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Friends
of the National Parks Foundation (FNPF)
Activity Report December
2003
Firstly we wish to thank everyone who has supported us through what has
been an exciting and productive year.
We would like to mention in particular Dr. Willie Smit and the staff at
the Gibbon Foundation, Michael and Sherry at HSI Australia, and Mr. Fred Bagley
of the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
We also wish to thank our many individual donors and supporters : Bapak
and Ibu Susiantoro, the Stuemer Foundation, William and Jean at Threads of
Life, Linda, ‘John’, and all the
friends and supporters in Indonesia and overseas.
We especially wish to thank our director, Drh. I Gede Nyoman Bayu
Wirayudha, without whose vision and inspiration our work would not be possible.
2003 has been a
watershed year for FNPF.
During this year, we
re-entered Tanjung Harapan station at Tanjung Puting National Park, established
another post at Pesalat, commenced a wildlife survey program, undertook a
sunbear release, and recommenced our orangutan rehabilitation activities.
We also began a
strengthened community program, introducing a batik training course for over 12
village women, and encouraging the production of natural dyes and the planting
of mengkudu. This year, we have run
information sessions and interactive on-site conservation education activities
for over 100 cadets and secondary school students. This month, we are putting in an Elementary School support program
including funding a young local assistant teacher and student scholarships.
In 2003, our
reforestation work covered over 12 hectars, even as our strength in plant
identification grows. We now have four
staff with acknowledged ‘traditional botany’ skills, two of whom were sought
out by the Parks Office to co-lead tree and sapling inventory exercises during
the year.
Finally, we have also begun a structural and organisation review, to position FNPF for steady and sustained growth going forward. We have been greatly encouraged by the strides made in controlling illegal logging this year, and we hope and pray for continued years of peace in 2004 onwards.
Salam Hijau !
For this period, we continue our ongoing work at Pesalat and Tanjung
Harapan.
PESALAT
In December, we focused on planting and preparing beds as required to
support the planting program. We
planted 4 hectars in December, making 10 hectares in all since May. The high rate of planting is to take
advantage of the rainy season, and our seedlings have in fact been suitably
prepared and matured such that they now have a good chance of surviving.
Seedlings planted are growing well, most are healthy and have put out
new shoots and leaves, growing 1-2 additional cms. There has been no need to water except on an “as needs” basis due
to the adequate rainfall in December.
The die-off rate for the month is less than 20%, which is very
encouraging.
In December, we planted 594 seedlings; we spaced seedlings out wider to
take advantage of the higher survival rate in the rainy season (less need to
allow for die-off). This month, we are
trialling several species we have not utilized before such as Poga and Luari;
to date, we have collected 22 plant species. Species planted in December were
Nyatuh (287), Sundi (53), Gaharu (62),
Bedaru (7), Sintuk Lawang (8), Idur (20), Medang Kapur (15), Kayu Bunga
(60), Kumpang (24), Poga (5), Jampa (18), Ketikal (32), Luari (1), Bujar
(2).
Our stocktake in December gave us a count of under 3000 seedlings. The stocktake, together with our review,
revealed that some species have high die-off rates while still in the nursery
stage; for example, poga, sundi and sindur do not transplant well. We are therefore now focusing on a planting
‘framework’ of species which survive well such as nyatoh, and will slowly
nurture less hardy species in our nursery and plant these later in between the
faster-growing and hardier species.
In December, we began experiments on the impact of various types of
organic and natural fertilizers in different soil conditions, to enhance growth
rates. To ensure a valid comparison,
the different sites were planted with the same species viz. gaharu. We expect to have firm results in 3 to 5
months.
On 25th December, we began to construct a bridge cum
broadwalk, to assist with access over the swampy areas in Pesalat. We anticipate the bridge will add significantly to the value of the site, making it more accessible
for conservation education, animal translocation and nature purposes. We wish to thank the US Fish and Wildlife
Service and HSI Australia for providing the bulk of funds for the bridge.
A steady supply of healthy seedlings, representing a suitable variety of
local species.
10 hectares, to be planted by mid February 2004. Currently 8 hectares planted.
Plants should be established by mid April such that they can withstand
the dry season.
1.
Site access is
impacted by high rainfall, slowing down work
Action :
·
Bridge
construction to be complete by end January 2004. Currently on track.
2.
Seedling stocks
are insufficient and/or insufficiently mature to survive planting
Action :
·
Continue
controlled experiment to identify relative survival rates for different tree
species, modifying acclimatization conditions as required.
·
Review seedling
collection to temporarily reduce collection of less hardy stock
·
Prioritise the
planting of more vigorous stock, to maximize time for less hardy seedlings to
acclimatize
3.
There is high
dependence on extensive labour compressed into a short period
Action :
·
A regular program
with conservation cadets will commence January, where cadets will help with
planting as part of their conservation education program.
·
Continue to
liaise wth stakeholders e.g. Parks Office to ensure we align work plans and
have adequate resources at vulnerable periods
TANJUNG HARAPAN
The site here is an experimental one, looking at reforestation in swampy
conditions.
We continue to focus on understanding the factors impacting die-off, and
how to manage these more closely.
In December, we did limited work at this site, due to the need to focus
on bridge construction at Pesalat. We
planted 120 seedlings of Pulai, known to have a high survival rate in swamp
conditions. These have been spaced far apart, to allow diversified planting
with other species in between, once we are more confident they can
survive. Continued planting allows
plants beneficial to wildlife to be established sooner, and ensures better
conditions (e.g. shade, forest litter) for later plantings.
Working understanding of suitable methods and species choice in swampy conditions.
10 hectares, to be planted by end May 2004. Currently 4 hectares planted.
Plants should be established by end October.
1.
Harsh natural
conditions with high die-off rates, depleting seedling stocks and impacting the
viability of continued reforestation
Action :
·
Continue
experiments to identify relative survival rates for different tree species,
modifying species planted as required.
·
Continue
experiments to identify methods of planting at different water levels that
would deliver acceptable survival rates
·
Closely manage
stock levels and seedling choice in planting.
·
Attempt to gain
early warning of adverse conditions e.g. by referring to the Indonesian Bureau
of Meteorology 6-month advance weather forecast.
2.
Inadequate
understanding of the inter-relationship between soil, weather, and plant
species in swampy conditions, leading to poor plant health
Action :
·
Build up a
network of local contacts with relevant expertise who can act as a reference
panel
·
Invite an
independent third party to review work done and methods chosen, at strategic
points in the project
·
Investigate the
viability of an appropriate field nursery for swamp conditions
·
Check theory
against results actually achieved in the field as much as possible
This month, we saw many activities in this area, working together with
the Park Authorities and local conservation societies.
Mid-month, the Park Authorities ran a plotting exercise at Natai Tengah,
aimed at identifying seedlings in ex-burnt, -logging, -swidden lands and
requested 2 staff from FNPF, to help co-lead the identification work.
FNPF were asked to advise on the Park Office’s reforestation program,
and we also provided 2 staff to assist with the Park’s reforestation work for 2
weeks. FNPF staff also assisted with
finding seedlings for the Park’s multi-purpose forest site.
As part of the Park Office’s conservation education program, FNPF also
presented on our reforestation work in Tanjung Harapan to over 30 Senior
Secondary school students. We also ran
a plant identification exercise for a further 28 students, as part of the
Park’s education program.
In late December, FNPF worked with the local Conservation Club in Kumai
to organize and fund 50 youths (a mix of Conservation Cadets, Nature Club
members and secondary school students) on a 2 day, 1 night conservation
education program at our field sites at Tanjung Harapan and Pesalat. FNPF staff and volunteers presented
conservation education materials, co-hosted conservation games and ran an
interactive working program including tree identification and hands-on planting
for the young people. The program was
rated a success by those attending, and we hope to continue a similar series of
workshops and activities in the 2004 year.
This month, we noticed that our current release batch of four orangutans have split into two groups viz. Lady with Adong, and Butet with Daniel. As a result, the difference in behaviour in the two groups is becoming more marked :
Since we cannot force the groups to mix, we treat them differently as per their needs.
GROUP PROGRESS
Adong & Lady :
As the more backward pair, they require more attention. We therefore continually invite them into the forest, observe them, and evaluate their level of independence. We are preparing for a controlled ‘soft release’ in early February, to practically force them to continue progressing.
Butet & Daniel :
We will keep them on the rehabilitation process, bearing in mind that Daniel is still too young for release and should be given the opportunity to learn more from Butet.
Health
All the orangutans continue in good health; Adong has had some minor colds and sneezes. We continue to add vitamins and egg to their milk.
Food Self-Sufficiency
We continue to give feeding once a day. A positive effect is that all the orangutans appear to be more diligently searching for food and going into the forest. However, Adong & Lady, although making more effort compared to last month, still continue to return to the post around feeding time to wait for food. Whereas Butet & Daniel are now mainly forest-dwelling to the point where they did not come for feeding for 4 days this month.
Since Adong and Lady’s behaviour cannot be allowed to continue, we have evaluated several options and have taken the decision to do a controlled ‘soft release’ in early February. A detailed options paper is available on request.
Monitoring & Observation
We have undertaken to observe the orangutans 3 days a week to gather maximum data given our plans to release them in the near future. A side effect of our continued observation is that Adong and Lady are less inclined to return to post since they have human company in the forest, and indirectly, this is positive in that it reduces their interaction with guests and visitors and encourages them to stay in forest.
Visitor Management
Our volunteer has been helping with providing information to visitors, and our staff Danson is planning a program to improve visitor management, including better visitor facilities, clearer visitor guidelines, etc. We hope to organize a series of meetings with the BTNTP & local guides to discuss how we can manage visitors better for the benefit of all.
INDIVIDUAL ORANGUTAN PROGRESS
Daniel & Butet
Overall : Good to Excellent and continuing to
improve
Butet : Excellent.
Daniel : Continues to improve, learning from Butet. Daniel is now clearly comfortable at heights > 10 mtrs, and has achieved heights of > 20 mtrs. He now travels mainly in the mid to upper canopy. He descends to the ground only occasionally, e.g. when seeking for pith with Butet, or when playing.
Both are building a nest every day; sometimes they build 2 nests a day, one to rest in in the afternoon, and one for sleeping. Daniel was initially building several nests a day; this was a form of practice, but as he has improved, he has reduced the number of nests that he builds. Butet oscillates between sleeping on the branches and sleeping in a nest during the day.
Food self-sufficiency
Butet : Excellent
Daniel : He continues to eat from new species. In addition to his previous food choices, he is now eating buah belale, buah madu, buah medang, buah simpur and bamboo (following Butet’s example). He is now eating from an estimated 17 species, and from various permanent food sources such as young leaves, flowers, pith and insects instead of relying only on seasonal fruit.
Confidence & exploration
Both : Good
They provide mutual support; Butet waits for Daniel to catch up and vice-versa. They have been seen sleeping in the one nest only in the afternoons; they continue to sleep in their own nests at night. The risk is that they will become overly attached to each other; we will continue to monitor and take appropriate action as required.
Daniel by now has explored almost all of Butet’s range (est. 1 km).
Butet’s range has increased only a little; he has started to enter the part of the forest destroyed due to the windstorms several years ago. He may be waiting for Daniel.
Self-protection
Both : more observation needed.
Daniel continues to learn via playing (mock fights with Butet); also from Butet’s example (e.g removing potential hazards by breaking dead branches)
Butet is showing signs frequently displayed by wild orangutans viz. lip squeaks, throwing sticks if the observer gets to close, etc.
Social / Orangutan vs Human Interaction
Butet & Daniel continue to keep away from humans; they never try to approach tourists who visit. They do not socialise much with Adong and Lady. They were not observed interacting with any wild orangutans this month.
Lady
& Adong
Overall : Fair to Good except for social and
confidence
Forest skills – climbing, nest building,
movement
Both : Fair to Good
They both generally do not build a nest in the day, preferring to rest sleeping on the branches. This is consistent with wild orangutan behaviour especially older orangutans. They are able to move fairly well in the mid to upper canopy.
Food self-sufficiency
Both : Fair
They both eat from a variety of sources including permanent sources such as pith, leaves, insects. However, they attend feeding regularly and both seem to prefer to eat the food we provide, compared to natural forest sources. To reduce their dependance, in addition to reducing food levels, we are modifying their diet : we have reduced the amount of sugar added to their milk and they have accordingly been taking less.
Confidence & exploration
Both : Poor to Fair
If accompanied by an observer, or if in the company of other orangutans, Lady and Adong are quite happy to go deep into the forest. However, if not accompanied, they prefer familiar places. Their range has stayed the same for some time now. Adong in particular is very dependant on Lady and will not explore on his own. This is a risk we have to manage.
Self-protection
Both : Fair to Good
Adong & Lady both exhibit wild orangutan defence mechanisms including breaking branches, using lipsqueaks, hiding and running away (e.g. when encountering large males). Adong also practices mock fighting with Butet and Daniel.
Lately they have begun to play near the river; this carries the risk that they may be taken by crocodiles. We chase them away if ever we find them near the river.
Social / Orangutan vs Human Interaction
Both : Poor
They appear to like the presence of humans. When tourists come by, they frequently attempt to approach them. They often return to post, seemingly more for seeing visitors than for finding food. They both still have human habits left over from their earlier life viz. drinking milk coffee, stealing, and playing with plastic.
This month, we continued to see traces of Winkie, at various areas
around the Pesalat forest. She appears
to still be a messy eater, inefficiently breaking open rotted logs to find
insects, and climbing only to heights of less than 2 meters (smile!)
We expect to continue to encounter traces of Winkie over the coming
months, and will report on these as they occur.
Education Support Program
This month, we signed a formal agreement with the
Tanjung Harapan Elementary village for a one-year Education Support
program.
On 31st December, we gave out 4
scholarships to young students, in recognition of their 2nd semester
results. The scholarships were given in
the form of books, uniforms and school fees, with only a limited amount given
in cash.
We hope to build on this program in future periods,
and may also look to extend it to include scholarships for village children
hoping to enter High School in Kumai.
Our training room continues to be utilised by the
Army, who is currently helping build roads and padi fields in the village. To ensure the work continues, we :
Pak Dullah, one of our senior people, will now work with finding, extracting and fixing natural dyes, and with designing and building the required equipment.
We are targeting an additional four natural dyes by end February and will involve villagers more actively in dye material gathering and pattern choice. We estimate that naturally dyed local batik products will be ready for sale by early April 2004.
This month, we also
secured the sale of a small number of locally woven bracelets to an overseas
buyer via our director in Bali. We will
continue to source markets for local crafts as best we can.
We continue with our regular activities, teaching
English twice a week at the local school, and running a Conversational English
class for village youths.
Our organisation review and revamp continues this
month. In addition to the new
bookkeeping, wage and admin procedures, we are also introducing a learning
program for staff, including computing skills, bookkeeping and fieldwork reporting
skills. We will continue to work on
refining a training plan to ensure staff involvement and learning.
Infrastructure
This month, we bought a new wooden boat or ‘klotok’. It is a fishing boat, very strong, made out of ulin. We are renovating it ourselves, and adapting it for our purposes. So far, it has proved very useful and we are using it to carry wood for the bridge we are building at Pesalat. We wish to offer thanks to the Gibbon Foundation for providing the bulk of the funds for this boat.
In retiring our old klotok, we removed its engine and
are now using it to increase the amount of power we can generate at night at
Tanjung Harapan. Our staff have been
doing the requisite work to fit the new generator, and it is now working well.
Visitor Services and Facilities
Our staff continue to assist the Parks Office with ticket sales and
inspection. This month, we started
using the guest house at Tanjung Harapan for visitors once more. Although most of the fittings were removed
during the recent Park occupation, we found enough furniture to provide a
visitor with emergency accomodation. We hope that we will be able to return to
previous practices of hosting guests at Tanjung Harapan post.
Such is our report for the month.
Once again, we wish to thank all our sponsors and supporters for the
help and support they give so generously.
Respectfully,
FNPF Staff and Volunteer