Baby Sumatran orangutan born in Bratislava ZOO
30. 05. 2023
Bratislava, 30 May 2023 - Bratislava Zoo is excited about a new addition to the Sumatran orangutans. This is not only the first successfully bred baby of this species in Bratislava Zoo, but also the first one in Slovakia. Orangutans are a critically endangered species, and the growth of its wild population is very slow, as in their natural habitat females are able to give birth to one young only every 8 - 9 years.
The birth of the female Mengala was smooth, she brought her cub into the world in private, without any help needed from the breeders. The offspring of a breeding pair of Sumatran orangutans (Pongo abelii), Mengala and Filip, was born in the early hours of 24 April 2023. During a regular morning check on this day, breeders observed Mengala holding her carefully cleaned cub tightly after giving birth. Mengala, as a multiple mother, is extremely caring and the cub clings to her tightly even when she climbs to heights in order to find a comfortable and undisturbed place to nurse and rest.
The birth of a Sumatran orangutan in Slovakia is exceptional. Mengala arrived in Bratislava Zoo in 2015 together with her then five-year-old cub Vilmos. Approaching puberty, when young males leave their mothers to look for a mate of their own, Vilmos was to find a new home in the new tropical pavilion at Planckendael Zoo in Belgium. After a rather difficult battle with the COVID-19 pandemic and many other challenges, Vilmos finally left Bratislava Zoo in July 2022. Mengala and Filip were given permission to mate by the coordinator of the European rescue programme, and the new-born baby Sumatran orangutan is Filip's first offspring.
In order to give the mother Mengala time to recover after giving birth and also to enable her to take care of her cub in peace, the interior of the Primate Pavilion was not accessible to the zoo's visitors. From 31 May 2023, visitors will be able to come and see the cub inside the pavilion, which will be open daily from 10.00 am to 2.00 pm. In fine weather, visitors can see the orangutans in the outdoor exhibit area.
You too can decide on what the baby orangutan will be named. To promote awareness about these intelligent, rare and critically endangered species, and to prevent the over-humanisation of great apes which leads to illegal trade, we offer here six Indonesian names. You can join at questionnaire ↗︎.
Sumatran orangutans are beautiful, intelligent and critically endangered animals. They live in the rainforests on the island of Sumatra. The greatest cause of the orangutans' rapid decline is the loss of their natural habitat and the illegal trade in the species' young as well as in adult body parts. It is estimated that today there are fewer than 15,000 orangutans remaining in the wild, and they are at risk of total extinction within fifty years. If you would like to make a donation to help save them, more information can be found at the Orangutan project ↗︎.