Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by Craig Newberry, Communications Take inspiration from Godek and Batu! Photo: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo The word orangutan comes from two Malay words, "orang," meaning person and "hutan," meaning forest. For International Orangutan Day, Woodland Park Zoo is highlighting the "people of the forest," the challenges they've overcome and how we all can help save these critically endangered apes. Orangutans face several threats that are rapidly destroying the forest environments they require for survival, including human overpopulation, logging and agriculture. One of the most significant threats is the conversion of forests to unsustainable monocultures, such as palm oil plantations. Watch:  https://youtu.be/dOWhf52YIbA The HUTAN-Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Programme is a long-time Woodland Park Zoo partner dedicated to conserving Borneo's threatened habitats and wildlife species. For the past few years, HUTAN’s researche...

Posted by Elizabeth Bacher, Communications Can you really make a difference for endangered species from the grocery store? YES!   Sumatran orangutan, Godek. Photo: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Companies that make the things you shop for are mostly after one goal: to sell their product. That means they’re more likely to change the way they do things—to be more eco-friendly, for instance—if you tell them it influences your buying decisions. This little baby Bornean orangutan and his mother need protected forests to survive. Photo: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo One conservation concern where consumers like you are making a real difference is palm oil. Maybe you’re familiar with the buzz about it, or maybe it’s the first time you’re hearing about it. The problems with palm oil are complex—even confusing. But the solutions don’t have to be. Let’s cut through some of the clutter about this ubiquitous ingredient that’s in thousands of products you shop for every day....

Posted by Rebecca Whitham, Vice President of Engagement with Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, WPZ  A female proboscis monkey and her baby in Borneo’s Kinabatangan region. The boat driver cuts the engine. We slowly bob and drift along the river toward the direction of what has caught the observation team’s eyes—a sight found nowhere else in the world: the improbably proportioned proboscis monkey. Researchers with HUTAN’s primate observation unit have spotted a small family group. With the aid of binoculars and a clipboard, they take note of juveniles playing, female adults nearby at rest. A dominant male on a branch all his own watches over us, potbelly flopped over almost as characteristically as his nose.  Our team recognizes a male proboscis monkey by his signature nose. That signature nose is meant to signal his attractiveness, and possibly act as a sound enhancer for better group management. It also has given the proboscis monkey its name and its prominence in the eco-st...