38,740 --> 00:17:40,540 with severe malnutrition. 202 00:17:44,820 --> 00:17:46,660 IN OWN LANGUAGE: 203 00:17:56,420 --> 00:17:59,820 It's amazing that an orangutan can make it through 204 00:17:59,820 --> 00:18:02,140 that level of malnutrition. 205 00:18:06,340 --> 00:18:10,020 HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE 206 00:18:10,020 --> 00:18:14,060 If you are late for a few days, it might be too late. 207 00:18:14,060 --> 00:18:16,020 THUNDER RUMBLES, RAIN TRICKLES 208 00:18:24,220 --> 00:18:28,100 Despite the stressful ordeal, this mother and baby can now be 209 00:18:28,100 --> 00:18:32,340 relocated to a protected area of forest, 210 00:18:32,340 --> 00:18:34,380 where she can raise her youngster in the wild... 211 00:18:38,860 --> 00:18:40,260 ..but they are the lucky ones. 212 00:18:42,300 --> 00:18:44,340 HEART MONITOR BEEPS 213 00:18:54,100 --> 00:18:58,580 95% of the orangutans that arrive at International Animal Rescue 214 00:18:58,580 --> 00:18:59,780 are orphaned babies. 215 00:19:11,260 --> 00:19:16,020 The team's goal is to rehabilitate and release them back into the wild 216 00:19:16,020 --> 00:19:19,060 but, without a mother to teach them basic life skills, 217 00:19:19,060 --> 00:19:21,900 it's up to the centre's 50 keepers to show them the ropes. 218 00:19:27,220 --> 00:19:29,220 IN OWN LANGUAGE: 219 00:19:47,340 --> 00:19:48,940 THEY SQUEAK 220 00:19:48,940 --> 00:19:50,980 One of my favourite things about baby orangutans 221 00:19:50,980 --> 00:19:52,180 is this look on their face. 222 00:19:52,180 --> 00:19:54,460 There's this sense of, "How am I here?" 223 00:19:59,300 --> 00:20:03,180 Orangutans share 97% of their DNA with us, 224 00:20:03,180 --> 00:20:05,580 and research shows great apes can be as intelligent 225 00:20:05,580 --> 00:20:07,420 as a three-year-old child. 226 00:20:11,700 --> 00:20:13,700 SQUEAKING 227 00:20:18,780 --> 00:20:20,300 We're so closely related, 228 00:20:20,300 --> 00:20:22,860 we can pass them our human germs and diseases, 229 00:20:22,860 --> 00:20:25,700 so the keepers wear masks to protect these vulnerable babies. 230 00:20:28,940 --> 00:20:30,660 SQUEALING 231 00:20:30,660 --> 00:20:32,820 They've also got the longest childhood 232 00:20:32,820 --> 00:20:34,180 in the whole natural world. 233 00:20:36,580 --> 00:20:40,900 In the wild, these baby orangutans should be with Mum for seven years, 234 00:20:40,900 --> 00:20:45,220 and that bond, as it is with us, is very, very special. 235 00:20:47,340 --> 00:20:49,460 We can't replace their mothers. 236 00:20:49,460 --> 00:20:50,740 We are not their mothers. 237 00:20:50,740 --> 00:20:52,780 We will never be. 238 00:20:52,780 --> 00:20:57,620 But, you know, we will try to do our best to try to get these orangutans 239 00:20:57,620 --> 00:20:58,820 back into the wild. 240 00:21:08,060 --> 00:21:11,220 Forest School is really important for baby orangutans. 241 00:21:11,220 --> 00:21:14,220 This is where they are going to learn everything they need to know 242 00:21:14,220 --> 00:21:15,460 to survive in the wild. 243 00:21:19,740 --> 00:21:24,140 Baby orangutans learn in exactly the same that we do when we're children. 244 00:21:24,140 --> 00:21:27,460 They will watch every move their mum makes, 245 00:21:27,460 --> 00:21:30,300 and if they don't have a mum, they have to watch their caregivers, 246 00:21:30,300 --> 00:21:32,060 and also their other little playmates, 247 00:21:32,060 --> 00:21:33,540 and that's really important, 248 00:21:33,540 --> 00:21:37,060 cos they're watching the mistakes, and they're watching the successes. 249 00:21:41,260 --> 00:21:44,940 They need to identify what's food in the forest. 250 00:21:44,940 --> 00:21:47,180 Many of the plants are toxic, and many aren't, 251 00:21:47,180 --> 00:21:49,780 so how do you know which one is the right thing to eat? 252 00:21:53,460 --> 00:21:57,100 They need to learn how to climb, and many of these little kids - 253 00:21:57,100 --> 00:21:59,540 and these are kids, remember - can't even climb a tree. 254 00:22:07,700 --> 00:22:11,860 Something we don't think about great apes doing is building nests, 255 00:22:11,860 --> 00:22:13,380 and it can take years to learn. 256 00:22:15,380 --> 00:22:17,620 It's not just a case of bending some trees over - 257 00:22:17,620 --> 00:22:21,100 they're beautifully interwoven, and it's safety for them. 258 00:22:24,740 --> 00:22:28,020 You've got to train a wild animal to be wild again. 259 00:22:43,220 --> 00:22:46,060 We now know so much more about the cognitive mental abilities 260 00:22:46,060 --> 00:22:49,500 of all these great apes, 261 00:22:49,500 --> 00:22:51,100 and we know that they enjoy themselves, 262 00:22:51,100 --> 00:22:53,220 and they have a sense of humour. 263 00:22:53,220 --> 00:22:54,820 They can mourn. 264 00:22:58,220 --> 00:23:00,300 These Forest Schools are doing everything they can, 265 00:23:00,300 --> 00:23:04,140 and they're invaluable to the future success of these animals 266 00:23:04,140 --> 00:23:05,660 going back into the wild. 267 00:23:07,580 --> 00:23:11,500 The reality is that each of those babies are orphans. 268 00:23:11,500 --> 00:23:13,500 THUNDER RUMBLES, RAIN TRICKLES 269 00:23:16,380 --> 00:23:21,180 People seeing the cute orangutans is, "Oh! Ah!" 270 00:23:21,180 --> 00:23:23,420 The reality is that it's a tragedy. 271 00:23:33,580 --> 00:23:35,620 THUNDER RUMBLES 272 00:23:36,940 --> 00:23:38,860 ENGINE ROARS 273 00:23:42,940 --> 00:23:47,420 The story of the decline of orangutans is basically the story of 274 00:23:47,420 --> 00:23:49,460 human domination over nature. 275 00:23:55,140 --> 00:24:00,420 The orangutans' forest home not only provides them with food and shelter, 276 00:24:00,620 --> 00:24:03,860 it also acts as a buffer protecting them from human activity... 277 00:24:08,660 --> 00:24:13,620 ..but as logging companies stripped the forests of timber, 278 00:24:13,620 --> 00:24:16,060 the roads they built carved Borneo open. 279 00:24:18,900 --> 00:24:22,620 This presented opportunity for human infiltration like never before. 280 00:24:27,820 --> 00:24:30,860 For orangutans, the impact has been significant. 281 00:24:33,500 --> 00:24:36,580 You get much increased rates of hunting of wildlife 282 00:24:36,580 --> 00:24:39,420 and increased rates of conflict with wildlife, 283 00:24:39,420 --> 00:24:41,780 and animals tend to get killed as a result. 284 00:24:45,940 --> 00:24:47,940 ORANGUTAN SQUEAKS 285 00:24:50,180 --> 00:24:53,420 Recent research shows that up to 3,000 orangutans 286 00:24:53,420 --> 00:24:58,500 are being intentionally killed every year in Indonesian Borneo, 287 00:24:58,660 --> 00:25:00,100 as our two worlds collide. 288 00:25:03,300 --> 00:25:05,300 HEART MONITOR BEEPS 289 00:25:14,980 --> 00:25:20,260 In 2012 a rescue team recorded a particularly harrowing case, 290 00:25:20,860 --> 00:25:24,100 when a young male - later named Pelangsi - 291 00:25:24,100 --> 00:25:25,620 was caught in a hunter's snare. 292 00:25:26,860 --> 00:25:31,660 When we arrived, he was still trying to free himself, 293 00:25:31,660 --> 00:25:33,020 trying to pull the arm... 294 00:25:39,940 --> 00:25:42,180 ..so we had to sedate him. 295 00:25:44,820 --> 00:25:48,860 The arm was completely necrotised. It's like gangrene. 296 00:25:51,940 --> 00:25:53,940 IN OWN LANGUAGE: 297 00:26:00,660 --> 00:26:02,580 He had a high fever. 298 00:26:02,580 --> 00:26:05,340 The infection had already affected the bloodstream. 299 00:26:12,620 --> 00:26:14,020 He could have died there, 300 00:26:14,020 --> 00:26:16,700 after many, many days suffering. 301 00:26:21,180 --> 00:26:23,620 The team stretchered Pelangsi out of the forest. 302 00:26:27,860 --> 00:26:29,500 Throughout all this time, 303 00:26:29,500 --> 00:26:34,500 we had to make sure that the heartbeat was stable. 304 00:26:34,500 --> 00:26:38,620 It was the longest hour and a half ever in my life. 305 00:26:42,740 --> 00:26:47,940 Pelangsi was holding on for all this time, 306 00:26:48,300 --> 00:26:50,740 but as soon as he got to the clinic... 307 00:26:50,740 --> 00:26:52,860 HEART MONITOR BEEPS 308 00:26:52,860 --> 00:26:54,060 ..he collapsed. 309 00:26:59,380 --> 00:27:04,260 And in the morning, the medical team called me up and said, 310 00:27:04,260 --> 00:27:06,020 "Karmele, maybe you have to come, 311 00:27:06,020 --> 00:27:10,140 "because the condition of Pelangsi is getting worse, 312 00:27:10,140 --> 00:27:14,820 "and we think that he's, uh, 313 00:27:14,820 --> 00:27:16,620 "he's getting into a shock." 314 00:27:16,620 --> 00:27:19,820 HEART MONITOR BEEPS 315 00:27:19,820 --> 00:27:24,300 Pelangsi's blood pressure was really, really low, 316 00:27:24,300 --> 00:27:29,420 the heartbeat was low, 317 00:27:29,620 --> 00:27:31,860 and potentially he's going to die soon. 318 00:27:33,660 --> 00:27:37,860 I said to the team, "Don't give up," 319 00:27:37,860 --> 00:27:39,580 and we had to try our best. 320 00:27:53,740 --> 00:27:59,060 By next morning, Pelangsi had regained consciousness, 321 00:27:59,300 --> 00:28:01,220 but he hadn't eaten for eight days. 322 00:28:06,140 --> 00:28:09,620 It was critical the vets found a way to get this wild orangutan 323 00:28:09,620 --> 00:28:12,460 to accept food. 324 00:28:12,460 --> 00:28:14,540 VET CLICKS TONGUE 325 00:28:17,380 --> 00:28:22,260 Hey, oh, Pelangsi. 326 00:28:22,260 --> 00:28:24,460 And that was what saved his life. 327 00:28:24,460 --> 00:28:26,100 Good boy. 328 00:28:26,100 --> 00:28:28,940 His condition started to recover very quickly. 329 00:28:39,060 --> 00:28:41,340 After a month in intensive care, 330 00:28:41,340 --> 00:28:46,460 Pelangsi had regained his strength, 331 00:28:46,620 --> 00:28:50,380 but now he had an even bigger hurdle to overcome - 332 00:28:50,380 --> 00:28:52,820 surgery on his horrifically damaged arm. 333 00:28:56,180 --> 00:28:59,620 We knew that it had to be amputated - there was no doubt. 334 00:28:59,620 --> 00:29:02,260 HEART MONITOR BEEPS, VENTILATOR HISSES 335 00:29:02,260 --> 00:29:05,700 The heart rate is stable. The oxygen is stable. 336 00:29:09,540 --> 00:29:11,780 It took over five hours. 337 00:29:16,180 --> 00:29:19,100 It was a really tough operation... 338 00:29:19,100 --> 00:29:21,540 TOOL BUZZES 339 00:29:21,540 --> 00:29:23,780 ..but everything went really, really well. 340 00:29:34,220 --> 00:29:37,220 With only one hand, Pelangsi's movement was impaired... 341 00:29:41,660 --> 00:29:44,740 ..but orangutans are intelligent and adaptable animals. 342 00:29:49,420 --> 00:29:52,020 Even when he was recovering, 343 00:29:52,020 --> 00:29:55,540 we saw that he had developed some extra skills. 344 00:29:58,020 --> 00:30:03,300 He was able to use his mouth to replace his missing hand. 345 00:30:06,060 --> 00:30:11,300 He could also use this part of the forearm to hold things, as well - 346 00:30:11,460 --> 00:30:13,260 food and branches. 347 00:30:13,260 --> 00:30:16,740 HE GRUNTS 348 00:30:16,740 --> 00:30:19,900 Against the odds, Pelangsi had developed the skills he needed 349 00:30:19,900 --> 00:30:21,700 to live back in the wild. 350 00:30:23,540 --> 00:30:26,340 The decision was made to release him. 351 00:30:31,820 --> 00:30:33,860 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 352 00:30:37,620 --> 00:30:39,580 IN OWN LANGUAGE: 353 00:31:05,300 --> 00:31:06,780 Bye-bye! 354 00:31:08,620 --> 00:31:13,700 He spent a few seconds to look back to us, 355 00:31:13,700 --> 00:31:18,660 and vocalise the same as a wild orangutan will do. 356 00:31:18,660 --> 00:31:20,620 HE SCREECHES 357 00:31:35,820 --> 00:31:40,540 That was it. He was back to being a completely wild orangutan. 358 00:31:43,340 --> 00:31:45,380 HE GRUNTS 359 00:32:00,420 --> 00:32:05,100 If you asked the question, "How did we get into this situation today?" 360 00:32:05,100 --> 00:32:06,900 I would say two words - palm oil. 361 00:32:12,580 --> 00:32:16,860 The exploitation of Borneo's forests that began in the '60s 362 00:32:16,860 --> 00:32:19,500 had initially focused on a few species of hardwood tree... 363 00:32:26,980 --> 00:32:31,020 ..but in the '90s, a turn of events would accelerate the destruction 364 00:32:31,020 --> 00:32:32,220 on a massive scale. 365 00:32:35,220 --> 00:32:37,980 Four decades of relentless logging had exhausted 366 00:32:37,980 --> 00:32:41,420 the valuable hardwoods, and Suharto's regime had left 367 00:32:41,420 --> 00:32:44,060 the Indonesian economy close to collapse. 368 00:32:51,580 --> 00:32:55,020 In Indonesia, rioting continues as the government tries to 369 00:32:55,020 --> 00:32:57,380 pull its country out of economic ruin. 370 00:32:57,380 --> 00:33:00,780 Anger is directed at President Suharto, whose autocratic rule 371 00:33:00,780 --> 00:33:03,180 in Indonesia has lasted 32 years. 372 00:33:07,020 --> 00:33:10,100 In 1998, Suharto is toppled as a dictator... 373 00:33:10,100 --> 00:33:12,500 CAMERAS CLICK 374 00:33:12,500 --> 00:33:14,980 CHEERING 375 00:33:14,980 --> 00:33:17,980 ..and this leads to a critical moment for Indonesia's forests. 376 00:33:22,380 --> 00:33:27,540 There was a decentralisation of power from the national government 377 00:33:27,780 --> 00:33:30,980 to the regional government authorities. 378 00:33:30,980 --> 00:33:34,740 The district governments in Borneo needed to generate revenue. 379 00:33:34,740 --> 00:33:39,940 The timber barons had depleted large areas of rainforest. 380 00:33:40,140 --> 00:33:43,180 People don't have the patience to sit back for 200 years and wait for 381 00:33:43,180 --> 00:33:45,540 a forest to grow back, so people were thinking, 382 00:33:45,540 --> 00:33:46,780 "OK, what's plan B now?" 383 00:33:51,540 --> 00:33:54,940 Palm oil is one of the most widely used products on our planet. 384 00:33:54,940 --> 00:33:56,860 If you go into a supermarket, 385 00:33:56,860 --> 00:34:00,060 it's almost hard to find something that hasn't got palm oil in it. 386 00:34:00,060 --> 00:34:03,500 It's used in food. It's used in cosmetics. 387 00:34:03,500 --> 00:34:07,340 It's used as a feedstock for making all kinds of different products. 388 00:34:09,500 --> 00:34:14,260 It's actually the highest-yielding vegetable oil that there is, 389 00:34:14,260 --> 00:34:16,420 and there was a lot of money to be made from it. 390 00:34:18,340 --> 00:34:22,380 At first it seemed like the perfect economic solution, 391 00:34:22,380 --> 00:34:24,700 creating jobs and opportunity. 392 00:34:25,940 --> 00:34:31,140 Critically, you also have dozens of district leaders who have suddenly 393 00:34:31,540 --> 00:34:36,220 assumed great control to grant licences to plantation companies 394 00:34:36,220 --> 00:34:37,740 to grow palm oil. 395 00:34:37,740 --> 00:34:42,900 They basically gave vast concessions to clear those rainforests 396 00:34:43,700 --> 00:34:45,260 for palm oil. 397 00:34:48,380 --> 00:34:53,060 During this time, there was a rapid increase in deforestation rates. 398 00:34:54,860 --> 00:34:58,540 If you look at what is happening with palm oil in Borneo, 399 00:34:58,540 --> 00:34:59,980 it's like a disease. 400 00:34:59,980 --> 00:35:04,220 It is just running rampage across the rainforest. 401 00:35:07,860 --> 00:35:13,100 Indonesia is the biggest producer of palm oil across the globe. 402 00:35:13,580 --> 00:35:18,780 You can fly over areas which look like a neat version of the Amazon - 403 00:35:18,860 --> 00:35:21,300 palm oil from horizon to horizon. 404 00:35:23,100 --> 00:35:25,020 THUNDER RUMBLES 405 00:35:29,940 --> 00:35:33,700 Less than 10% of companies in Borneo produce palm oil using 406 00:35:33,700 --> 00:35:37,740 sustainable methods to an international standard. 407 00:35:37,740 --> 00:35:40,180 In these intensively farmed monocultures, 408 00:35:40,180 --> 00:35:42,420 most forest species can't survive. 409 00:35:46,780 --> 00:35:51,580 The only life is rows upon rows of oil palm trees, 410 00:35:51,580 --> 00:35:56,220 planted to produce a cheap oil so we can have cheap snack foods 411 00:35:56,220 --> 00:35:58,860 in the US, Europe and China. 412 00:36:01,020 --> 00:36:05,580 It's fine if you put a bit of palm oil into the odd biscuit, 413 00:36:05,580 --> 00:36:10,140 but you cannot have that kind of global demand going into 414 00:36:10,140 --> 00:36:14,180 more and more products and think the rainforests are going to 415 00:36:14,180 --> 00:36:17,140 survive this, or that orangutans are going to survive this. 416 00:36:18,980 --> 00:36:23,100 Since 2000 and the explosion of palm oil, 417 00:36:23,100 --> 00:36:26,340 Borneo has lost 20,000 square miles of forest. 418 00:36:31,260 --> 00:36:34,820 If the predicted rate of deforestation holds true, 419 00:36:34,820 --> 00:36:37,380 a third of Borneo's remaining orangutans 420 00:36:37,380 --> 00:36:40,300 will be wiped out by 2020. 421 00:36:47,820 --> 00:36:49,860 BIRD SQUAWKS 422 00:36:59,620 --> 00:37:02,620 In 2016, across Borneo, 423 00:37:02,620 --> 00:37:06,300 a football field of forest was destroyed every 47 seconds. 424 00:37:16,060 --> 00:37:18,500 As companies clear-cut the forest, 425 00:37:18,500 --> 00:37:22,500 rescue teams stand by to help orangutans trapped as their home is 426 00:37:22,500 --> 00:37:23,980 levelled around them. 427 00:37:26,340 --> 00:37:28,340 TREE CREAKS 428 00:37:51,420 --> 00:37:55,740 I could never imagine until I saw it with my own eyes. 429 00:37:55,740 --> 00:37:57,740 HEART MONITOR BEEPS 430 00:38:11,940 --> 00:38:13,340 IN OWN LANGUAGE: 431 00:38:18,420 --> 00:38:19,900 GUN CLICKS BLEEP 432 00:38:22,500 --> 00:38:27,100 In the aftermath of one clearance, marksman Argitoe is called to 433 00:38:27,100 --> 00:38:29,500 translocate an orangutan spotted on the ground. 434 00:38:32,620 --> 00:38:34,620 Away from the safety of the trees, 435 00:38:34,620 --> 00:38:38,900 the team's rescue footage reveals it disorientated and vulnerable. 436 00:38:38,900 --> 00:38:40,980 GUN CLICKS 437 00:38:45,860 --> 00:38:47,860 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 438 00:38:47,860 --> 00:38:50,660 The team need to carry out a rapid assessment to decide whether 439 00:38:50,660 --> 00:38:52,940 this female can be released straightaway. 440 00:38:55,540 --> 00:38:57,540 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 441 00:39:01,660 --> 00:39:04,340 But as vets start a primary survey, 442 00:39:04,340 --> 00:39:08,340 Argitoe receives a call from a palm oil concession. 443 00:39:08,340 --> 00:39:10,340 ORANGUTAN GRUNTS 444 00:39:25,020 --> 00:39:26,660 Another orangutan is in trouble. 445 00:39:40,020 --> 00:39:41,860 The frightened female has sought safety 446 00:39:41,860 --> 00:39:44,140 at the top of a 30m-tall tree. 447 00:39:54,900 --> 00:39:56,940 ORANGUTAN SQUEAKS 448 00:40:20,900 --> 00:40:24,380 With the orangutan out of range, the team must bide their time. 449 00:40:32,060 --> 00:40:34,020 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 450 00:40:39,580 --> 00:40:41,620 BIRD CHIRPS 451 00:41:11,900 --> 00:41:13,980 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 452 00:41:13,980 --> 00:41:16,140 Rescues are traumatic for orangutans... 453 00:41:19,380 --> 00:41:21,900 ..but this female is severely dehydrated 454 00:41:21,900 --> 00:41:24,980 and wouldn't have survived in the open for much longer. 455 00:41:24,980 --> 00:41:26,940 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 456 00:41:33,820 --> 00:41:35,380 She has no major injuries... 457 00:41:40,340 --> 00:41:43,940 ..so can be translocated along with the female rescued earlier. 458 00:41:46,620 --> 00:41:48,540 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 459 00:41:59,020 --> 00:42:03,500 As they prepare to leave, new information comes in. 460 00:42:03,500 --> 00:42:05,100 HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE 461 00:42:05,100 --> 00:42:08,940 According to a local worker, before the team arrived, 462 00:42:08,940 --> 00:42:11,620 this orangutan became separated from its baby. 463 00:42:33,780 --> 00:42:35,620 Without its mother, 464 00:42:35,620 --> 00:42:38,180 the baby orangutan will have no chance of surviving. 465 00:42:58,940 --> 00:43:04,140 Despite the team's best efforts, this mother's baby was never found. 466 00:43:10,100 --> 00:43:12,980 HEART MONITOR BEEPS 467 00:43:12,980 --> 00:43:15,180 BABY ORANGUTAN SQUEAKS 468 00:43:16,620 --> 00:43:18,620 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 469 00:43:26,180 --> 00:43:29,420 It's been two months since the baby orangutans rescued during 470 00:43:29,420 --> 00:43:31,260 the police raid came into the centre. 471 00:43:33,700 --> 00:43:37,540 Until now, they've been kept isolated in the quarantine cages. 472 00:43:50,500 --> 00:43:54,380 Today, Gakkum can finally join another new arrival 473 00:43:54,380 --> 00:43:56,820 to start the rehabilitation process. 474 00:43:58,860 --> 00:44:03,100 Today we are going to try to put Gakkum for the first time in a tree. 475 00:44:03,100 --> 00:44:04,140 Thank you. 476 00:44:06,580 --> 00:44:09,660 Orangutans are mostly solitary in the wild, 477 00:44:09,660 --> 00:44:12,300 but Gakkum will have to learn to socialise with other babies 478 00:44:12,300 --> 00:44:14,300 before he can start Forest School. 479 00:44:16,340 --> 00:44:18,860 Gakkum. 480 00:44:18,860 --> 00:44:22,860 So, at the moment, he's just clinging onto Dr Temia. 481 00:44:25,260 --> 00:44:29,900 When they have the opportunity to climb the first time, 482 00:44:29,900 --> 00:44:33,380 not all of them are going to be confident to do it right away... 483 00:44:36,620 --> 00:44:39,500 ..so you just have to give them time. 484 00:44:39,500 --> 00:44:42,460 Gakkum. Gakkum, Gakkum, Gakkum. Gakkum. 485 00:44:42,460 --> 00:44:44,900 Gakkum is taking his first steps on a long road. 486 00:44:44,900 --> 00:44:46,620 Hey, Gakkum. 487 00:44:52,700 --> 00:44:56,340 It'll take six years' training in Forest School before he can join 488 00:44:56,340 --> 00:44:58,900 the older orangutans getting ready to be released. 489 00:45:05,100 --> 00:45:07,100 IN OWN LANGUAGE: 490 00:45:22,700 --> 00:45:26,220 We'll release the animals in a National Park, 491 00:45:26,220 --> 00:45:30,180 and it's a beautiful forest area in the heart of Borneo. 492 00:45:32,540 --> 00:45:37,780 We are re-establishing a population that once was lost. 493 00:45:40,020 --> 00:45:43,620 Releasing orangutans there is invaluable for the survival of 494 00:45:43,620 --> 00:45:45,500 the orangutans as a species. 495 00:45:53,460 --> 00:45:55,260 Since the 1980s, 496 00:45:55,260 --> 00:45:59,460 the Indonesian government has protected nine key areas in Borneo, 497 00:45:59,460 --> 00:46:01,500 designating them as National Parks. 498 00:46:05,580 --> 00:46:08,660 Rescue teams use these forest sanctuaries when returning 499 00:46:08,660 --> 00:46:10,940 orangutans back to the wild. 500 00:46:18,220 --> 00:46:21,740 The rainforests of Borneo are the oldest rainforests on the planet. 501 00:46:21,740 --> 00:46:25,220 They have been evolving for 130 million years. 502 00:46:27,980 --> 00:46:30,820 There are places around the world that we call biodiversity hot spots, 503 00:46:30,820 --> 00:46:33,660 and they're places that are really important for different species - 504 00:46:33,660 --> 00:46:36,380 the number of species, and the unique species. 505 00:46:38,300 --> 00:46:40,260 SCREECHING 506 00:46:45,340 --> 00:46:48,900 These rich ecosystems can support large numbers of orangutans... 507 00:46:53,060 --> 00:46:55,380 ..which is key for the genetic health of the species. 508 00:46:57,900 --> 00:47:01,940 One of the nice things about orangutans is that they require 509 00:47:01,940 --> 00:47:03,740 a lot of space. 510 00:47:03,740 --> 00:47:07,380 We often try and give them space by making reserves large enough 511 00:47:07,380 --> 00:47:10,900 for them to exist in, 512 00:47:10,900 --> 00:47:15,100 so they act as what we call umbrella species. 513 00:47:15,100 --> 00:47:19,300 By protecting them, we're protecting large chunks of biodiversity. 514 00:47:23,860 --> 00:47:25,860 CHIRPING AND SCREECHING 515 00:47:31,260 --> 00:47:34,980 So far, Karmele's team has released almost 100 orangutans 516 00:47:34,980 --> 00:47:36,460 into these forests... 517 00:47:41,580 --> 00:47:44,940 ..but, despite these last strongholds being protected, 518 00:47:44,940 --> 00:47:48,420 every year they come under threat from a devastating force. 519 00:47:57,860 --> 00:48:01,540 The race is on to save endangered orangutans from 520 00:48:01,540 --> 00:48:04,460 the burning forests of Borneo. 521 00:48:04,460 --> 00:48:07,860 The fires of 2015 were just off the Richter scale 522 00:48:07,860 --> 00:48:12,820 in terms of their extent, cos this was over 100,000 fires. 523 00:48:12,980 --> 00:48:17,780 This impacted the lives of tens of millions of people. 524 00:48:20,900 --> 00:48:23,540 The air pollution was just incredible. 525 00:48:23,540 --> 00:48:27,900 People were dying, babies were dying, old people were dying... 526 00:48:27,900 --> 00:48:31,420 35 billion US dollars in damages. 527 00:48:31,420 --> 00:48:35,900 The costs to species like orangutans are also enormous. 528 00:48:35,900 --> 00:48:39,620 In the five months of 2015 between June and October, 529 00:48:39,620 --> 00:48:42,980 almost 8,000 square miles of Borneo's forests burned. 530 00:48:46,300 --> 00:48:50,140 Orangutan fatalities were estimated to run into the hundreds. 531 00:48:51,580 --> 00:48:54,020 We're looking at the biggest environmental disaster 532 00:48:54,020 --> 00:48:55,380 of the 21st century. 533 00:49:00,740 --> 00:49:04,780 The perfect storm that happened in 2015, in terms of those fires, 534 00:49:04,780 --> 00:49:08,420 was partly natural, but ultimately the consequences 535 00:49:08,420 --> 00:49:10,780 were completely made by human beings. 536 00:49:10,780 --> 00:49:12,500 TOOL BUZZES 537 00:49:12,500 --> 00:49:15,300 2015 was one of those years when everything went wrong. 538 00:49:15,300 --> 00:49:17,860 It was a really bad El Nino year. 539 00:49:17,860 --> 00:49:20,020 You get generally much drier conditions 540 00:49:20,020 --> 00:49:22,660 for very long periods on end. 541 00:49:22,660 --> 00:49:25,700 The cause wasn't only the El Nino weather pattern. 542 00:49:25,700 --> 00:49:30,740 It was the intentional use of fire to clear peatlands 543 00:49:30,740 --> 00:49:35,700 so that they could be prepared for palm oil and pulp plantations. 544 00:49:35,700 --> 00:49:38,900 First of all, the company dig these massive canals, 545 00:49:38,900 --> 00:49:42,140 drain the peatlands, the swamps, 546 00:49:42,140 --> 00:49:46,020 dry them out, and then people set fire to clear the land. 547 00:49:48,860 --> 00:49:52,700 If you set fire to peat, it's like setting fire to a coal seam. 548 00:49:52,700 --> 00:49:54,540 It's pure hell to try and put it out. 549 00:49:58,580 --> 00:50:02,460 The consequences are that those fires will get out of control, 550 00:50:02,460 --> 00:50:04,700 will spread, and will be unstoppable. 551 00:50:11,620 --> 00:50:13,620 ORANGUTAN GROANS 552 00:50:15,860 --> 00:50:17,300 In the middle of that, 553 00:50:17,300 --> 00:50:20,940 we were nonstop rescuing two or three orangutans a week. 554 00:50:24,580 --> 00:50:26,620 HEART MONITOR BEEPS 555 00:50:32,100 --> 00:50:35,180 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 556 00:50:35,180 --> 00:50:38,060 At the end of the fire season, the rescues continued 557 00:50:38,060 --> 00:50:40,580 as orangutans, fleeing the flames, 558 00:50:40,580 --> 00:50:42,660 became stranded in unsuitable forests. 559 00:50:48,740 --> 00:50:52,900 The most challenging was a giant male the team named Jambu. 560 00:50:55,620 --> 00:50:57,100 Come on, come on, come on. 561 00:50:58,380 --> 00:51:00,380 HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE, GUN CLICKS 562 00:51:03,300 --> 00:51:08,540 Successfully darted, the team must now safely catch a 70-kilo ape. 563 00:51:09,820 --> 00:51:12,540 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 564 00:51:12,540 --> 00:51:15,500 We were all just waiting for him to fall... 565 00:51:18,660 --> 00:51:21,020 ..and actually sometimes there are accidents. 566 00:51:26,340 --> 00:51:28,180 TREE RUSTLES, THEY SHOUT 567 00:51:28,180 --> 00:51:32,820 Once you see the orangutan falling, it's the most stressful time, 568 00:51:32,820 --> 00:51:36,100 because you know that that's the biggest risk. 569 00:51:36,100 --> 00:51:38,060 THEY SHOUT IN OWN LANGUAGE 570 00:51:40,580 --> 00:51:43,260 At the moment when Jambu hits the ground, 571 00:51:43,260 --> 00:51:45,860 it's almost like time stops. 572 00:51:55,540 --> 00:51:57,620 It happens so quickly, you cannot really... 573 00:51:57,620 --> 00:52:02,860 Even, like, trying to go back and look at the video in slow motion, 574 00:52:03,140 --> 00:52:05,820 I don't think that you really have time to think. 575 00:52:14,100 --> 00:52:16,940 The only thing that I can think of is the safety of the animal. 576 00:52:21,380 --> 00:52:25,460 The first thing you do is just go and listen to the heart rate. 577 00:52:25,460 --> 00:52:30,180 The most important thing is to make sure that the orangutan is alive. 578 00:52:30,180 --> 00:52:31,780 Then you move to the next thing. 579 00:52:34,820 --> 00:52:36,820 IN OWN LANGUAGE: 580 00:52:48,780 --> 00:52:51,660 And in that way, then he hit his head. 581 00:52:53,900 --> 00:52:56,740 While my colleague was checking the animal, 582 00:52:56,740 --> 00:52:58,900 just for any other injury, 583 00:52:58,900 --> 00:52:59,980 I stitched it up. 584 00:53:04,860 --> 00:53:06,900 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 585 00:53:12,860 --> 00:53:15,700 If there is any health problem, 586 00:53:15,700 --> 00:53:19,700 we will bring the animal to the centre and keep it in our quarantine 587 00:53:19,700 --> 00:53:23,060 for a few days or weeks before we get him back to the forest. 588 00:53:30,900 --> 00:53:34,540 The next day, when vets checked on Jambu, 589 00:53:34,540 --> 00:53:36,780 they realised his legs weren't functioning properly. 590 00:53:41,220 --> 00:53:44,140 At first, they suspected the fall had damaged his spine. 591 00:53:47,940 --> 00:53:50,980 We took some X-rays, and then we realised 592 00:53:50,980 --> 00:53:54,780 that he was full of pellets. 593 00:53:54,780 --> 00:53:56,500 They were pellets from an airgun. 594 00:54:01,340 --> 00:54:03,180 We counted 13 of them. 595 00:54:06,860 --> 00:54:10,700 We see it very often, like in the case of Didik. 596 00:54:14,180 --> 00:54:19,220 Sometimes when orangutans are hanging out in farms, 597 00:54:19,340 --> 00:54:23,620 people want to scare them away, and for that they use airguns. 598 00:54:27,540 --> 00:54:31,660 Most of the times, people are aiming to the mothers, 599 00:54:31,660 --> 00:54:36,420 but sometimes the babies get hit as well, 600 00:54:36,420 --> 00:54:41,580 or, like in this case, we think that the pellet might have hit his spine. 601 00:54:43,020 --> 00:54:45,660 He was not completely, totally paralysed, 602 00:54:45,660 --> 00:54:50,700 but his legs were not as functional as they should be. 603 00:54:59,780 --> 00:55:01,820 HEARTBEAT THUMPS 604 00:55:01,820 --> 00:55:03,780 HEART MONITOR BEEPS 605 00:55:20,340 --> 00:55:22,580 He still had some function in the legs. 606 00:55:25,740 --> 00:55:30,340 He had lived with this problem for a long time. 607 00:55:30,340 --> 00:55:32,940 There was no reason why we should not release him. 608 00:55:40,900 --> 00:55:44,140 It takes a lot of effort from a lot of people 609 00:55:44,140 --> 00:55:48,780 for just one single orangutan, but I think it's worth it. 610 00:55:48,780 --> 00:55:51,660 THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE 611 00:55:51,660 --> 00:55:54,980 Looking at the decline of orangutans in the wild, 612 00:55:54,980 --> 00:55:57,740 and how quickly they are disappearing, 613 00:55:57,740 --> 00:56:02,500 caring about every single individual is becoming more and more important. 614 00:56:08,100 --> 00:56:10,500 If there is something that can keep us going, 615 00:56:10,500 --> 00:56:12,580 it's to see an orangutan being released. 616 00:56:23,340 --> 00:56:25,340 WOMAN SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE 617 00:56:37,340 --> 00:56:40,620 We are wiping out our closest living relatives, 618 00:56:40,620 --> 00:56:43,660 which is not very clever for a species that had the gall to 619 00:56:43,660 --> 00:56:46,700 name itself Homo sapiens - "the wise man". 620 00:56:49,020 --> 00:56:52,460 If you ask yourself the question, "Who has the power to stop this?" 621 00:56:52,460 --> 00:56:55,340 There is no one magic-bullet solution. 622 00:56:56,780 --> 00:57:00,100 We need to work with communities and governments in the areas where 623 00:57:00,100 --> 00:57:02,340 they're found, but we also need to work with consumers 624 00:57:02,340 --> 00:57:04,060 in the west as well. 625 00:57:08,820 --> 00:57:12,180 I think the way the world is moving, and the way investment is moving, 626 00:57:12,180 --> 00:57:14,940 there's only one solution for me, and that is sustainable palm oil. 627 00:57:17,020 --> 00:57:21,820 Now is the time to call on the companies that produce products 628 00:57:21,820 --> 00:57:26,100 with palm oil and to demand that they ensure that their products 629 00:57:26,100 --> 00:57:29,940 do not drive the deforestation of Borneo's rainforests. 630 00:57:31,780 --> 00:57:35,620 That means supermarkets, it means food producers, 631 00:57:35,620 --> 00:57:40,300 it means institutions like the EU and national governments saying, 632 00:57:40,300 --> 00:57:45,140 "No more palm oil until we can guarantee it comes from 633 00:57:45,140 --> 00:57:47,020 "legal and sustainable sources." 634 00:57:56,820 --> 00:58:00,420 We now are the dominant animal on the planet, 635 00:58:00,420 --> 00:58:08,740 and the fate of all other organisms and us is entirely in our hands. 636 00:58:08,740 --> 00:58:10,740 HEART MONITOR BEEPS