Baby orangutans take wheelbarrow to school to learn how to survive in the wild
The video, shot by International Animal Rescue, shows the animals’ adorable school run
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Abandoned orangutans are learning how to survive in the world thanks to a dedicated school, which they take a wheelbarrow to each morning.
Aside from their adorable school run, the orangutans at International Animal Rescue’s school in Keptang, Indonesia, learn from each other how to be off the ground and among the tree tops, as well as what to eat.
These are the skills that are usually taught by the youngsters’ mothers, as the animals learn by imitation and observation. They usually spend between seven and eight years with their mother.
IAR tried to create an environment as close possible to nature for the orangutans, which resulted in forest schools being conceived, “where they can learn from each other”.
As IAR’s project director, Karmele Llano Sanchez, says "When the orangutans arrive here we try to give them an environment that is as natural as possible, that is why we created the forest schools.
"What we want is to try to replicate what an orangutan will do in the wild, so this is what they will learn during the process of rehabilitation."
The sanctuary currently houses 102 orangutans, with the chief aim of returning the animals to the wild once they are fully rehabilitated.
According to WWF, the Borneo orangutan population is estimated to be between 45,000 to 69,000 while there are as few as 7.500 Sumatran orangutans left.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments