Chester Zoo Borneo Orangs - 'da knowledge'

Waddi said:
so I have no chance of seeing him and his cheek pads :-(
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Depends how much you want it :)

You could do Primate Keeper for the Day (although 2012 is possibly already sold out, when I booked mine in 2009 for 2010 they'd only been on sale 3 days and I got the last date) and see if you can possibly get to see him OR maybe a sizeable donation to the next EAZA campaign;)
 
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Tuan certainly is impressive , especially when making the 'long call' - only the second time I have ever heard it ( on the brilliant EAZA Ape Day earlier this year ) . Not keen on being looked at apparently .
 
In a year or so, Sarikei and Leia may start cycling again, so Tuan may be on show with them from time to time.

Alan
 
I heard that the reason he is not let outside very often(at all?) is because he eats earth and could ingest parasites etc.
 
Bele said:
Tuan certainly is impressive , especially when making the 'long call' - only the second time I have ever heard it
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Its a behaviour less frequent in captivity than in the wild- possibly due to lack of stimulation to 'defend' their territory? At Chester with two adult males that could stimulate them more.

I too have only rarely heard 'long calling'. I remember the old male 'Jack' at Bristol Zoo used to do it quite frequently though- usually when the ApeHouse was completely quiet e.g. in the late afternoon/evening. It is an impressive experience to hear/witness.
 
Pertinax said:
I heard that the reason he is not let outside very often(at all?) is because he eats earth and could ingest parasites etc.
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That's correct the zoo have said that they have an issue with Tuan eating earth - they have thought of ways around it such as a much deeper layer of bark chips etc and that may help but it is still being worked on as far as I know.

I'd love to see him on show more often as he's a fantastic example of a male Bornean Orang and I want to photograph him to do that justice.
 
karoocheetah said:
That's correct the zoo have said that they have an issue with Tuan eating earth - they have thought of ways around it such as a much deeper layer of bark chips etc and that may help but it is still being worked on as far as I know.
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I believe he got this behaviour from being kept in very cramped quarters at his previous home-was it Antwerp? where either he had little or no access outside and picked up unusual traits as a result. So Chester have inherited a problem with him from his previous situation. Its a pity for you Chesterphiles (have I created a new term here?:confused:) that he can't be seen regularly.
 
I think he learned the behaviour where he was born, or in his early years and he didn't have opportunity to do it in Antwerp so it was unexpected when he arrived in Chester. He is a lovely chap, it's a real shame he can't take advantage of the opportunities he has because of this behaviour.
 
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