Every so often a story comes along that truly melts hearts and a news post from the Sumatran Orangutan Society has done just that. A camera trap has filmed a Sumatran orangutan using a canopy bridge crossing for the very first time. This a landmark occasion for the conservation group, which began installing canopy bridges in West Toba over two years ago, alongside TaHuKah, in a bid to provide safe passage across busy roads for orangutans and other wildlife species.
The camera trap captured the young male in the Pakpak Bharat district of North Sumatra, along with a huge variety of other species including a plantain squirrel, black giant squirrel, black Sumatran langur, and agile gibbon. What makes the video so charming is the way that the orangutan pauses for a rest before looking back towards the camera and then carrying on his merry way across the canopy bridge.
According to the SOS, the Lagan-Sibagindar road was widened in 2023, making it impossible for wildlife to cross via the forest’s canopy, trapping 350 Orangutans in a genetic bottleneck that could cause functional extinction due to inbreeding. By March 2024, five canopy bridges had been installed at strategic crossing points along the road, raising hopes that they would be used to cross between the neighbouring canopies.
Camera traps have been vital in documenting successes, with the first primate, a long-tailed macaque, captured on a bridge in August 2024 and subsequent species filmed crossing since, culminating in the first video evidence of a Sumatran Orangutan, using one of the bridges. CEO of the SOS, Helen Buckland, said: “For two years, we have watched and waited for this moment (...) a huge milestone for conservation – proving that it is possible to stitch this fragmented landscape together.”
But the society’s work isn’t done. It currently estimates that 750 orangutans are in a similar position, forced into small islands via surrounding roads. With help from donations, the SOS is hoping to bridge more gaps and provide further safe passage for one of the world’s most delightful primates.
To find out more about the SOS, visit its website. If you’d like to make a simple everyday change that will benefit orangutans, try to avoid products that contain palm oil. Less demand could help to reduce deforestation in these gentle primates’ habitats.
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