Why is GAFI needed

Orangutan

The Conservation Status of the Orangutan
Once widespread throughout the forests of Asia, orangutans are now confined to two islands, where two genetically distinct species exist: the Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) and the Bornean orangutan (P. pygmaeus). A recent assessment of the conservation status of the Bornean and Sumatran orangutans, their rate of decline, and the extent of remaining habitat paint a bleak picture. Population sizes and densities within habitat patches are falling across the species’ ranges, and the prohibitive rate of forest loss continues unabated. In the decade between 1992 and 2003, it is estimated that orangutan habitat declined by more than 5.5 million hectares.
There are less than 8 million hectares of orangutan habitat left standing in Kalimantan, and less than 900,000 hectares on Sumatra.

Across the orangutans’ entire range, conversion of forests to oil palm plantations is occurring on a massive scale, logging continues with no signs of being reduced, irrespective of the protection status of the land, and infrastructure developments threaten to fragment the habitat of the last viable populations. In order to be considered genetically viable in the long term, populations must number 500 or more individuals. On Sumatra, only 3 such populations exist. As their habitat is further cleared, degraded and fragmented, it is likely that any populations that continue to survive in protected areas may soon drop below this critical threshold, at which point remaining individuals make no contribution to the long-term survival of the species. Taking into account rates of habitat loss and fragmentation, persecution as agricultural pests and the illegal pet trade, and with less than 60,000 individuals remaining, extinction of both the Sumatran and Bornean species within a few years is a certainty if current trends continue.

Key causes of decline
The lowland forests of Borneo and Sumatra are the only places in the world where the orangutan can still be found in the wild. Population numbers have fallen dramatically in the last 30 years as their forest habitat has been decimated. An estimated 80% of orangutan habitat was lost between 1975 - 1995, and several million more hectares have disappeared in the last decade. This decline has been attributed to widespread logging, devastating fires, and conversion for plantation agriculture.

The illegal pet trade is strongly linked with the degradation and conversion of forests due to increased accessibility for hunters and poachers. It has been estimated that for every infant that survives the process of capture and transport, at least 3 others will have been lost, and each of these infants also represents the death of an adult female orangutan, the most demographically important members of every wild population. The number of confiscated infants resident at rehabilitation centres indicates that this trade continues at unsustainable levels.

Habitat degradation through logging activity occurs extensively across the two islands. Although this reduces the capacity of the forests to support high population densities, orangutans are able to survive in these disturbed habitats. However, it is now common practise for expired logging concessions to be clear-cut and converted to plantations. It is predicted that all unprotected lowland forest will have disappeared on Sumatra and Borneo by 2010. Current patterns of land conversion result in increased pressure on protected forests to supply timber, and further encroachment will reduce the viability of populations even within national parks.

Lethal conflict is now a frequent occurrence in plantations and nearby private gardens, as orangutans are forced out of degraded forest fragments in search of enough food for survival. Perceived as a threat to the plantations’ profits, these endangered and protected species, a flagship for the conservation of South-east Asian rainforests, are considered to be agricultural pests and killed.

ORANGUTANS IN SUMATRA
Orangutans were historically found in forests across Sumatra but are now restricted to North Sumatra and Aceh provinces. The Sumatran orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus abelii) has been classified as "Critically Endangered" by the IUCN (World Conservation Union). Populations have declined from over 12,000 in 1994, to around 7,300 at the last comprehensive survey carried out in 2003. The species is threatened by habitat loss and poaching, and a proposed network of roads through the Gunung Leuser National Park, containing most of the remaining viable populations, further threatens their survival.

With their jungle environment burnt and logged and their food sources lost, the Sumatran orangutan population is declining by as many as 1,000 per year. Current estimates suggest that they could become extinct in the wild in less than 10 years. Illegal logging and the deliberate starting of forest fires in order to convert virgin forest to timber and palm oil plantations are the main factors responsible for the loss of over 80% of orangutan habitat over the last 20 years.

The Sumatran orangutan has suffered a high degree of habitat fragmentation; the most up-to-date surveys indicate that less than 900,000 hectares of suitable habitat remain on the island, in 13 distinct forest fragments. The largest population of Sumatran orangutans exists in the province of Aceh, but data indicate that 1,000 individuals were being lost per year during 1998-1999 in this area alone, and populations plummeted across the island by 50% in just 8 years prior to 2000.

Only 3 of the remaining population units are considered to be demographically and genetically viable, with more than 500 individuals. All three are located within the Leuser Ecosystem, a 2.6 million hectare expanse of forest spanning the borders of Aceh and North Sumatra, which has been acknowledged as one of the world’s most important biodiversity hotspots. The ecosystem incorporates the Gunung Leuser National Park, but the majority of orangutans are resident outside the park boundaries, and the forests are experiencing a 10-15% rate of habitat loss per year due to logging. This astounding rate of forest decline implies that even the most recent estimate of remaining habitat, made at the beginning of 2004, will now be out of date and forest patches will have shrunk even further.

There are four separate habitat units within the Leuser ecosystem, which were connected until around a decade ago. Efforts to reconnect them in the future would produce a large and viable population, but work has already begun on the construction of the Ladia Galaska road system, which cuts through the ecosystem in at least nine places. This development promises extensive fragmentation and destruction of the forest, easier access for illegal loggers and poachers, and inevitable significant population reductions for many endangered species including the Sumatran orangutan, tiger, rhinoceros and elephant.

There is great pressure for the conversion of forests to agricultural uses across Indonesia, and this has been occurring at an alarming rate on Sumatra, which now has over 4 million hectares of oil palm plantations – more than four times the area of remaining orangutan habitat on the island. It is clear that the small amount of remaining habitat will soon disappear if forest loss continues, and although a handful of orangutans may continue to survive in isolated forest fragments, these populations will not be genetically or demographically viable and will make no contribution to the long-term survival of the species. This implies that the effective extinction of the Sumatran orangutan is imminent, and the call for a halt to habitat loss is more urgent than ever.

(photos by Nicholas Tignonsini)

ORANGUTANS IN BORNEO
The Bornean orangutan is found in the Indonesian provinces of West, Central and East Kalimantan, and the Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak. Intense field surveys over the last ten years have revealed higher estimated population numbers of orangutans on Borneo than previously thought, but during this time the rate of habitat decline has escalated, resulting in a high degree of fragmentation of remnant forest patches across the island. Experts believe this to be a key factor in the continuous reduction in population numbers in all three subspecies, and it is thought that even low rates of hunting could destabilize and threaten the survival of Bornean orangutan populations, even within good quality habitat.

If individuals are unable to disperse safely between forest fragments, and if habitat destruction continues, it is predicted that all populations will decline steadily to extinction. Recent habitat analyses revealed that in 2002 the total area of orangutan habitat remaining in Kalimantan was approximately 8.5 million hectares, divided into 306 distinct habitat units. Almost half of these habitat units were less than 10,000 hectares in size, together accounting for just 5.5% of the total area, highlighting the severity of the fragmentation of the remaining lowland forests. To compound the problem, the majority of the forest is now classified as degraded, and is therefore likely to be able to support lower densities of orangutans than primary forest, as well as being vulnerable to re-classification as conversion forest – destined to be clear-cut and converted to oil palm plantations. Taking into account an estimated rate of deforestation on Borneo of 1.3 million hectares per year, the outlook for the Bornean orangutan is not much more favourable than that of the Sumatran species. Remaining habitat is already likely to have been reduced to less than 5 million hectares in the last 3 years, and predictions have been made that all unprotected lowland forests, excluding peat swamps, will have disappeared from Kalimantan by 2010.

KEY CAUSES OF ORANGUTAN DECLINE
The decline of the orangutan on Borneo and Sumatra in recent years symbolises the devastation of one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots – the lowland rainforests of Southeast Asia. The major threats to the survival of orangutans have been identified as habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation, with a secondary, associated threat being live capture for the pet trade.

HABITAT LOSS
Indonesia has one of the highest tropical forest loss rates in the world, with 64 million hectares of forest cover having been cleared in the last 50 years. Despite the increasing scarcity of remnant patches of forest on Borneo and Sumatra, the rate of deforestation is showing no sign of slowing down: around 15 years ago an average 1.7 million hectares was cleared annually in Indonesia, increasing to 2 million hectares by the turn of the millennium. A World Bank report has blamed commercial developments, especially oil palm plantations, for this acceleration, and if this rate continues, there will be no lowland forest (excluding peat swamp forests) left outside protected areas in Kalimantan by 2010, and in Sumatra by 2006. The remaining swamp forests will disappear over the 5 years following the removal of dipterocarp forests, as peat swamps sustain a lower density of commercially valuable tree species, and are therefore prone to lower rates of exploitation.

The Mega-Rice Project, described as “the largest and most destructive agricultural conversion project in the world in recent times”, demonstrates the vulnerability of large areas of orangutan habitat to rapid conversion. Forest clearance and peat drainage took place on a massive scale between 1996-1998 to reclaim one million hectares of swamp-forest floodplains in Central Kalimantan, in an attempt to increase Indonesia’s rice production capacity. This development faced considerable opposition because such activity causes the development of acidic soils, hydrological disturbance, and results in the die-off of surrounding forest cover, whilst sustaining very low agricultural productivity. The project was an unmitigated failure, and after the area had been abandoned, massive drainage canals continued to siphon off water from the surrounding peatland forests. The vast forest clearance had already claimed an important area of orangutan habitat and displaced thousands of animals, and when the dry peat and dead wood gave rise to 6 months of uncontrollable fires during 1997-1998, a further 400,000 hectares of forest burnt. The fragmentation of the remnant forest patches, coupled with the inhospitable matrix of farmland, rivers and canals, prevented around 8,000 orangutans from escaping, and these died in the fire. Despite the area being classified as “estate crops” on official government maps, not a single blade of rice was ever planted, and the land remains barren and unproductive.

Yet lessons remain un-learned and the conversion of forest to agriculture continues on a massive scale. The rapid expansion of oil palm plantations across Borneo and Sumatra has already involved the clear-felling of millions of hectares of forests, and all unprotected lowland forests are vulnerable to eventual future conversion.

Between 1989 and 2000, the area of oil palm harvested in Indonesia more than tripled. By the beginning of 2004, there were 6.5 million hectares of oil-palm plantations across Sumatra and Borneo. Of this, almost 4 million hectares had previously been forested. However, the palm-oil industry is associated with deforestation beyond establishing oil-palm estates on previously forested land. Orangutan inhabit lowland dipterocarp, freshwater and peat swamp forests, but unfortunately this habitat is located precisely in those areas that are preferentially converted to oil-palm plantations.

Aceh, probably the last stronghold of the Sumatran orangutan, is losing its forests at a rate of 270,000 hectares per year. Research has shown that 20,000 hectares of the Tripa and Truman-Singkil swamp forests, known to support one of the highest densities of orangutans in Sumatra, were converted to oil palm plantations between 1990 and 2000, with half of this area being lost in the space of only 2 years. In 2003, the area cultivated with oil palms in Sabah and Sarawak reached over 1.6 million hectares, with an estimated 80,000 hectares of forest being converted to plantations every year. Conversion to oil palm plantations is now recognized as a primary threat to the lowland forests on Borneo and Sumatra, and hence the continued survival of countless species, including the orangutan.

HABITAT DEGRADATION AND FRAGMENTATION
Orangutans have a slow life history, characterised by extended periods of parental care and long inter-birth intervals of around 8 years. This pattern confers low population growth rates and slow recovery from habitat and population disturbance events such as logging and hunting. Population densities tend to remain low, even in suitable habitat, and are even lower in logged and secondary-growth forests. A long-term census of orangutans in the Sebangau forests recorded a 49 per cent decline in numbers within 8 years. This has been attributed to a decline in the carrying capacity of the habitat patch due to the removal of large fruiting trees during logging operations. These reductions persist after the initial disturbance - old secondary growth forests contain only 30-50% of the orangutan density found in primary forest.

Illegal logging accounts for 70%t of the timber supplied to the processing sector, and occurs across the orangutans’ range, including within the boundaries of supposedly protected areas. Since 1999, local governments in Indonesia have held the power to designate new protected areas within their provinces, but are also responsible for generating their own revenues. Natural resource extraction and exploitation is often the simplest way of raising local income, so land-use plans seldom take into account the long-term conservation value of the forests. The current state of Kutai National Park is a clear indication of the failure of the protected area system in Indonesia and serves as a cautionary tale for conservationists working to ensure the safety of remaining orangutan populations from further habitat destruction. Since the late 1960s, Kutai has been overrun by logging concessions, industrial complexes, open-pit coalmines and human settlements. Two intense fires in 1983 and 1998 were responsible for the loss of 95% of the lowland forest, and the degraded state of the ecosystem prior to the fires has been implicated in the extent of the damage. Now, only around 10% of the park remains forested, decimating the orangutan population, from an estimated 4,000 in 1970, to just 500 today.

Logging, whether illegal, or legal but unsustainable, leaves a lasting legacy in the forest long after the sound of chainsaws has died away. The Sebangau Ecosystem in Central Kalimantan was granted protected status at the end of 2004, but the integrity of the Sebangau National Park is threatened by old and extensive illegal logging canals which are causing drainage and degradation of the peat soils. Although the expansion of the protected area network to encompass habitats supporting rich biodiversity is critical, past experience warns against complacency. No extant population, irrespective of size and the protection status of the habitat, should be judged to be beyond threats to its stability and continued survival. Extension of protected areas should be followed by appropriate strategies to mitigate the threats specific to each vulnerable area.

Orangutans are particularly vulnerable to population declines following fragmentation due to their large home ranges, low population densities and reproductive rates, and demand for the pet trade. Infrastructure developments lead to inevitable increases in habitat degradation as the forest is opened up, facilitating access to previously undisturbed areas. Research has estimated that 64% of orangutan habitat has already been negatively affected by infrastructure developments, and the construction of new roads will mean increased access to forests for hunters and poachers, and an inevitable further decline in population numbers .

HUNTING AND POACHING
Despite the orangutans’ position on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), prohibiting unlicensed trade due to the conservation status of the species in the wild, there is a huge local, national, and international demand for infant orangutans to be kept as pets. Young orangutans are highly dependent on their mothers for survival and development, and in order to obtain an infant for the pet trade it is necessary to kill the mother. It has been estimated that for every infant that survives the process of capture and transport, at least 3 others will have been lost, and each of these infants also represents the death of an adult female orangutan, the most demographically important members of every wild population.
It is not known precisely how many orangutans are currently kept as pets, but over 500 individuals have been confiscated and are currently being cared for at just two rehabilitation centres in Central Kalimantan, representing at least 2,000 infants, and 2,000 adult females that have been removed from wild populations in one province. Additionally, orangutans are still hunted for food in some areas, an activity which is thought to be responsible for historical local extinctions across Borneo. Experts have calculated that a hunting or poaching rate of greater than 1% is sufficient to destabilise even a large population in good quality habitat, accelerating the rate of decline beyond the impacts of habitat degradation. It is clear that the removal of 4,000 individuals from the wild in one province is entirely unsustainable and a significant threat to the viability of the remaining populations.

FOREST FIRES
Around 40% of Indonesia’s legal timber supply results from land clearance for conversion to industrial plantations. If the remaining timber stands are not commercially valuable, burning has been a widely-used method of land clearance. The infamous forest fires of 1997/98 were responsible for the devastation of over 5 million hectares of forest, and created the single largest anthropogenic CO2 event recorded.

Although undoubtedly aggravated by years of exploitative logging and exacerbated by an El Niño effect, the majority of these fires were triggered primarily by palm-oil companies using uncontrolled burning to clear land, as implicated by satellite imagery. It is believed that some palm-oil companies also light fires in order to degrade forest land and speed up the permit-allocation process. It has been estimated that the fires of 1997/98 alone were responsible for the loss of one-third of Borneo’s orangutan population – a massive step back in the conservation effort to save this species from extinction.

SUMMARY
Orangutans are able to survive in disturbed secondary forests, albeit at reduced densities, but logging concessions become reclassified as “nonproductive production forest” when less than 20m3 of commercially valuable timber species remain per hectare. Although these severely degraded habitats would still be able to support low levels of biodiversity, once this exploitation threshold is reached, the land becomes available to be completely clear-cut and undergo cultivation with plantation crops such as oil palm. Illegal and legal but unsustainable logging in managed production forest concessions will lead to a shortage of timber in the future, and conversion to oil palm plantations will inevitably follow in these degraded areas, leading to greater pressure on protected areas to supply timber.

Despite lower densities of commercially valuable timber species relative to dry forests, the lowland peat swamp forests of Borneo and Sumatra have undergone high rates of commercial logging, with two particularly serious implications. Firstly, the removal of trees causes drainage and degradation of the peat, leaving root systems exposed and incapable of supporting the trees, leading to the literal collapse of the forest. Additionally, alterations to the canopy structure allow more sunlight to reach the ground, reducing humidity. Dry peat is incredibly flammable, and uncontrollable fires during the dry season lead to the large-scale degradation of vast expanses of forest, leaving the area vulnerable to conversion to oil palm plantations or other agricultural uses.

Observations carried out by WWF and TRAFFIC indicate an increase in the trade in infant orangutans over the last ten years. This is thought to be linked to other criminal activities such as the illegal timber trade, and is also associated with forest conversion, as poaching and trade is particularly common in areas where there has been a recent increase in forest accessibility due to infrastructure developments surrounding plantations. It was estimated that 1,000 Bornean orangutans are lost from the wild every year to supply markets in Bali and Java alone.

It is clear that current rates of forest degradation and conversion are entirely unsustainable, and these activities are inflicting irrevocable damage to forest ecosystems, endemic species, and local communities who rely on the forest for their livelihoods and survival.

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