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1. The Gunung Palung Orangutan Project: Twenty-five years at the intersection of research and conservation in a critical landscape in Indonesia

   Knott, Cheryl; Kane, Erin E.; Achmad, Mariamah; Barrow, Elizabeth J.; Bastian, Meredith L.; Beck, Josephine; Blackburn, Andrea; Breeden, Terri L.; Conklin Brittain, Nancy Lou; Brousseau, Jennifer J.; et al (March 2021, Biological conservation)

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   The Gunung Palung Orangutan Project has conducted research on critically endangered wild Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) since 1994 in Gunung Palung National Park, West Kalimantan, Indonesia. A major goal of our broad-ranging research on orangutan behavior and ecology is to understand how the unique rainforest environment of Southeast Asia, characterized by dramatic changes in fruit productivity due to unpredictable mast fruiting, impacts orangutan behavior, physiology, and health. Much of our research has been devoted to the development of non-invasive techniques and an integrated biology approach – using hormonal assays, fecal processing, nutritional analysis, genetics, and behavioral ecology – and has led to an increased understanding of the ecological and evolutionary pressures shaping orangutan adaptations. Our results show that the extended life history and very slow reproductive rate of orangutans are adaptations to their environment. Orangutans in the Gunung Palung landscape, as elsewhere across Borneo and Sumatra, also face a series of conservation challenges, including extensive habitat loss and the illegal pet trade. We highlight how our investigations of orangutan health status, ecosystem requirements, and the assessment of orangutan density using ground and drone nest surveys have been applied to conservation efforts. We describe our project’s direct conservation interventions of public education and awareness campaigns, sustainable livelihood development, establishment of village-run customary forests, investigation of the illegal pet trade, and active engagement with Indonesian government organizations. These efforts, in concert with the development of local scientific and conservation capacity, provide a strong foundation for further conservation as orangutans face a challenging future. 

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2. The Impact of Changing Religious Practices on Orangutan Fieldwork and Conservation in West Kalimantan (Borneo), Indonesia

   Knott, Cheryl; O’Connell, Caitlin A.; Breeden, Terri; Susanto, Tri Wahyu (April 2018, 87th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists)

   Primate field projects are often under the direction of foreign researchers, who live and work alongside members of local communities. Here we discuss the impact of religion on orangutan research and conservation in Gunung Palung National Park, Indonesia over the past 25 years. We demonstrate how our local staff integrates orangutan conservation with religious practices. This includes sharing Islamic prayers on the responsibility of humans to safeguard nature, and the breaking of the fast during Ramadan with villages that are our conservation partners. Islam prohibits the eating of orangutans (as well as forest pigs). In contrast, the indigenous Dayak communities of Borneo historically do hunt and eat orangutans. This impacts the current orangutan distribution. At the Cabang Panti Research Site we have been recording the presence of hunters within our trail system, as well as the number of gunshots heard, since 2008. We find that there is a significant association between these occurrences and the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. We discuss changing religious values and how increasingly conservative practices affect foreign researchers, particularly women. We also detail how social media can help researchers become better informed about important local issues. For example, through our data collection we became aware that local people may be consuming wild pig meat around religious holidays, potentially unknowingly. Social media made us aware that local communities were concerned about this issue, which also impacts wildlife conservation, and thus we can tailor our outreach efforts to meet this intersection between religion and conservation. Funders: NSF (BCS-1638823, BCS-0936199); National Geographic; USFish/Wildlife (F15AP00812, F13AP00920, 96200-0-G249, 96200-9-G110); Leakey; Disney Wildlife Conservation; Wenner-Gren; Nacey-Maggioncalda; Orangutan Conservancy; Conservation-Food-Health; Woodland Park Zoo; Holloman Price; AZA; Ocean Park Conservation; USAID; Arcus 

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3. A comparative perspective on orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) as seed dispersers

   Blackburn, Andrea; Rizal, Ahmad; Susanto, Tri Wahyu; Mitra Setia, Tatang; Knott, Cheryl D (October 2019, International Conference on Biodiversity for Life: Sustainable Development of Indonesia Biodiversity 2019)

   Seed dispersal is a process essential for the maintenance and regeneration of tropical forests. Many primates are important seed dispersers, and orangutans are predicted to be important seed dispersers as they are large-bodied and highly frugivorous. However, minimal previous research has been conducted on orangutan seed dispersal behavior. Here, we present our preliminary analyses on orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) seed dispersal behavior. Our data were collected in Gunung Palung National Park in West Kalimantan from August 2018 to August 2019. We collected 549 wild Bornean orangutan fecal samples, of which 75.2% of the fecal samples contained intact seeds. Dispersed seeds ranged in length from 0.1mm to 32.5mm. Next, we used a comparative perspective to understand orangutan seed dispersal effectiveness by placing orangutans in the context of the other apes. Orangutans disperse seeds with similar frequency as some populations of chimpanzees and gorillas. Overall, orangutans appear to be effective seed dispersers based on quantitative seed dispersal measures. Orangutans appear to have a vital ecological role in tropical forests, thus we advocate for the conservation of wild orangutans and the forests they inhabit. Funders: National Science Foundation (BCS-1638823); National Geographic Society; US Fish and Wildlife Services (F19AP00798; F18AP00898); Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund 

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4. Moving through ecology: orangutan positional behavior in a mosaic habitat

   Kane, Erin; Blackburn, Andrea; Susanto, Tri W; Knott, Cheryl D (March 2019, American journal of physical anthropology)

   Documenting the ways in which organisms physically move through space and the influences of habitat structure on their movement and posture are fundamental to understanding their spatial ecology. Movement ecology is thus a significant influence on animal cognition, morphology, diet, group structure, etc. Evidence to date demonstrates that orangutans of different species (Pongo abelii, P. wurmbii) living in similar habitats exhibit positional behavior more similar to each other than to conspecifics in disparate habitats. Therefore, it is a reasonable hypothesis that orangutan positional behavior is a function of habitat rather than morphological constraints. Here, we test this hypothesis by examining the positional behavior of orangutans living in Gunung Palung National Park in West Kalimantan, Indonesia, a primary forest mosaic composed of seven distinct habitats. We use 33,358 instantaneous scan samples collected every 5 minutes during full day follows of habituated adult orangutans (N=27) to examine postural behavior, locomotor modes, and structure use with a null hypothesis of no differences in positional behavior or support use profiles between habitats. We found significant differences in the profiles of orangutan postural behavior (G=216.2, p<0.001), locomotor behavior (G=45.34, p<0.001), and support use (G=137.8, p<0.001) in 5 distinct habitats within Gunung Palung National Park. Orangutans within the same population move through and use distinct habitats in different ways. This underscores the role of local ecology in structuring organisms’ space use as well as the importance of behavioral plasticity to primates’ movement ecology. Funding: National Science Foundation (BCS-1638823, BCS-0936199); National Geographic Society; US Fish and Wildlife (F15AP00812, F12AP00369, 98210-8-G661); Leakey Foundation; Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund; Wenner-Gren Foundation; Nacey-Maggioncalda Foundation 

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5. Quantity and Quality of Orangutan Seed Dispersal in Gunung Palung National Park, Borneo, Indonesia

   Blackburn, Andrea; Rizal, Ahmad; Susanto, Tri Wahyu; Knott, Cheryl D (November 2019, Northeastern Evolutionary Primatologists Meeting 2019)

   Orangutans are large-bodied frugivores predicted to be effective seed dispersers. We studied Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) seed dispersal effectiveness, by measuring the quantity of seeds dispersed and the quality of dispersal in Gunung Palung National Park, Borneo, Indonesia (August 2018 to August 2019). For dispersal quality we conducted germination experiments, measured germination rates, and modeled dispersal distances. We systematically collected orangutan fecal samples, feeding behavior, and GPS tracks during focal follows. We sieved 549 fecal samples collected from 36 orangutans and identified the seeds, and of the fecal samples collected 75.2% contained seeds. A total of 24 genera were dispersed via endozoochory. Germination experiments were conducted with orangutan defecated seeds and seeds from fruits. A significantly higher percent of orangutan defecated seeds germinated for 5 out of 6 genera than control seeds with pulp (p<0.01). A significantly higher percent of orangutan defecated seeds germinated for 3 out of 6 genera compared to control seeds without pulp (p<0.01). Gut transit times in wild orangutans ranged from 39.5 to 87 hours. Finally, we modeled seed dispersal distances using orangutan movement tracks (n= 30) with gut passage durations of 45 and 60 hours. Gut retention times of 45 hours resulted in a mean dispersal distance of 507 ± 123m, and 60 hours resulted in a mean distances of 592 ± 115m. We conclude orangutans are effective seed dispersers, as orangutans disperse a wide variety of genera over medium to long distances and defecated seeds exhibit high germinability. Orangutans are large-bodied frugivores predicted to be effective seed dispersers. We studied Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) seed dispersal effectiveness, by measuring the quantity of seeds dispersed and the quality of dispersal in Gunung Palung National Park, Borneo, Indonesia (August 2018 to August 2019). For dispersal quality we conducted germination experiments, measured germination rates, and modeled dispersal distances. We systematically collected orangutan fecal samples, feeding behavior, and GPS tracks during focal follows. We sieved 549 fecal samples collected from 36 orangutans and identified the seeds, and of the fecal samples collected 75.2% contained seeds. A total of 24 genera were dispersed via endozoochory. Germination experiments were conducted with orangutan defecated seeds and seeds from fruits. A significantly higher percent of orangutan defecated seeds germinated for 5 out of 6 genera than control seeds with pulp (p<0.01). A significantly higher percent of orangutan defecated seeds germinated for 3 out of 6 genera compared to control seeds without pulp (p<0.01). Gut transit times in wild orangutans ranged from 39.5 to 87 hours. Finally, we modeled seed dispersal distances using orangutan movement tracks (n= 30) with gut passage durations of 45 and 60 hours. Gut retention times of 45 hours resulted in a mean dispersal distance of 507 ± 123m, and 60 hours resulted in a mean distances of 592 ± 115m. We conclude orangutans are effective seed dispersers, as orangutans disperse a wide variety of genera over medium to long distances and defecated seeds exhibit high germinability. Funders: National Science Foundation (BCS-1638823); National Geographic Society; US Fish and Wildlife Services (F19AP00798; F18AP00898); Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund 

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