New research finds that it’s not only human babies who love to playfully tease each other. Researchers reasoned that since language is not required for this behaviour, similar kinds of playful teasing might be present in non-human animals. Now cognitive biologists and primatologists have documented playful teasing in four species of great apes. Like joking behaviour in humans, ape teasing is provocative, persistent, and includes elements of surprise and play. Because all four great ape species used playful teasing, it is likely that the prerequisites for humour evolved in the human lineage at least 13 million years ago.
#News: Great #apes tease and prank each other just as humans do. Including body-slamming, hair-pulling and waving objects in front of each other’s faces – new #research study finds #
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Apes Enjoy Joking and Teasing Each Other
New research finds that it’s not only human babies who love to playfully tease each other. Researchers reasoned that since language is not required for this behaviour, similar kinds of playful teasing might be present in non-human animals. Now cognitive biologists and primatologists have documented playful teasing in four species of great apes. Like joking behaviour in humans, ape teasing is provocative, persistent, and includes elements of surprise and play. Because all four great ape species used playful teasing, it is likely that the prerequisites for humour evolved in the human lineage at least 13 million years ago.
Media release from Science Alert, February 13, 2024. Research: Laumer I.B., Winkler S, Rossano F, Cartmill EA. Spontaneous playful teasing in four great ape species. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 2024 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.2345
Joking is an important part of human interaction that draws on social intelligence, an ability to anticipate future actions, and an ability to recognize and appreciate the violation of others’ expectations. Teasing has much in common with joking, and playful teasing may be seen as a cognitive precursor to joking. The first forms of playful teasing in humans emerge even before babies say their first words, as early as eight months of age. The earliest forms of teasing are repetitive provocations often involving surprise. Infants tease their parents by playfully offering and withdrawing objects, violating social rules (so-called provocative non-compliance), and disrupting others’ activities.
In a study, scientists from the University of California Los Angeles, the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Indiana University, and the University of California San Diego(Isabelle Laumer, Sasha Winkler, Federico Rossano, and Erica Cartmill, respectively) report evidence of playful teasing in the four great ape species: orangutans, chimpanzees, bonobos and gorillas. “Great apes are excellent candidates for playful teasing, as they are closely related to us, engage in social play, show laughter and display relatively sophisticated understandings of others’ expectations,” says Isabelle Laumer, a post-doctoral researcher at the University of California Los Angeles and the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior.
The team analyzed spontaneous social interactions that appeared to be playful, mildly harassing, or provocative. During these interactions, the researchers observed the teaser’s actions, bodily movements, facial expressions, and how the targets of the teasing responded in turn. They also assessed the teaser’s intentionality by looking for evidence that the behavior was directed at a specific target, that it persisted or intensified, and that teasers waited for a response from the target.
Teasing to provoke a response
The researchers found that orangutans, chimpanzees, bonobos and gorillas all engaged in intentionally provocative behavior, frequently accompanied by characteristics of play. They identified 18 distinct teasing behaviors. Many of these behaviors appeared to be used to provoke a response, or at least to attract the target’s attention. “It was common for teasers to repeatedly wave or swing a body part or object in the middle of the target’s field of vision, hit or poke them, stare closely at their face, disrupt their movements, pull on their hair or perform other behaviors that were extremely difficult for the target to ignore,” explains UCLA and IU professor Erica Cartmill, senior author of the study.
Although playful teasing took many forms, the authors note that it differed from play in several ways. “Playful teasing in great apes is one-sided, very much coming from the teaser often throughout the entire interaction and rarely reciprocated,” explains Cartmill. “The animals also rarely use play signals like the primate ‘playface’, which is similar to what we would call a smile, or ‘hold’ gestures that signal their intent to play.”
Similarity with human behaviour
Playful teasing mainly occurred when apes were relaxed, and shared similarities with behaviours in humans. “Similar to teasing in children, ape playful teasing involves one-sided provocation, response waiting in which the teaser looks towards the target’s face directly after a teasing action, repetition, and elements of surprise,” Laumer explains.
The researchers noted that Jane Goodall and other field primatologists had mentioned similar behaviours happening in chimpanzees many years ago, but this new study was the first to systematically study playful teasing. “From an evolutionary perspective, the presence of playful teasing in all four great apes and its similarities to playful teasing and joking in human infants suggests that playful teasing and its cognitive prerequisites may have been present in our last common ancestor, at least 13 million years ago,” explains Laumer. “We hope that our study will inspire other researchers to study playful teasing in more species in order to better understand the evolution of this multi-faceted behaviour. We also hope that this study raises awareness of the similarities we share with our closest relatives and the importance of protecting these endangered animals.”
Media release from Science Alert, February 13, 2024. Research: Laumer I.B., Winkler S, Rossano F, Cartmill EA. Spontaneous playful teasing in four great ape species. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 2024 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.2345
ENDS
Learn about other animals endangered by palm oil and other agriculture
A 2019 World Health Organisation (WHO) report into the palm oil industry and RSPO finds extensive greenwashing of palm oil deforestation and the murder of endangered animals (i.e. biodiversity loss)
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South America: Species Endangered by Palm Oil Deforestation
As the lush equatorial rainforests of South East Asia are exhausted, increasingly focus is being placed on parts of Central and South America. Oil Palm is a growing commodity there and is found in Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, Guatemala and Mexico.
South America: Species Endangered by Palm Oil Deforestation
A model of rainforest loss in the Amazon 2010 – 2260
The fertile rainforests of Latin America are home to some of the most exotic and unusual species of animals in the world. These animals must be protected at all costs. These animals have a IUCN Red List status of Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable and face a threat to their existence from palm oil deforestation, and deforestation from other commodities. Yet there is hope and there are a number of ways you can Take Action to Protect Them.
Palm Oil Detectives is completely self-funded by its creator. All hosting and website fees and investigations into brands are self-funded by the creator of this online movement. If you like what I am doing, you and would like me to help meet costs, please send Palm Oil Detectives a thanks on Ko-Fi.
PUERTO CONCORDIA, Colombia — Councilman Ricardo Vargas* sits at the bus depot in the riverside hamlet of Puerto Concordia where narco-inspired corridos play on the radio and a sea of oil palm expands outside town in all directions.
Although #WorldOrangutanDay falls on the 19th of August, in our opinion, every day deserves to be World Orangutan Day! So here is an infographic that you can download, print and share however you please.
All three species of orangutan are classified as ‘endangered’ or ‘critically endangered’ in S.E. Asia. Their main threat is palm oil deforestation in Indonesia and Malaysia
Orangutans are known as “gardeners” of the forest, as they are critical for seed dispersal in ecosystems.
Their slow reproductive rate makes populations extremely vulnerable.
Orangutans are highly intelligent, they use tools including using boats and they pass these skills onto their children whom they raise for up to 10 years.
Orangutans: Architects of the Forest, Champions of Survival
Embracing International Orangutan Day: Guardians of the Canopy
On August 19th each year, orange ape enthusiasts celebrate cheeky and nurturing orangutans of Indonesia and Malaysia. With their flame-coloured fur and expressive eyes like deep obsidian pools, orangutans are not only symbols of wild intelligence, they are vital ecological architects dispersing seeds and contributing to the survival of their rainforest home.
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Celebrations of World Orangutan Day are tempered with immense worry for animal lovers each year. All three species of orangutan are on the brink of extinction. The relentless expansion of industrial palm oil plantations, roads and infrastructure slices through the heart of the rainforest. Human encroachment puts these gentle giants closer to greedy and unscrupulous poachers and also farmers who kill them in retribution for invading their crops.
Read on to discover the indelible and unique scientific discoveries about orangutans over the past few years. Also take a look at this infographic to understand how palm oil colonialism and land-grabbing have manifested into a pressure cooker of risks for one of our closest evolutionary relatives. Finally learn how you can take action to help orangutans every time you shop.
Murmurs of Meaning: The Complex Language of Orangutans
Orangutans communicate in ways that continue to fascinate people. A recent study has unlocked new insights into their sophisticated communication methods, revealing how orangutans use vocalisations and gestures to convey emotions and information (Erb et al., 2024). The study, conducted by a team of researchers from several institutions, employed machine learning algorithms to analyse vocal recordings of orangutans in the wild.
Key Findings
Diverse Vocalisations: Researchers identified over 200 distinct sounds used by orangutans, ranging from long-distance calls to subtle grunts and whistles. These vocalisations serve various purposes, including warnings of danger, expressions of joy, and coordination of group activities.
Gesture Communication: In addition to vocal sounds, orangutans use a rich tapestry of gestures to communicate, such as arm waves and facial expressions. These gestures are often used in social interactions, highlighting their rich emotional intelligence and social complexity
Implications
Understanding these communication patterns not only provides a window into the cognitive abilities of orangutans but also underscores the need for conservation strategies that consider their social dynamics. Protecting their habitats allows orangutans to continue engaging in these complex social behaviours, essential for their survival and well-being.
Tool-Wielding Innovators: The Ingenious Minds of Orangutans
Recently, researchers were given insight into how orangutans showcase their remarkable intelligence through the use of tools. A study detailed the innovative ways these apes utilise objects in their environment, demonstrating a level of cognitive sophistication that rivals even our closest relatives, the chimpanzees (Motes-Rodrigo et al., 2022). This research, led by Alba Motes-Rodrigo and her team, observed wild orangutans across several regions in Sumatra.
Key Findings
Tool Usage: The study documented instances where orangutans used sticks to extract insects from tree bark and employed leaves as makeshift umbrellas during tropical downpours. This behaviour reflects their problem-solving skills and adaptability to environmental challenges.
Cultural Transmission: Researchers noted that tool use varied across different orangutan communities, suggesting that these skills are passed down through generations, much like cultural traditions in human societies.
Implications
These findings highlight the orangutans’ ability to innovate and adapt, underscoring the importance of preserving their habitats to allow for such natural behaviours. By understanding their tool use, conservationists can develop strategies that cater to their cognitive needs, ensuring that these intelligent beings continue to thrive in their natural environments.
Using Healing Jungle Herbs: Orangutans and Self-Medication
In an extraordinary display of natural wisdom, orangutans have been seen in the wild tending to their own painful wounds. A groundbreaking study revealed that orangutans in the wild use plants with medicinal properties to alleviate pain and discomfort (Laumer et al., 2024). This research, led by Isabelle B. Laumer and her colleagues at the University of Zurich, involved detailed observation and analysis of orangutan behaviour in their natural habitat.
Key Findings
Medicinal Plants: The study found that orangutans use various forest plants known to humans for their anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties. They were observed chewing leaves and applying them to their skin to treat muscle and joint pain, showcasing a sophisticated understanding of the medicinal properties of their environment.
Behavioural Evidence: By closely monitoring orangutan behaviour, researchers documented over 20 instances of self-medication, providing compelling evidence of their ability to diagnose and treat their own health issues.
Implications
This remarkable discovery highlights the depth of orangutans’ ecological knowledge and underscores the importance of preserving their natural habitats. By protecting these environments, we not only safeguard the orangutans’ ability to care for themselves, but also maintain the biodiversity that supports such important medicinal plant life. Understanding this behaviour offers valuable insights into the evolution of self-care and the potential for discovering new medicinal compounds that could benefit human health as well.
Hilarious Hijinks: Great Apes and Playful Teasing
Recent research has shown that playful teasing isn’t limited to human babies. Scientists hypothesised that because language isn’t necessary for teasing, this behaviour might also exist in non-human animals. Indeed, cognitive biologists and primatologists have observed playful teasing in four great ape species. Like human humour, ape teasing involves provocation, persistence, and unexpected playful elements. The fact that all four great ape species exhibit this behaviour suggests that the origins of humour may have evolved in our shared ancestors at least 13 million years ago.
Key Findings
Play Behaviour: Orangutans were observed engaging in various playful activities, including mock wrestling, swinging contests, and teasing games. These behaviours are crucial for social bonding and development, helping young orangutans learn social cues and build relationships.
Emotional Intelligence: The study found that playfulness is linked to emotional intelligence, as orangutans display empathy and care in their interactions, often comforting one another during moments of distress.
Implications
Recognising the playful nature of orangutans highlights the importance of preserving their social groups and habitats. By understanding their social dynamics, conservationists can develop empathetic strategies that honour their complex social structures, ensuring the continued survival of these remarkable beings in the wild.
Family Bonds: The Deep Connections in Orangutan Communities
Orangutans, just like us spend many years nursing and nurturing their young before they are ready to fly solo. So it’s therefore no surprise that the bond between orangutan mothers and her baby is so profoundly powerful. A recent study by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology observed orangutan families across various habitats in Borneo and revealed the intricacies of their connections.
Key Findings
Long-Term Parenting: Orangutan mothers were found to invest up to eight years in raising their young, teaching them essential survival skills and knowledge about their environment. This extended parenting period is crucial for the development of independence and competence in young orangutans.
Social Learning: The study also revealed that young orangutans learn from their mothers through observation and imitation, acquiring skills such as foraging, nest building, and navigation of the forest canopy.
Implications
Understanding the family bonds and social learning in orangutan communities highlights the urgent need to protect their habitats, ensuring that these family structures remain intact. By safeguarding their environments, we preserve the social dynamics that are critical to their well-being and survival, allowing future generations of orangutans to flourish.
Unmasking the Greenwash: The Truth Behind ‘Sustainable’ Palm Oil
The palm oil industry frequently markets itself as “sustainable,” yet reports by industry watchdogs like the World Health Organisation, Greenpeace, Environmental Investigation Agency and researchers reveals that the RSPO is nothing more than an industry sponsored greenwashing body.
Key Findings
Deforestation: The study highlights how palm oil plantations contribute significantly to deforestation in regions such as Indonesia and Malaysia, leading to the loss of critical orangutan habitats. Despite certifications like the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), these practices persist, often bypassing genuine sustainability criteria.
Impact on Indigenous Communities: In addition to environmental destruction, the expansion of palm oil plantations displaces indigenous communities, disrupting traditional ways of life and contributing to social unrest.
Implications
Exposing the greenwashing tactics of the palm oil industry is crucial for advocating genuine conservation solutions that prioritise orangutans and their ecosystems. By holding the industry accountable, we can work towards strategies that genuinely reflect the needs of these remarkable creatures and the environments they inhabit.
Take Action: Stand with Orangutans and Protect Their Future
Boycott Palm Oil and Meat Products
One of the most effective ways to support orangutans and their lush forest eden is to boycott products containing palm oil and meat. By choosing plant-based and palm oil free alternatives, you can help reduce the demand for these industries, contributing to the preservation of rainforests and protection of rare endangered animals. Learn which brands to boycott and brands to buy on the Palm Oil Detectives website.
Support Indigenous Rights
Empowering indigenous communities for self-determination is critical to protect ecosystems and animals. Organisations like WAHLI and World Rainforest Movement support indigenous rights and grassroots collective action against palm oil and timber corruption.
Raise Awareness on Social Media
Join the #Boycott4Wildlife movement on social media by sharing posts and information about the plight of orangutans. Use hashtags like #Boycottpalmoil and #Boycott4Wildlife to spread awareness and encourage others to take action.
Be a Supermarket Sleuth
The next time you’re shopping, take a closer look at product labels to identify those containing palm oil. Share your a photo of what you discover on social media and call out brands engaging in greenwashing, using the #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife hashtags.
Donate
Consider donating to organisations like Palm Oil Detectives to support their ongoing efforts to protect orangutans and their habitats. Your contributions can help fund research, advocacy, and educational initiatives that make a real impact.
Conclusion
On International Orangutan Day, we celebrate the remarkable lives of orangutans and commit to protecting their future. By understanding their unique characteristics, exposing the myths of the palm oil industry, and taking action to preserve their habitats, we can ensure a brighter future for these magnificent creatures and the ecosystems they inhabit.
References
Alba Motes-Rodrigo, Shannon P. McPherron, Will Archer, R. Adriana Hernandez-Aguilar, Claudio Tennie. Experimental investigation of orangutans’ lithic percussive and sharp stone tool behaviours. PLOS ONE, 2022; 17 (2): e0263343 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0263343
Erb, W. M., Ross, W., Kazanecki, H., Setia, T. M., Madhusudhana, S., & Clink, D. J. (2024). Vocal complexity in the long calls of Bornean orangutans. PeerJ, 12, Article e17320. https://peerj.com/articles/17320
Isabelle B. Laumer, Arif Rahman, Tri Rahmaeti, Ulil Azhari, Hermansyah, Sri Suci Utami Atmoko, Caroline Schuppli. Active self-treatment of a facial wound with a biologically active plant by a male Sumatran orangutan. Scientific Reports, 2024; 14 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-58988-7
Laumer I.B., Winkler S, Rossano F, Cartmill EA. Spontaneous playful teasing in four great ape species. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 2024 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.2345
Palm Oil Detectives. (2024). Great news: Apes have a sense of humour. Palm Oil Detectives. Retrieved from palmoildetectives.com/2024/03/…
Palm Oil Detectives. (2022). Roundtable on sustainable palm oil: 19 years is enough. Palm Oil Detectives. Retrieved from palmoildetectives.com/2022/12/…
Palm Oil Detectives. (2023). Certification and ecolabels: Dubious sustainability. Palm Oil Detectives. Retrieved from palmoildetectives.com/2023/06/…
University of Michigan. (2023). Palm oil deforestation in Guatemala. Palm Oil Detectives. Retrieved from palmoildetectives.com/2023/07/…
Here are some other ways you can help by using your wallet as a weapon and joining the #Boycott4Wildlife
Palm Oil Detectives is completely self-funded by its creator. All hosting and website fees and investigations into brands are self-funded by the creator of this online movement. If you like what I am doing, you and would like me to help meet costs, please send Palm Oil Detectives a thanks on Ko-Fi.
Palm Oil Detectives is completely self-funded by its creator. All hosting and website fees and investigations into brands are self-funded by the creator of this online movement. If you like what I am doing, you and would like me to help meet costs, please send Palm Oil Detectives a thanks on Ko-Fi.
Orangutans, already critically endangered due to habitat loss from logging and farming, may face another threat in the form of smoke from natural and human-caused fires, a Rutgers University–New Brunswick study finds.
The lengthy childhood of endangered orangutans is written in their teeth
Orangutan populations in the wild are criticallyendangered, and one of the things that may hamper their survival is the time they take to rear new offspring.
An orangutan mother will not give birth again until she’s finished providing milk to her previous offspring. Nursing can take a long time and vary across seasons, as we found in research published today in Science Advances.
#Orangutans of #Borneo and #Indonesia are critically endangered by #palmoil deforestation. One factor in their survival is how long they take to rear their young. You can help them with a brand #Boycott4Wildlife
Primate mothers, including humans, raise only a few slow-growing offspring during their reproductive years. A young Bornean orangutan nursing. Erin Vogel, Author provided Differences in infant development have a profound effect on how many children a female can have over the course of her life – the key marker of success from an evolutionary vantage point.
Great apes have a high-stakes strategy. Chimpanzee mothers nurse their offspring for five years on average, twice as long as humans in traditional small-scaled societies.
Orangutans have been suspected of having even longer periods of infant dependency, although determining just how long has been a particular challenge for field biologists. youtube.com/embed/NuoTzBRsrG0?… Wild orangutan from Gunung Palung National Park, Borneo, Indonesia with her one month old infant. (Gunung Palung Orangutan Project)
Living high up in dwindling Southeast Asian forests, these apes are adept at evading observers. Their nursing behaviour is often concealed, particularly while juveniles cling to their mother or rest together in night nests.
Maintaining continuous field studies to track their development is expensive, and efforts are hindered by frequent forest fires and devastating deforestation for palm oil plantations.
Teeth tell the story
I have spent the past few decades studying how orangutans and other primates form their teeth. Amazingly, every day of childhood is captured during tooth formation, a record that begins before birth and lasts for millions of years.
I’ve also teamed up with researchers Manish Arora and Christine Austin, at Icahn School of Medicine at Mt Sinai in New York, who have pioneered methods to map the fine-scaled elemental composition of teeth, as well as primate lactation expert Katie Hinde at Arizona State University.
We have shown in a previous study that tiny amounts of the element barium are an accurate marker of mother’s milk consumption. Like calcium, barium is sourced from the mother’s skeleton, concentrated in milk, and ultimately written into the bones and teeth of her offspring. Tooth growth creates daily lines (indicated by short white lines), as well as a neonatal line (NL) at birth. Growth starts at the junction between enamel and dentine, and progresses away from the junction and towards the root (arrows). Christine Austin and Tanya Smith Once animals start nursing after birth, their teeth show increases in barium values, which begin to decrease when solid food is added to the diet. These values drop further to pre-birth levels when primates stop nursing and are weaned.
We’ve recently used this approach to explore the nursing histories of wild orangutans in collaboration with orangutan expert Erin Vogel at Rutgers University. In order to do so, I borrowed teeth housed in natural history museums from individuals that had been shot many years ago during collection expeditions. Wild Bornean orangutan mother and suckling 19-month old infant. Paige Prentice, Author provided Orangutan teeth show a gradual increase in barium values from birth through their first year of life, a time of increasing consumption of their mother’s milk. After 12-18 months, values decrease as infants begin eating solid foods consistently.
But surprisingly, barium levels then begin to fluctuate on an approximately annual basis. We suspect that this is due to seasonal changes in food availability. When fruit is in short supply, infants appear to rely more on their mother’s milk to meet their nutritional needs. Light microscope image (left) of a wild orangutan molar contrasted with an elemental map of the same tooth (right) showing the distribution of barium. The timing of barium incorporation was determined from accentuated lines (in days of age on the left), which form during enamel and dentine secretion. Approximately annual bands of enriched barium are apparent in the dentine after the first year, likely due to seasonal increases in mother’s milk intake. Smith et al. (2017) Science Advances
Hanging around
Another surprising finding is that nursing may continue for more than eight years, longer than any other wild animal.
This information is the first of its kind for wild Sumatran orangutans, as they have been especially difficult to study in their native habitat. Previous estimates from two wild Bornean orangutans suggested that juveniles nurse until about six to eight years of age.
Rather than spending so much time and energy breastfeeding their children, human mothers in traditional societies transition their infants onto soft weaning foods around six months of age, tapering them off milk a few years later.
Humans also benefit from having help such as older siblings and grandparents who lend a hand with childcare and enable women to energetically prepare for having their next child.
Orangutan mothers have it hard by comparison. They live alone in unpredictable environments with limited nutritional resources. In order to survive they use less energy than other great apes, raising their young more slowly. Wild orangutan mother and 11-month old infant. Tim Laman, Author provided
Vulnerable orangutans
Female orangutans begin reproducing around age 15 and can live until 50 years old in the most favourable of circumstances. They bear new offspring every six to nine years, producing no more than six or seven descendents over their lifetime.
Having a long nursing period and slow maturation makes orangutan populations especially vulnerable to environmental perturbations.
Recent work has also implicated poor habitat quality and the pet trade as additional factors in their rapidly declining numbers, which is underscored by their critically endangered status.
Research on collections housed in natural history museums provides timely evidence of how remarkable orangutans are, how much information we can retrieve from their teeth, and why conservation efforts informed by evolutionary biology are critical.
Do chimpanzees and orangutans really have midlife crises?
Knowing that chimpanzees and orangutans have personalities, feel emotions and are “almost human” comes as no surprise to most people. However, linking the term “midlife crisis” to chimpanzees and orangutans seems to be somewhat shocking and controversial as we’ve seen from the flurry of interest produced by a paper published this week.
Do chimpanzees and orangutans really have midlife crises?
Knowing that chimpanzees and orangutans have personalities, feel emotions and are “almost human” comes as no surprise to most people. However, linking the term “midlife crisis” to chimpanzees and orangutans seems to be somewhat shocking and controversial as we’ve seen from the flurry of interest produced by a paper published this week.
The other great apes (chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas and orangutans) are just as socially, politically and cognitively complex as we are. Our “hairy” great ape relatives are like us in every respect. They feel and demonstrate fear, affection, laughter and compassion. They are also capable of gang-like killing and “warfare” between neighbouring communities, rape, “battering” females, infanticide and cannibalism.
Genome sequence projects have established the close genetic relationship between “naked” and “hairy” great apes. Cognitive studies show that chimpanzees are capable of deception and have the ability to remember past events and imagine or plan for future events (mental time travel).
But popular culture suggests that there is at least one developmental or lifestyle phenomenon unique to humans; namely, the “midlife crisis”.
What is a midlife crisis?
In affluent societies, there is a popular belief that as soon as men reach their mid-forties, they suddenly take up high-risk activities or buy a showy red sports car or powerful motorbike.
This time of apparent stress, confusion, dissatisfaction with life and display of “crazy” behaviour is popularly known as the “midlife crisis”.
In reality, around the world, irrespective of culture or wealth, both men and women seem to experience a midlife “slump” in happiness or well-being. This may be reflected in poor mental or physical health.
By middle age, wild apes are often exhausted or maimed (or dead)
Typically, studies of this phenomenon are conducted by economists or psychologists, but the approaches they take and questions they address may be different. Economic research may compare happiness of younger, middle aged and older adults, who fall into similar socio-economic categories (such as income, marital status, health). This provides a “snapshot” in time. Their findings tend to support the existence of a “U-curve” when age is plotted against happiness, with younger and older people feeling more positive or happy.
Psychologists, on the other hand, prefer longitudinal studies of people over their lifetime to look for changes in “subjective wellbeing”.
How do you measure an ape’s happiness?
Measuring happiness or wellbeing is typically done by asking participants to fill out a questionnaire or self-report inventory, which rates their feelings or experiences.
Over the last two decades, researchers have been adapting the human questionnaires and rating scales for use with our closest “hairy” relatives: chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas and orangutans. They want to see whether personality and subjective wellbeing can be reliably measured in other species.
Not surprisingly, “hairy” apes also show individual differences in personality and subjective wellbeing or happiness. These can be reliably measured if a person who has known the “hairy” ape for a long time (generally more than two years) and very well (say, if they’re a zoo keeper or caregiver) rates the individual.
Why are we surprised that our ape relatives have midlife “issues”?
To ensure coverage in the popular press, good science communicators pick catchy titles. These authors did exactly this by including the words “midlife crisis”, “great apes” and “human well-being”. However, “midlife crisis” is an emotive phrase that may not accurately reflect the findings.
The research team included renowned psychologists/primatologists/geneticists and an economist. Following the data analysis used by economists for this type of research, the “U-curve” with its slump in well-being was evident for the 500+ chimpanzees and orangutans included in the analysis. The “hairy” apes were all housed in captive institutions (zoos, research centres and a sanctuary) in Japan, the United States, Canada, Singapore and Australia. The chimpanzees and orangutans ranged in age from less than 1 year old to 56 years old.
Humans tend to show a slump in well-being at about 45-50 years of age. For chimpanzees it was at 27-28 years of age and for orangutans about 35 years of age. Since this slump exists in chimpanzees and orangutans and isn’t unique to humans, the authors suggest evolutionary or biological explanations must be considered. The slump does not appear to be due to socio-economic or lifestyle factors.
Sadly, the authors missed the opportunity to mention that chimpanzees and orangutans are endangered in the wild and may not reach middle age, yet alone old age. In captivity, they may indeed live beyond the age of 50 with veterinarians and caregivers to attend to their needs and no threats from their only predators – humans. A moment of thought (Gorilla mother and daughter) by Dalida Innes However, these findings suggest that zoos and other captive institutions must be proactive in seeking ways to improve welfare for great apes showing a slump in well-being. They need to be vigilant as individuals approach their 30s. These practical welfare implications were also not mentioned by the authors.
In the wild, by middle age many chimpanzees and orangutans have witnessed the destruction of their forests and death of family members to poachers for food or illegal animal trade. Every day is a struggle for survival, and by middle age wild great apes may be physically exhausted or maimed. They do not have the benefit of relaxing and reflecting on their happiness. They certainly do not have the option of buying a sports car or seeking their lost youth.
Knowing that chimpanzees and orangutans have personalities, feel emotions and are “almost human” comes as no surprise to most people. However, linking the term “midlife crisis” to chimpanzees and orangutans…
The lengthy childhood of endangered orangutans is written in their teeth
Orangutan populations in the wild are criticallyendangered, and one of the things that may hamper their survival is the time they take to rear new offspring.
An orangutan mother will not give birth again until she’s finished providing milk to her previous offspring. Nursing can take a long time and vary across seasons, as we found in research published today in Science Advances.
The lengthy childhood of endangered orangutans is written in their teeth
Orangutan populations in the wild are criticallyendangered, and one of the things that may hamper their survival is the time they take to rear new offspring.
An orangutan mother will not give birth again until she’s finished providing milk to her previous offspring. Nursing can take a long time and vary across seasons, as we found in research published today in Science Advances.
#Orangutans of #Borneo and #Indonesia are critically endangered by #palmoil deforestation. One factor in their survival is how long they take to rear their young. You can help them with a brand #Boycott4Wildlife
Primate mothers, including humans, raise only a few slow-growing offspring during their reproductive years. A young Bornean orangutan nursing. Erin Vogel, Author provided Differences in infant development have a profound effect on how many children a female can have over the course of her life – the key marker of success from an evolutionary vantage point.
Great apes have a high-stakes strategy. Chimpanzee mothers nurse their offspring for five years on average, twice as long as humans in traditional small-scaled societies.
Orangutans have been suspected of having even longer periods of infant dependency, although determining just how long has been a particular challenge for field biologists. youtube.com/embed/NuoTzBRsrG0?… Wild orangutan from Gunung Palung National Park, Borneo, Indonesia with her one month old infant. (Gunung Palung Orangutan Project)
Living high up in dwindling Southeast Asian forests, these apes are adept at evading observers. Their nursing behaviour is often concealed, particularly while juveniles cling to their mother or rest together in night nests.
Maintaining continuous field studies to track their development is expensive, and efforts are hindered by frequent forest fires and devastating deforestation for palm oil plantations.
Teeth tell the story
I have spent the past few decades studying how orangutans and other primates form their teeth. Amazingly, every day of childhood is captured during tooth formation, a record that begins before birth and lasts for millions of years.
I’ve also teamed up with researchers Manish Arora and Christine Austin, at Icahn School of Medicine at Mt Sinai in New York, who have pioneered methods to map the fine-scaled elemental composition of teeth, as well as primate lactation expert Katie Hinde at Arizona State University.
We have shown in a previous study that tiny amounts of the element barium are an accurate marker of mother’s milk consumption. Like calcium, barium is sourced from the mother’s skeleton, concentrated in milk, and ultimately written into the bones and teeth of her offspring. Tooth growth creates daily lines (indicated by short white lines), as well as a neonatal line (NL) at birth. Growth starts at the junction between enamel and dentine, and progresses away from the junction and towards the root (arrows). Christine Austin and Tanya Smith Once animals start nursing after birth, their teeth show increases in barium values, which begin to decrease when solid food is added to the diet. These values drop further to pre-birth levels when primates stop nursing and are weaned.
We’ve recently used this approach to explore the nursing histories of wild orangutans in collaboration with orangutan expert Erin Vogel at Rutgers University. In order to do so, I borrowed teeth housed in natural history museums from individuals that had been shot many years ago during collection expeditions. Wild Bornean orangutan mother and suckling 19-month old infant. Paige Prentice, Author provided Orangutan teeth show a gradual increase in barium values from birth through their first year of life, a time of increasing consumption of their mother’s milk. After 12-18 months, values decrease as infants begin eating solid foods consistently.
But surprisingly, barium levels then begin to fluctuate on an approximately annual basis. We suspect that this is due to seasonal changes in food availability. When fruit is in short supply, infants appear to rely more on their mother’s milk to meet their nutritional needs. Light microscope image (left) of a wild orangutan molar contrasted with an elemental map of the same tooth (right) showing the distribution of barium. The timing of barium incorporation was determined from accentuated lines (in days of age on the left), which form during enamel and dentine secretion. Approximately annual bands of enriched barium are apparent in the dentine after the first year, likely due to seasonal increases in mother’s milk intake. Smith et al. (2017) Science Advances
Hanging around
Another surprising finding is that nursing may continue for more than eight years, longer than any other wild animal.
This information is the first of its kind for wild Sumatran orangutans, as they have been especially difficult to study in their native habitat. Previous estimates from two wild Bornean orangutans suggested that juveniles nurse until about six to eight years of age.
Rather than spending so much time and energy breastfeeding their children, human mothers in traditional societies transition their infants onto soft weaning foods around six months of age, tapering them off milk a few years later.
Humans also benefit from having help such as older siblings and grandparents who lend a hand with childcare and enable women to energetically prepare for having their next child.
Orangutan mothers have it hard by comparison. They live alone in unpredictable environments with limited nutritional resources. In order to survive they use less energy than other great apes, raising their young more slowly. Wild orangutan mother and 11-month old infant. Tim Laman, Author provided
Vulnerable orangutans
Female orangutans begin reproducing around age 15 and can live until 50 years old in the most favourable of circumstances. They bear new offspring every six to nine years, producing no more than six or seven descendents over their lifetime.
Having a long nursing period and slow maturation makes orangutan populations especially vulnerable to environmental perturbations.
Recent work has also implicated poor habitat quality and the pet trade as additional factors in their rapidly declining numbers, which is underscored by their critically endangered status.
Research on collections housed in natural history museums provides timely evidence of how remarkable orangutans are, how much information we can retrieve from their teeth, and why conservation efforts informed by evolutionary biology are critical.
One of Britain’s finest wildlife photographers, Craig Jones is also one of the most humble and down-to-earth guys you will ever meet. His photography and stories capture the lives of enda
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Eyewitness by Craig Jones: A mother and baby orangutan are rescued from an RSPO palm oil plantation in Sumatra
In this story, Craig uses his own words to bear witness to the awesome love and intelligence of orangutans, and also shares stories of the immense suffering of orangutans and other species within RSPO member palm oil plantations. Craig is an absolute inspiration to photographers, animal lovers and conservationists. It is an honour to showcase his work and stories on Palm Oil Detectives.
“The most beautiful rainforest in the world is turned into a souless landscape of palm oil within weeks, with brutal efficiency. Anything in its way gets crushed, killed and discarded.” #Wildlife #photographer Craig Jones @CraigJones17 #Boycott4Wildlife
“That scream I can still hear now, the tone went through me, the pitch could have broken a glass, it was so high and shocking to hear.“ @CraigJones17 recalls rescuing a mum and baby #orangutan from an @RSPOtweets #palmoil plantation
“Sustainable palm oil is a con. #Palmoil is all about #wealth and it’s killing us and the planet. So mother nature will have the last laugh. It’s all corruption. #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife” #Wildlife photographer @CraigJones17
“I kept hearing from locals that the government fails to protect national parks and #endangered species. The same government hands out #palmoil licences letting these companies play god” #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife @CraigJones17
“Those with a vested interest in sustainable #palmoil are linked in some way. How can anyone say sustainable is OK when it is grow in the ashes of the dead wildlife and burnt forests?” #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife” #Wildlife photographer @CraigJones17
A mother and baby are rescued from an RSPO certified palm oil plantation
From the moment we received the rescue call, the days plans changed instantly. I really didn’t know what was waiting for me, as we drove north to the providence of Ache. All I knew was that a mother and her baby were trapped, and we were heading in that direction as fast as will could. When we arrived all I saw was mile upon mile of this horrific landscape.
When we arrived all I saw was mile upon mile of this horrific landscape…
“Walking through a tattered landscape of barren red earth and alien palm oil trees, where once one of the finest rain forests in the world stood, is just impossible for me to describe.
“They take the best rain forest in the world and change it into a souless landscape of palm oil within a matter of weeks, with brutal efficiency. Anything in its way gets crushed, killed and discarded.”
We started desperately searching for the mother and her baby orangutan and eventually we found them. Once we managed to tranquilise the mother, her basic instinct was to protect her child, fueling her to just hang on and not give into the tranquilizer.
It was heartbreaking. I was praying she’d just let go so they could receive help. She had a strong will and this went on for around fifteen minutes. By this time it was almost too hard to watch, the team was moving below her and watching them both, just to make sure the net was in the right place, as she could fall at any time.
After a while, you could see she was becoming slightly clumsy, missing branches that she was trying to hold onto. Then she went to just one arm, and then she just fell into the waiting net below.
The team scrambled up the steep hillside. They try to take the baby away from the unconscious mother at the first available chance. I managed to capture that incredibly moving moment with this image, as the mother is carried off in the net she fell into, while one of the team give the signal to where they have to go.
As I took images of the mother, the baby was being held by one of the team, as it’s safer for the baby this way. While mother and baby were apart, the baby struggled, trying to bite and screaming.
“That scream I can still hear now, the tone went through me, the pitch could have broken a glass, it was so high and shocking to hear.“
Craig Jones
We had about 40 minutes before the sedative wore off. A good chunk of that time the orangutan had fought, hanging in the tree. Time was tight. The vet took blood, checked her teeth, bum area and general health. It was so sad to see but I knew these guys were helping her.
A mother and baby orangutan are rescued from an RSPO member palm oil plantation. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
I carried on taking images so that I could capture this story no matter what.
The mother looking straight at me with an indescribable emotional stare, and in the background the little baby was screaming.
Craig Jones
An RSPO palm oil plantation where an orangutan mother and baby were found struggling to stay alive in Sumatra. By Craig Jones Wildlife Photography The mother was slightly underweight but she was fine otherwise. The vet gave her the antidote which brings the Orangutan around by counter-acting the tranquilizer. At that point fresh leaves were put in the cage we’d brought for her. She was placed inside the cage and the baby was reunited with his mother. We loaded the mother and baby into the back of our vehicle then drove to the release site which is part of the national park. After this we released them and within a few minutes they had vanished into the dense forest. Mother and baby Sumatran orangutans are rescued from an RSPO member palm oil plantation. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography Orangutan baby named Craig, rescued from an RSPO certified palm oil plantation in Sumatra. By Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
“The team named the baby ‘Craig’ after me, which was a great honour and very touching. “I hope he keeps that fight in his belly that he displayed when he was separated from his mother as this will stand him in good stead for the uncertain future that awaits these Sumatran Orangutans.”
craig jones
Orangutans are us and we are them in so many ways…
Palm oil companies play god and play with fire in Sumatra…
Rainforest is quickly changed to dead land throughout the world by palm oil.
“One of the main things I kept hearing from locals was that the government fails to protect national parks, areas that contain so many endangered flagship species of wildlife. The same government that hands out licensees to palm oil companies letting them play god with some of the richest forests on earth.”
“Sustainable palm oil is a con. Palm oil is all about wealth and it’s killing us and the planet. So mother nature will have the last laugh. It’s all corruption. Those with a vested interest in this sustainable nonsense are linked in someway you mark my words because how could anyone say sustainable is OK when it’s grow in the ashes of the dead wildlife and burnt forests. This saddens me”. ~ Craig Jones
If consumers at the supermarket were able to see what their purchase destroyed in its production then there might be more change. Cheap, calorific foods are killing the planet and us in the process. Companies need to give back to nature not take more. @BorisJohnson @PalmOilDetectpic.twitter.com/O2RTh9a2YN
I have loved these enduring animals since childhood and now as an adult helping them is a blessing for me…
I witnessed so much in Sumatra, it has been an emotional roller coaster. I feel there is so much we still don’t know about these great apes. For as long as I walk this earth I will do my best to help them, alongside every other creature we share this planet with, by using my camera and my own voice to help them. Without direct intervention in the national parks the Orangutans along with other forest-dependant wildlife- like the Sumatran Tigers and Elephants will become progressively scarcer until their populations are no longer viable.
Their peaceful mannerisms and intelligence is just remarkable…
The Sumatran elephant is a critically endangered subspecies of the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), confined to the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. As one of the world’s largest land mammals, they play a vital role in their ecosystem as keystone species, facilitating seed dispersal and maintaining forest biodiversity. Tragically, their population has been reduced by more than 80% in the last 75 years due to palm oil deforestation and poaching.
With fewer than 2,400 individuals estimated to remain in the wild, the Sumatran elephant is at immediate risk of extinction. Protect their future by boycotting palm oil products and advocating for stronger conservation efforts. Use your voice and wallet as weapons. #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife
While Sumatra is home to several of the country’s largest national parks, many areas in these parks are destroyed—illegally—to produce palm oil. The elephant population across the island is crashing, with far fewer than 3,000 surviving, as herds are left homeless, harassed and killed due to intense conflict with people over shrinking habitat. Their decline is closely linked to the rapid expansion of palm oil plantations, illegal logging, and human-wildlife conflicts.
The Asian Elephant is one of the last few mega-herbivores (i.e. plant-eating mammals that reach an adult body weight in excess of 1,000 kg) still extant on earth (Owen-Smith, 1988). Being hindgut fermenters with relatively poor digestive efficiency (Dumonceaux 2006), elephants must consume large quantities of food per day to meet energy requirements. The lack of reliable population estimates across most of the Asian elephant range presents a considerable challenge to detecting such declines.
Nevertheless, from what is known about trends in habitat loss and other threats including poaching, an overall population decline of at least 50% since 1945 over the last three generations (estimated to be 75 years, based on a generation time estimated to be 25 years) seems realistic. The Sumatran subspecies is listed as Critically Endangered
Appearance and Behaviour
Sumatran elephants are smaller than their mainland Asian relatives, with males standing between 2 and 3.2 metres tall and weighing up to 5,000 kilograms. Their lighter grey skin often features depigmented patches on the ears and trunk, which are particularly prominent in this subspecies. These elephants have larger ears relative to other Asian elephants, an adaptation that helps them regulate body temperature in Sumatra’s tropical climate (Nurcahyo et al., 2023).
An anatomical distinction of Sumatran elephants is their 20 pairs of ribs—one more than other Asian elephant subspecies. Male elephants typically develop long tusks, while females either lack visible tusks or have small, rudimentary ones. Their physical adaptations and behaviours are crucial for surviving in dense, tropical forests and swamps, where they navigate their environment with remarkable dexterity.
Geographical Range
Historically, Sumatran elephants roamed throughout the island’s lowland rainforests, peat swamps, and grasslands. Today, their habitat has been reduced to just a fraction of its original range, with an estimated 69% of suitable habitat lost between 1985 and 2009 (Hedges et al., 2020). Their remaining populations are concentrated in fragmented forest patches in the provinces of Aceh, Riau, Lampung, and North Sumatra.
The expansion of palm oil plantations is a primary driver of habitat destruction, with millions of hectares of forest cleared to meet global demand. Fragmented habitats force elephants into smaller areas, increasing the risk of inbreeding, resource competition, and conflict with humans (Setiawan et al., 2019).
Population Status
The Sumatran elephant population is estimated to be between 2,400 and 2,800 individuals, down from tens of thousands just decades ago. This decline represents the loss of hundreds of elephants annually due to habitat destruction, poaching, and conflict (Hedges et al., 2020). If current trends continue, the species could face extinction within 30 years.
Diet
Sumatran elephants are herbivorous and consume over 200 plant species, including grasses, fruits, leaves, bark, and roots. They consume up to 150 kilograms of vegetation daily, playing a critical role in seed dispersal and forest regeneration. Elephants forage over large areas, often moving between different forest types to meet their dietary needs (Nurcahyo et al., 2023).
Reproduction and Mating
Female Sumatran elephants have a gestation period of approximately 22 months, the longest of any land mammal. They typically give birth to a single calf every four to five years. Calves weigh 80–120 kilograms at birth and are highly dependent on their mothers for the first two years of life. These slow reproductive rates make population recovery challenging, particularly in the face of ongoing threats (Setiawan et al., 2019).
Threats
Sumatran elephants are protected under Indonesian law, but enforcement is often weak. Conservation efforts focus on habitat restoration, anti-poaching patrols, and mitigating human-elephant conflicts. Protected areas, such as Gunung Leuser and Way Kambas National Parks, are crucial for the survival of remaining populations. However, deforestation within these protected areas remains a significant challenge (Hedges et al., 2020). IUCN Status: Critically Endangered
Palm oil deforestation: The rapid conversion of forests into palm oil plantations has destroyed large portions of the elephants’ habitat. Between 1985 and 2009, Sumatra lost nearly half its forest cover (Hedges et al., 2020).
Human-Elephant Conflict: As elephants venture into agricultural areas, they are often perceived as pests. This results in retaliatory killings, which account for significant population losses each year (Nurcahyo et al., 2023).
Poaching: Male elephants are heavily targeted for their ivory, which is illegally traded. Despite national protections, poaching continues to drive population declines (Setiawan et al., 2019).
Climate Change: Rising temperatures, altered rainfall patterns and extreme weather events threaten the availability of food and water resources, further stressing elephant populations (Nurcahyo et al., 2023).
Take Action!
Protect the Sumatran elephant by boycotting palm oil products, supporting reforestation initiatives, and advocating for stricter wildlife protection laws. Every purchase matters. Fight for their survival with #BoycottPalmOil and #Boycott4Wildlife.
Without direct intervention in the national parks the Orangutans along with other forest-dependant wildlife- like the Sumatran Tigers and Elephants will become progressively scarcer until their populations are no longer viable. Spotlight Sumatra – The Final Chapter by Craig Jones
Help the organisations helping these beautiful animals
Gopala, A., Hadian, O., Sunarto, ., Sitompul, A., Williams, A., Leimgruber, P., Chambliss, S.E. & Gunaryadi, D. 2011. Elephas maximus ssp. sumatranus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2011: e.T199856A9129626. dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.201…. Downloaded on 19 January 2021
Nurcahyo, A., et al. (2023). The movement pattern and home range of Sumatran elephants in the Mila-Tangse landscape. ResearchGate. Retrieved from researchgate.net/publication/3…
Setiawan, I., et al. (2019). Recent observations of Sumatran elephants in Sembilang National Park, South Sumatra. Journal of Tropical Forest Science, 31(2), 299–308. Retrieved from researchgate.net/publication/3…
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How plywood started the destruction of Indonesia’s forests
Indonesia now has the has the fastest rate of deforestation in the world, driven largely by clearing for palm oil plantations. But the process began long ago, with one of the most common building materials: plywood.
#Plywood is everywhere in #IKEA and all other #furniture and #homewares. DYK: This came from #Borneo in the 70’s and 80’s, 100,000’s ha of jungle and millions of animals disappeared to make way for #palmoil? #
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How plywood started the destruction of Indonesia’s forests
Indonesia now has the has the fastest rate of deforestation in the world, driven largely by clearing for palm oil plantations. But the process began long ago, with one of the most common building materials: plywood.
#Plywood is everywhere in #IKEA and all other #furniture and #homewares. DYK: This came from #Borneo in the 70’s and 80’s, 100,000’s ha of jungle and millions of animals disappeared to make way for #palmoil? #Boycott4Wildlife by @JCU
As far as commodities are concerned, it was plywood that defined the rainforests of Borneo in the 1970s and 80s, clearing the way for pulp and paper, and the booming palm oil industry.
Super forests
Endangered – thanks to plywood. Marco Abis/Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND Indonesia was once the second-largest tropical rainforest in the world (after the Amazon), a position it has relinquished to the rainforests of the Congo.
The flora of Borneo has about 15,000 species — richer than the whole continent of Africa, which is 40-times larger.
My Yamaha guitar – not sourced from primary forest. Penny van Oosterzee, Author provided
As many as 315,000 orangutans lolled in the branches of the giant dipterocarp forests in Borneo. Now it is estimated only 27,000 orangutans are left.
Plywood is everywhere
I recently bought my very first guitar. The strong straight wood grain of the impeccably-finished instrument tells me it came from a tropical rainforest tree — a tree that may have reached 45 metres high. This tree was felled to provide the plywood that backs my guitar.
Plywood is one of the most common building materials. You will likely find it in your house, in part of your furniture and your boat.
The strings that tie us to the paradise forests of Borneo twine through our financial institutions, our law-makers and the stuff we began to buy in the 1950s.
In America — and Japan where my guitar was made — plywood fuelled the booming post-World War II building industries.
The story of plywood
In 1966, the Indonesian economy was in a bad way. General Suharto became President under dubious circumstances after inciting the bloody year of living dangerously, a massacre that killed perhaps one million communist sympathisers.
The International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, Australia and Japan together organised financial assistance through a development plan to attract private foreign investment. Development was a neat new narrative in the 1960s. But it silenced other narratives such as conservation and the rights of indigenous people.
With the help of western economic advisers, Suharto became known as the “Father of Development”. His development order crafted the basic forestry law of 1967 and associated foreign investment laws. These laws designated 143 million hectares — three-quarters of all of Indonesia’s land area — as Forest Area. Forest loss in Indonesia between 2000 and 2013 (pink), intact forest (dark green) and degraded forest (light green), logged forest (yellow) and oil palm (light pink). Click through for interactive map. Global Forest Watch Unambiguous exploitation rights were granted to private firms and their domestic partners for generous logging concessions, already inhabited by Indigenous Dayak groups. Despite millenia of presence, these traditional rights were subsumed to twentieth century logging firms.
Displacement of these peoples, and transmigration of seven million Javanese redistributed poverty to devastating affect. Ultimately the great fire of Borneo in 1982-83, the worst forest fire then known, was started by poor farmers clearing land for subsistence cropping.
In May 2014 Indonesia’s Human Rights Commission launched the first national inquiry into violations related to land and forests.
The Philippines saw an astonishing logging spree of 30 million hectares, 80% of the country, stripped bare in three decades. In 1972, the feverish scramble resulted in more concessions offered than forest available.
A comprehensive study of logging in Indonesia showed that in three years from 1967 to 1970 logging concessions, covering over fifty three million hectares, were virtually gifted to global logging companies.
Mirroring practises honed in the Philippines, companies such as US Wyerhauser and Georgia-Pacific, and Japanese Mitsubishi were guaranteed the free repatriation of profits and tax holidays while, between 1969 and 1974, the export price of Indonesian logs rose 600%.
By 1979, Indonesia was the world’s leading producer of tropical logs, with 40% of the global market.
One of the biggest logging companies in the world in 1970 was American Georgia Pacific. Its local partner was Bob Hasan, a close friend and business partner of President Suharto. To staunch the flow of windfall profits leaving the country (as logs) and refocus them on the central leadership Hasan re-formed the entire forestry industry by setting up a monopoly of globally lucrative plywood.
In 1981, the ban on logs leaving the country saw the exit of many big foreign investors dragging down the domestic value of logs and provided cheap raw material for plywood mills.
The Indonesian Wood Panel Association (Apkindo), controlled by Hasan, was given extraordinary powers by Suharto, including sole authority to grant export licenses to plywood makers, and the power to sanction any company that breached its rules.
Apkindo flooded the world’s plywood export market. By 1987, Apkindo’s predatory pricing strategies had captured three quarters of the American import market, and 67% of the global market for tropical plywood with immense profits channeled to Hasan and Suharto’s inner circle.
By 1994 Hasan was one of the richest men on earth.
In 1997, in an Orwellian twist, Bob Hasan was even awarded a US medal for his environmental achievements in building a giant pulp and paper mill, and an honorary professorship. Changes and deforestation in Borneo due to palm oil plantations
Forests on fire
But by then concern at the loss of forests had began to emerge enflamed, in 1997-98, by the largest forest fire ever known that burned five million hectares of rich dipterocarp forest, and killed one third of all orangutans. If it were people, think of a fire that wipes out the population of China, the US, and Europe.
It was only at the turn of this century that someone finally looked at what was happening to Indonesia’s forest estate. The 2002 report Where have all the forests gone by Derek Holmes was shocking. It shows graphs of forest cover that slope inexorably toward zero.
Extrapolated downward, the slopes show no lowland rainforest for Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) by 2010, and no forests at all by 2035. In 2014 it’s not quite as bad as Holmes predicted but it’s pretty bad.
Nearly 60% of Kalimantan’s lowland forest is gone, and any rainforest that remains is being cleared faster than ever to feed consumer demand for paper and oil palm.
And as for my guitar, Yamaha has a policy that recognises unsustainable harvesting practises and procurement guidelines that focus on planted forests, ironically on plywood from plantations that now grow on land cleared of rainforest.
Research: AI Helps Unlock the Curious Secrets of Orangutan Chatter
A groundbreaking and exciting study has started to decode the complex communication of Bornean orangutans, revealing the intricacies of their vocalisations and offering new insights into their rich and mysterious world. All three species of orangutan are critically endangered, primarily due to palm oil deforestation. To help these remarkable great apes, you should always #Boycottpalmoil and #Boycott4Wildlife every time you shop. Don’t believe the industry sponsored lie of “sustainable” palm oil. Learn more about how you can take action.
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Research: AI Helps Unlock the Curious Secrets of Orangutan Chatter
A groundbreaking and exciting study has started to decode the complex communication of Bornean orangutans, revealing the intricacies of their vocalisations and offering new insights into their rich and mysterious world. All three species of orangutan are critically endangered, primarily due to palm oil deforestation. To help these remarkable great apes, you should always #Boycottpalmoil and #Boycott4Wildlife every time you shop. Don’t believe the industry sponsored lie of “sustainable” palm oil. Learn more about how you can take action.
Erb, W. M., Utami-Atmoko, S. S., & Vogel, E. R. (2024). The complexities of Bornean orangutan vocalisations: A new understanding of their communication. PeerJ Life & Environment. doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17320
Orangutans, the intelligent philosophers of the jungle, have long intrigued scientists with their mysterious calls. Now, a new study in PeerJ Life & Environment is unveiling the secrets of their vocalisations. Dr Wendy Erb from the K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics at Cornell University led the research to explore the complexities of orangutan long calls, crucial for their communication in the dense rainforests of Indonesia.
Over three years, Dr Erb and her team gathered hundreds of long call recordings from 13 individual orangutans, revealing an astonishing array of vocal diversity. These long calls, which begin with soft, bubbly sounds that escalate into high-amplitude pulses, showcase a complex and variable vocal structure. The study combined traditional audio-visual analysis with machine learning techniques to identify distinct pulse types within these calls.
“Our research aimed to unravel the complexities of orangutan long calls, which play a crucial role in their communication across vast distances in the dense rainforests of Indonesia. Over the course of three years, we accumulated hundreds of long call recordings, revealing a fascinating array of vocal diversity.”
~ Dr Wendy Erb from the K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics at Cornell University in the US, as quoted in Cosmos magazine.
Despite previous efforts to catalogue orangutan calls, Dr Erb’s team faced challenges in categorising all the pulses they encountered. Their innovative approach identified three distinct pulse types, differentiated by both humans and machines. This research marks a significant advancement in understanding orangutan communication, though it also suggests there may be an even greater repertoire of vocalisations yet to be discovered.
“While our study represents a significant step forward in understanding orangutan communication, there is still much to uncover. Orangutans may possess a far greater repertoire of sound types than we have described, highlighting the complexity of their vocal system.”
~ Dr Wendy Erb from the K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics at Cornell University in the US, as quoted in Cosmos magazine.
This study not only enhances our understanding of orangutan communication but also highlights the intricate and diverse vocal systems present in the animal kingdom. As we continue to uncover the mysteries of these endangered great apes, it becomes increasingly clear how vital it is to protect their habitats and ensure their survival.
Erb, W. M., Utami-Atmoko, S. S., & Vogel, E. R. (2024). The complexities of Bornean orangutan vocalisations: A new understanding of their communication. PeerJ Life & Environment. doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17320
ENDS
Learn about other animals endangered by palm oil and other agriculture
A 2019 World Health Organisation (WHO) report into the palm oil industry and RSPO finds extensive greenwashing of palm oil deforestation and the murder of endangered animals (i.e. biodiversity loss)
1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.
2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.
3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.
4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.
5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here
Papua New Guinea & West Papua: Species Endangered by Palm Oil Deforestation
As rainforest habitats are destroyed for palm oil in Indonesia and Malaysia, Indonesian and Chinese oil palm processing companies are switching focus towards Papua New Guinea, West Papua, Africa and South America to keep up with demand for palm oil.
Papua New Guinea and West Papua were divided up and taken by Indonesian colonial forces in the middle of last century. Yet for the ancestral indigenous owners of the islands of Papua and Melanesia, the Papuans who have lived the region for thousands of years -they simply call this region – home. Read more about this at the bottom of this page.
“When our forests are damaged, there will be a massive climate crisis, species like the birds of paradise will become extinct and not just our Namblong Indigenous culture will be destroyed, but that of all peoples everywhere,”
Orpha Yoshua, an Indigenous Namblong woman from West Papua told Greenpeace.
Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again. Papua New Guinea & West Papua: Species Endangered by Palm Oil Deforestation youtu.be/eESMGraMlKM
Rainforest animals and rainforest peoples in Papua are under attack from global palm oil plantations and industrial-military actions on their illegally taken land
Indigenous Melanesian peoples of West Papua and Papua New Guinea are the rightful and original custodians of Papuan rainforests. Their voices deserve to be heard in environmental campaigns.
Yet Indonesia has embarked on an extensive greenwashing campaign to make these people invisible. Papuans never ceded sovreignty of their land and they have a right to have it back. Palm Oil Detectives works in solidarity with Melanesian and West Papuan support networks to raise the voices of Papuan indigenous activists.
There are many ways you can join the fight too. Become a Palm Oil Detective and Take Action today!
On Twitter, a South East Asian couple cosplay as Papuan indigenous traditional clothing in an obvious effort to erase Melanesian ethnicity and to normalise Indonesian rule – Spoiler: Papuans never ceded their sovereignty
More stories about Papua’s indigenous peoples and rare animals
Papua harbours uniquely beautiful animals including rare marsupials and birds not found anywhere else on the planet. In the lush and fertile forests of Papua live thinking, feeling and intelligent beings that love their children. Just like us, they just want to survive and have their animal families and communities left in peace. These animals live in Papua New Guinea and have a IUCN Red List status of Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable. Although animal conservation is still relatively new in Papua New Guinea, there is hope, with conservation foundations working to protect these species and the rainforest they live in.
1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.
2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.
3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.
4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.
5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here
Indigenous knowledge can help us better adapt to and mitigate climate change. More than 190 nations at COP15 — the United Nations biodiversity summit — have reached a historic deal to protect a third of the Earth’s land and water by the end of the de…
Conservation activists suing Indonesian zoo could inspire global action on endangered species trade
In a court in rural Indonesia, an environmental group recently filed a lawsuit of global importance. Their case is against a zoo in North Sumatra that it’s alleged illegally exhibitedthreatened species, including Komodo dragons and critically endangered Sumatran orangutans. Images by Craig Jones Wildlife Photography.
Conservation activists suing Indonesian zoo could inspire global action on endangered species trade
In a court in rural Indonesia, an environmental group recently filed a lawsuit of global importance. Their case is against a zoo in North Sumatra that it’s alleged illegally exhibitedthreatened species, including Komodo dragons and critically endangered Sumatran orangutans. Images by Craig Jones Wildlife Photography.
The illegal wildlife trade is a multibillion-dollar industry that threatens species globally, from elephants to orchids. Plants, animals and fungi are harvested from the wild and sold to customers around the world as attractions in zoos, as pets, for food, as souvenirs or as medicine.
People caught trafficking wildlife are typically tried in criminal law cases, in which courts impose fines or prison sentences that punish the responsible parties in order to deter would-be criminals. But in this recent case, rather than seek punishment against the Indonesian zoo, the activists brought a civil lawsuit ordering the zoo to remedy the harm it allegedly caused by exhibiting these species illegally.
A lawsuit by activists against a zoo in #Indonesia to remedy the harm caused by illegally exhibiting endangered species was successful. It’s a new way to protect wildlife from illegal trafficking #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife Images @CraigJones17
This siamang has spent her whole life in this cage, a vision that was a true nightmare. Craig Jones Wildlife PhotographyA Sumatran tiger help in a tiny cage struggles to stay alive. Craig Jones Wildlife photography A captured Siamang and a captured tiger in Indonesia. Photos by Craig Jones Wildlife Photography In the press release announcing the lawsuit, the North Sumatra Chapter of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi Sumut) and Medan Legal Aid Institute said they were suing to cover the costs of care for one Sumatran orangutan confiscated from the zoo, and to fund monitoring of orangutan habitat to aid the recovery of their wild population. The resulting bill exceeds US$70,000 (£49,438). The typical criminal sanction for wildlife crime in Indonesia is around US$3,500.
One of the orangutans in the zoo before it was confiscated in 2019. Walhi North Sumatra, Author provided
The activists are also asking the zoo to publicly apologise and to create educational exhibits that explain how the illegal trade and use of wildlife harms nature and society. Surprisingly, these types of legal strategies that aim to repair harm – rather than punish perpetrators – have been largely overlooked by conservationists in many countries. The Indonesian zoo lawsuit could demonstrate the value of a new legal approach for protecting threatened wildlife. Komodo dragons were illegally exhibited at the zoo. Anna Kucherova/Shutterstock
Historical precedents
The zoo lawsuit parallels landmark pollution cases, such as the Exxon Valdez and Deepwater Horizon oil spills, where the responsible parties (in these cases, oil companies) were sued by government agencies and citizens and required to clean up pollution, compensate victims and restore affected habitats. It is also similar to innovative climate change lawsuits that have argued for the world’s largest oil and gas companies to pay for building protective sea walls, and other measures which help mitigate the effects of global warming.
Similar legal approaches haven’t been a major part of enforcing conservation laws. But through our work in Conservation Litigation – a project led by conservationists and lawyers – colleagues and I are working to bring such lawsuits against offenders globally.
Many countries already have laws that would allow these lawsuits, including in biodiversity hotspots such as Mexico, Democratic Republic of Congo and Indonesia. The 1992 UN Rio Convention called on states to “develop national law[s] regarding liability compensation for the victims of pollution and other environmental damage”. Although laws that oblige offenders to remedy environmental harm have been established already, the Indonesian zoo case is unique as one of the first times such a law has been applied to address wildlife crime. player.vimeo.com/video/5105149…
The case could serve to influence public views and policies around biodiversity. This has been an important benefit of litigation in other areas, such as in cases against tobacco companies and opioid manufacturers.
Over the years, these lawsuits have secured compensation for healthcare costs, public admissions of guilt from executives and corrective adversiting to clarify earlier misinformation. These cases have not only benefited individual victims, but helped shift attitudes and reform public health policies and company practices.
The zoo lawsuit could achieve something similar by holding the zoo liable for downstream harms caused by its involvement in the illegal wildlife trade. By requesting public apologies and support for educational programmes, the lawsuit would not only seek to remedy harm to individual animals and species, but to help shape public perceptions and policy.
It’s also significant that this case is being brought by a non-governmental organisation (NGO). Governments can bring criminal cases against offenders, while the NGOs cannot. But in many countries, citizens and civil society groups are permitted to launch civil lawsuits in response to environmental harm, expanding the potential for public conservation action.
These types of lawsuits are often hindered by difficulties paying lawyers, corruption in legal systems and the intimidation of activists. With more than one million species potentially facing extinction, it’s important to recognise and support these rare cases which are testing new ways to protect the planet’s most threatened forms of life.
In this story, Craig uses his own words to bear witness to the awesome love and intelligence of orangutans, and also shares stories of the immense suffering of orangutans and other species within RSPO member palm oil plantations. Craig is an absolute inspiration to photographers, animal lovers and conservationists. It is an honour to showcase his work and stories on Palm Oil Detectives.
“The most beautiful rainforest in the world is turned into a souless landscape of palm oil within weeks, with brutal efficiency. Anything in its way gets crushed, killed and discarded.” #Wildlife #photographer Craig Jones @CraigJones17 #Boycott4Wildlife
“That scream I can still hear now, the tone went through me, the pitch could have broken a glass, it was so high and shocking to hear.“ @CraigJones17 recalls rescuing a mum and baby #orangutan from an @RSPOtweets #palmoil plantation
“Sustainable palm oil is a con. #Palmoil is all about #wealth and it’s killing us and the planet. So mother nature will have the last laugh. It’s all corruption. #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife” #Wildlife photographer @CraigJones17
“I kept hearing from locals that the government fails to protect national parks and #endangered species. The same government hands out #palmoil licences letting these companies play god” #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife @CraigJones17
“Those with a vested interest in sustainable #palmoil are linked in some way. How can anyone say sustainable is OK when it is grow in the ashes of the dead wildlife and burnt forests?” #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife” #Wildlife photographer @CraigJones17
Nature saved me really. That’s behind everything I do. I’ve seen bad things in life and nature has always been there…
When I see animals in stress or danger, I have learned that I can turn my passion into a positive and use my heart and camera to capture what I see. This is despite shocking scenes I have witnessed in my career, with the many examples of sheer and pointless human cruelty.
Craig jones
Respect and care for wildlife was instilled in me by my late mother
[Pictured] Craig Jones as a boy in his aviary, in the garden of his mother’s home
“My love of wildlife started at a young age. My mum took me to the nearby woods where wildlife was as a small child. My mum taught me about the circle of life and where my food was from. She taught me to always to respect wildlife and listen to the woods, listen to nature and nature will give up her secrets.” Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – Virgin and untouched rainforest in Sumatra From those early days, I spent so much time being at one with nature, close to and watching, hidden from view on the off chance I would see a certain animal.
[Pictured] Puffins locked in an embrace. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
I have learned how to get close to wildlife without disturbing animals and their world. In doing so, I can understand the animal better and give them complete respect. I have gained many skills by observing animals and their behaviour. This gives me a private window into their private lives.
The word conservation means many things to many different people
The courageous team from HOCRU led by Panut Hadisiswoy, rescue orangutans daily from RSPO palm oil plantations and illegally destroyed forests in Sumatra. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography For me, conservation means to simply to care, love and protect wildlife. I use my camera as an extension of myself to capture what I see and express this in my photography, with minimal intervention and great respect for wildlife.
Combining conservation and photography can be very powerful. This can move people to such a degree that change can and does happen!
craig jones
Early on in my career, I learned the power of an image. This moved me, and I was sure this would move viewers too. I try to help all animals with my images. I tell the stories behind the pictures, where and how they live.
The best camera is a person’s heart. This is then reflected through their eyes and the result is the photography
If you want to get into wildlife photography, be honest with yourself and nature when you are behind the camera. Don’t cut corners and always remember you are a guest in the animal’s world.
Watch and learn about wildlife and the species you wish to photograph. Don’t look for the perfect shot, because there isn’t such a thing really.
The perfect shot drives photographers to try and achieve this, often at the cost of the animals’ wellbeing and peace.
Become part of the environment, learn about fieldcraft, ethics and always respect nature. I have a saying, “what you give to nature, you get back” and this often is reflected in my work. Work with your heart on your sleeve and always be honest with nature and yourself with your work.
I love every single creature and species of the natural world. I find everything fascinating. Every individual animal is going about their own lives around us, often unnoticed and in clear view ~ Craig Jones
For my 8th Birthday I was given a book called “Animal World”. On the cover is tiger and to the side is an Orangutan. I’ve still got this book, which is signed inside by my late mum. As a child I was amazed by these animals. Without my knowing, this book started my life-long love and fascination for these two species.
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – Animal World, the book that Craig Jones received from his mother which got him interested in wildlife conservation as a young boy.
Despite the shocking scenes I have witnessed, I am able to switch from the heart to my head and capture the true essence of the things I have seen
Craig Jones
When I see animals in stress of danger, I am able to turn that passion into a positive and use my heart and camera to photograph what I see. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography. Craig sits devastated after seeing the destruction of Sumatra’s rainforests Craig Jones Wildlife Photography. A female orangutan at dawn in Sumatra Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – A Sumatran Orangutan on the verge of death is saved from an RSPO “sustainable” palm oil plantation This wasn’t planned, it wasn’t taught, it comes from that true and powerful love for wildlife I had from a small child
I witnessed so much in Sumatra, it has been an emotional roller coaster with so many ups and downs, looking into an orangutan’s eyes and seeing yourself has filled me with so much joy, and at the same time sorrow. I have loved these enduring animals since childhood and now as an adult helping them is a blessing for me.
I try and show not only the beauty of the natural world, but also the suffering. My hope with my own contribution to conservation is to give all wildlife a true and meaningful voice around the world.
Although I had to walk away from these animals, I want my photos to be a visual reminder that these beautiful creatures will never be forgotten. Their plight wasn’t ignored
Orangutans are us and we are them in so many ways. Their peaceful mannerisms and intelligence is just remarkable
I feel there is so much we still don’t know about these great apes. For as long as I walk this earth, I will do my best to help them. Along with every other creature we share this planet with, using my camera and my own voice.
Orangutans are us and we are them in so many ways…
I’ve climbed trees in the rainforest. I’ve slept rough and washed in rainwater to be close to these amazing animals. I’ve seen their beauty, their spirit and my work I hope gives them a voice, and in turn I truly hope their voices will be heard.
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – A Sumatran Orangutan on the verge of death is saved from an RSPO “sustainable” palm oil plantationCraig Jones Wildlife Photography – Sumatran Orangutan babyCraig Jones Wildlife Photography – Sumatran OrangutanSumatran orangutan close up. Craig Jones Wildlife PhotographyCraig Jones Wildlife Photography – Sumatran Orangutan mother and baby This baby orangutan was named Craig after we rescued him from the RSPO member palm oil plantation – Craig Jones Wildlife Photography Orangutan baby named Craig, rescued from an RSPO certified palm oil plantation in Sumatra. By Craig Jones Wildlife PhotographyFemale orangutan at dawn in the Sumatran jungle – Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
Without direct intervention in National Parks, orangutans along with all other forest-dependant species like the Sumatran Tigers and Sumatran Elephants will become progressively scarcer until their populations are no longer viable.
Craig jones
I have seen things during my time in Sumatra that have upset and angered me
Craig Jones
[Pictured] A forest is destroyed in so-called “protected” parts of Indonesia, first for timber, then for palm oil by palm oil companies that are granted permits by the government despite clear ecocide.
The fringes of protected rainforest habitat are slowly being eroded away with small to large de-forestation and illegal logging and forest clearance. This goes unchecked, as parts of the protected rainforest is lost each year and is shrinking at an alarming rate. There is no enforcement of regulations.
Long term initiatives like reducing corruption, massive changes in management regimes, institutional change, monitoring illegal wildlife trade and prosecuting criminal behaviour will take a long time to halt the immediate crisis.
Logging companies use bribes and are better armed and equipped than most rangers who protect the animals…
At last count when I visited there were 2,155 field rangers for a 108,000km square area. They have no access to helicopters, airplanes, arms or military patrolling skills that would enable them to prevent illegal activity.
If the rangers had the necessary training, communication, transport and arms then they’d be better placed to protect and prevent these illegal acts against the protected forests. HOCRU which stands for Human-Orangutan Conflict Response Unit are a brave group of wildlife rangers who go out every day attempting to save animals on so-called “sustainable” palm oil plantations and “protected” forests that have been destroyed. HOCRU – Brave wildlife rangers attempting to save animals on so-called “sustainable” palm oil plantationsThe courageous team from HOCRU who rescue orangutans daily from RSPO palm oil plantations and illegally destroyed forests in Sumatra. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography The courageous team from HOCRU who rescue orangutans daily from RSPO palm oil plantations and illegally destroyed forests in Sumatra. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
Reducing the rate of deforestation over Indonesia as a whole will also have a dramatic impact on the regional carbon dioxide emissions and thus help to prevent dangerous levels of global climate change.
If the logging of national parks continues unchallenged it could under-mine the protected area concept worldwide.
Palm oil companies play god and play with fire in Sumatra…
Rainforest is quickly changed to dead land throughout the world by palm oil.
“One of the main things I kept hearing from locals was that the government fails to protect national parks, areas that contain so many endangered flagship species of wildlife. The same government that hands out licensees to palm oil companies letting them play god with some of the richest forests on earth.”
“Sustainable palm oil is a con. Palm oil is all about wealth and it’s killing us and the planet. So mother nature will have the last laugh. It’s all corruption. Those with a vested interest in this sustainable nonsense are linked in someway you mark my words because how could anyone say sustainable is OK when it’s grow in the ashes of the dead wildlife and burnt forests. This saddens me”. ~ Craig Jones
My recommendations on how you can help…
Craig Jones’ photography features on a billboard in London for the Spotlight on Sumatra exhibition. Craig Jones gives public talks to raises awareness of the plight of orangutans and other animals in Sumatra and he advocates for better, ethical wildlife photography that does not harm animals.
Consume less stuff overall and stop buying products containing palm oil, so this lowers demand
Move away from cheap food, cheap clothing and products that we really don’t need that have a hand in the destruction of the rainforests.
Although the world is highly complex, every person can make a difference. That previous sentence almost sounds like a cliche right? Really it’s not. If every person on the planet made a few simple lifestyle changes, it would result in less demand on land and resources and soften the impact of deforestation on endangered species.…
Look beyond so-called “sustainable” labels for palm oil and other commodities and you will see the lies, greenwashing and corruption inherent within them
Products that destroy the environment should come with a warning label on the side, like for cigarettes. Brands should pay a levy for rainforest destruction and give something back to offset their environmental impact.
The root problem is our bad food choices and what we put into our mouths
Once we’ve made ourselves sick with palm oil-ridden junk food, drug companies pick up where the junk food left off. People then become reliant on medical interventions to keep them alive. I try to cook and eat fresh. This way I remove the majority of palm oil out of my shopping basket. There are also many companies providing toiletries without palm oil, so just shop around for palm oil free products.
We should go back to eating “fresh” and avoiding junk food, as this will help the planet but also our own health
When I was young, I always and home-cooked food. Junk food was expensive and so my mum brought fresh and cooked fresh. Nowadays, junk food has become normal and not many can cook from fresh. This is a tragedy and we need to change this.
Bio: Craig Jones One of Britain’s finest wildlife photographers, Craig Jones is also one of the most humble and down-to-earth guys you will ever meet. His photography and stories capture the lives of endangered rainforest animals that we hold so dearly to our hearts: Sumatran orangutans, Sumatran tigers, Sumatran elephants, Siamangs and more. His work has featured in BBC News, BBC Wildlife Magazine and National Geographic magazine. He has also appeared for Nat Geo WILD discussing Sumatra as part of the “Paradise Islands & Photo Ark” Nat Geo series. He has spoken at the UK Green Party Conference about the…
1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.
2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.
3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.
4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.
5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here
In this my third and last blog from my trip to Sumatra I will show you and go through a day I will never forget for as long as I walk this earth. These images have been held back until now due to national coverage over the last several days.
In this story, Craig uses his own words to bear witness to the awesome love and intelligence of orangutans, and also shares stories of the immense suffering of orangutans and other species within RSPO member palm oil plantations. Craig is an absolute inspiration to photographers, animal lovers and conservationists. It is an honour to showcase his work and stories on Palm Oil Detectives.
“The most beautiful rainforest in the world is turned into a souless landscape of palm oil within weeks, with brutal efficiency. Anything in its way gets crushed, killed and discarded.” #Wildlife #photographer Craig Jones @CraigJones17 #Boycott4Wildlife
“That scream I can still hear now, the tone went through me, the pitch could have broken a glass, it was so high and shocking to hear.“ @CraigJones17 recalls rescuing a mum and baby #orangutan from an @RSPOtweets #palmoil plantation
“Sustainable palm oil is a con. #Palmoil is all about #wealth and it’s killing us and the planet. So mother nature will have the last laugh. It’s all corruption. #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife” #Wildlife photographer @CraigJones17
“I kept hearing from locals that the government fails to protect national parks and #endangered species. The same government hands out #palmoil licences letting these companies play god” #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife @CraigJones17
“Those with a vested interest in sustainable #palmoil are linked in some way. How can anyone say sustainable is OK when it is grow in the ashes of the dead wildlife and burnt forests?” #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife” #Wildlife photographer @CraigJones17
Nature saved me really. That’s behind everything I do. I’ve seen bad things in life and nature has always been there…
When I see animals in stress or danger, I have learned that I can turn my passion into a positive and use my heart and camera to capture what I see. This is despite shocking scenes I have witnessed in my career, with the many examples of sheer and pointless human cruelty.
Craig jones
Respect and care for wildlife was instilled in me by my late mother
[Pictured] Craig Jones as a boy in his aviary, in the garden of his mother’s home
“My love of wildlife started at a young age. My mum took me to the nearby woods where wildlife was as a small child. My mum taught me about the circle of life and where my food was from. She taught me to always to respect wildlife and listen to the woods, listen to nature and nature will give up her secrets.” Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – Virgin and untouched rainforest in Sumatra From those early days, I spent so much time being at one with nature, close to and watching, hidden from view on the off chance I would see a certain animal.
[Pictured] Puffins locked in an embrace. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
I have learned how to get close to wildlife without disturbing animals and their world. In doing so, I can understand the animal better and give them complete respect. I have gained many skills by observing animals and their behaviour. This gives me a private window into their private lives.
The word conservation means many things to many different people
The courageous team from HOCRU led by Panut Hadisiswoy, rescue orangutans daily from RSPO palm oil plantations and illegally destroyed forests in Sumatra. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography For me, conservation means to simply to care, love and protect wildlife. I use my camera as an extension of myself to capture what I see and express this in my photography, with minimal intervention and great respect for wildlife.
Combining conservation and photography can be very powerful. This can move people to such a degree that change can and does happen!
craig jones
Early on in my career, I learned the power of an image. This moved me, and I was sure this would move viewers too. I try to help all animals with my images. I tell the stories behind the pictures, where and how they live.
The best camera is a person’s heart. This is then reflected through their eyes and the result is the photography
If you want to get into wildlife photography, be honest with yourself and nature when you are behind the camera. Don’t cut corners and always remember you are a guest in the animal’s world.
Watch and learn about wildlife and the species you wish to photograph. Don’t look for the perfect shot, because there isn’t such a thing really.
The perfect shot drives photographers to try and achieve this, often at the cost of the animals’ wellbeing and peace.
Become part of the environment, learn about fieldcraft, ethics and always respect nature. I have a saying, “what you give to nature, you get back” and this often is reflected in my work. Work with your heart on your sleeve and always be honest with nature and yourself with your work.
I love every single creature and species of the natural world. I find everything fascinating. Every individual animal is going about their own lives around us, often unnoticed and in clear view ~ Craig Jones
For my 8th Birthday I was given a book called “Animal World”. On the cover is tiger and to the side is an Orangutan. I’ve still got this book, which is signed inside by my late mum. As a child I was amazed by these animals. Without my knowing, this book started my life-long love and fascination for these two species.
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – Animal World, the book that Craig Jones received from his mother which got him interested in wildlife conservation as a young boy.
Despite the shocking scenes I have witnessed, I am able to switch from the heart to my head and capture the true essence of the things I have seen
Craig Jones
When I see animals in stress of danger, I am able to turn that passion into a positive and use my heart and camera to photograph what I see. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography. Craig sits devastated after seeing the destruction of Sumatra’s rainforests Craig Jones Wildlife Photography. A female orangutan at dawn in Sumatra Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – A Sumatran Orangutan on the verge of death is saved from an RSPO “sustainable” palm oil plantation This wasn’t planned, it wasn’t taught, it comes from that true and powerful love for wildlife I had from a small child
I witnessed so much in Sumatra, it has been an emotional roller coaster with so many ups and downs, looking into an orangutan’s eyes and seeing yourself has filled me with so much joy, and at the same time sorrow. I have loved these enduring animals since childhood and now as an adult helping them is a blessing for me.
I try and show not only the beauty of the natural world, but also the suffering. My hope with my own contribution to conservation is to give all wildlife a true and meaningful voice around the world.
Although I had to walk away from these animals, I want my photos to be a visual reminder that these beautiful creatures will never be forgotten. Their plight wasn’t ignored
Orangutans are us and we are them in so many ways. Their peaceful mannerisms and intelligence is just remarkable
I feel there is so much we still don’t know about these great apes. For as long as I walk this earth, I will do my best to help them. Along with every other creature we share this planet with, using my camera and my own voice.
Orangutans are us and we are them in so many ways…
I’ve climbed trees in the rainforest. I’ve slept rough and washed in rainwater to be close to these amazing animals. I’ve seen their beauty, their spirit and my work I hope gives them a voice, and in turn I truly hope their voices will be heard.
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – A Sumatran Orangutan on the verge of death is saved from an RSPO “sustainable” palm oil plantationCraig Jones Wildlife Photography – Sumatran Orangutan babyCraig Jones Wildlife Photography – Sumatran OrangutanSumatran orangutan close up. Craig Jones Wildlife PhotographyCraig Jones Wildlife Photography – Sumatran Orangutan mother and baby This baby orangutan was named Craig after we rescued him from the RSPO member palm oil plantation – Craig Jones Wildlife Photography Orangutan baby named Craig, rescued from an RSPO certified palm oil plantation in Sumatra. By Craig Jones Wildlife PhotographyFemale orangutan at dawn in the Sumatran jungle – Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
Without direct intervention in National Parks, orangutans along with all other forest-dependant species like the Sumatran Tigers and Sumatran Elephants will become progressively scarcer until their populations are no longer viable.
Craig jones
I have seen things during my time in Sumatra that have upset and angered me
Craig Jones
[Pictured] A forest is destroyed in so-called “protected” parts of Indonesia, first for timber, then for palm oil by palm oil companies that are granted permits by the government despite clear ecocide.
The fringes of protected rainforest habitat are slowly being eroded away with small to large de-forestation and illegal logging and forest clearance. This goes unchecked, as parts of the protected rainforest is lost each year and is shrinking at an alarming rate. There is no enforcement of regulations.
Long term initiatives like reducing corruption, massive changes in management regimes, institutional change, monitoring illegal wildlife trade and prosecuting criminal behaviour will take a long time to halt the immediate crisis.
Logging companies use bribes and are better armed and equipped than most rangers who protect the animals…
At last count when I visited there were 2,155 field rangers for a 108,000km square area. They have no access to helicopters, airplanes, arms or military patrolling skills that would enable them to prevent illegal activity.
If the rangers had the necessary training, communication, transport and arms then they’d be better placed to protect and prevent these illegal acts against the protected forests. HOCRU which stands for Human-Orangutan Conflict Response Unit are a brave group of wildlife rangers who go out every day attempting to save animals on so-called “sustainable” palm oil plantations and “protected” forests that have been destroyed. HOCRU – Brave wildlife rangers attempting to save animals on so-called “sustainable” palm oil plantationsThe courageous team from HOCRU who rescue orangutans daily from RSPO palm oil plantations and illegally destroyed forests in Sumatra. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography The courageous team from HOCRU who rescue orangutans daily from RSPO palm oil plantations and illegally destroyed forests in Sumatra. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
Reducing the rate of deforestation over Indonesia as a whole will also have a dramatic impact on the regional carbon dioxide emissions and thus help to prevent dangerous levels of global climate change.
If the logging of national parks continues unchallenged it could under-mine the protected area concept worldwide.
Palm oil companies play god and play with fire in Sumatra…
Rainforest is quickly changed to dead land throughout the world by palm oil.
“One of the main things I kept hearing from locals was that the government fails to protect national parks, areas that contain so many endangered flagship species of wildlife. The same government that hands out licensees to palm oil companies letting them play god with some of the richest forests on earth.”
“Sustainable palm oil is a con. Palm oil is all about wealth and it’s killing us and the planet. So mother nature will have the last laugh. It’s all corruption. Those with a vested interest in this sustainable nonsense are linked in someway you mark my words because how could anyone say sustainable is OK when it’s grow in the ashes of the dead wildlife and burnt forests. This saddens me”. ~ Craig Jones
My recommendations on how you can help…
Craig Jones’ photography features on a billboard in London for the Spotlight on Sumatra exhibition. Craig Jones gives public talks to raises awareness of the plight of orangutans and other animals in Sumatra and he advocates for better, ethical wildlife photography that does not harm animals.
Consume less stuff overall and stop buying products containing palm oil, so this lowers demand
Move away from cheap food, cheap clothing and products that we really don’t need that have a hand in the destruction of the rainforests.
Although the world is highly complex, every person can make a difference. That previous sentence almost sounds like a cliche right? Really it’s not. If every person on the planet made a few simple lifestyle changes, it would result in less demand on land and resources and soften the impact of deforestation on endangered species.…
Look beyond so-called “sustainable” labels for palm oil and other commodities and you will see the lies, greenwashing and corruption inherent within them
Products that destroy the environment should come with a warning label on the side, like for cigarettes. Brands should pay a levy for rainforest destruction and give something back to offset their environmental impact.
The root problem is our bad food choices and what we put into our mouths
Once we’ve made ourselves sick with palm oil-ridden junk food, drug companies pick up where the junk food left off. People then become reliant on medical interventions to keep them alive. I try to cook and eat fresh. This way I remove the majority of palm oil out of my shopping basket. There are also many companies providing toiletries without palm oil, so just shop around for palm oil free products.
We should go back to eating “fresh” and avoiding junk food, as this will help the planet but also our own health
When I was young, I always and home-cooked food. Junk food was expensive and so my mum brought fresh and cooked fresh. Nowadays, junk food has become normal and not many can cook from fresh. This is a tragedy and we need to change this.
Bio: Craig Jones One of Britain’s finest wildlife photographers, Craig Jones is also one of the most humble and down-to-earth guys you will ever meet. His photography and stories capture the lives of endangered rainforest animals that we hold so dearly to our hearts: Sumatran orangutans, Sumatran tigers, Sumatran elephants, Siamangs and more. His work has featured in BBC News, BBC Wildlife Magazine and National Geographic magazine. He has also appeared for Nat Geo WILD discussing Sumatra as part of the “Paradise Islands & Photo Ark” Nat Geo series. He has spoken at the UK Green Party Conference about the…
1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.
2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.
3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.
4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.
5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here
In this my third and last blog from my trip to Sumatra I will show you and go through a day I will never forget for as long as I walk this earth. These images have been held back until now due to national coverage over the last several days.
The Counterpunch: Consumer Solutions To Fight Extinction
Although the world is highly complex, every person can make a difference. That previous sentence almost sounds like a cliche right?
Really it’s not. If every person on the planet made a few simple lifestyle changes, it would result in less demand on land and resources and soften the impact of deforestation on endangered species.
Agriculture is the main threat to 86% of the 28,000 species known to be at risk of extinction. Whether or not you should become vegan is beyond the scope of this website. The choice is yours to make. However, there is overwhelming evidence that if every person changed their diet to be plant-based and reduced demand for meat, we could end deforestation, pollution and stop the mass extinction of thousands of animal species.
This is pretty gross really. If we don’t change this imbalance, firstly all of the wild animals will die (which we are seeing right now), then the forests will die and then the entire planet will die, including humans because there will be no more oxygen to breathe. According to experts, this will happen within the next few decades.
Soy, followed by palm oil used in animal feed are some of the biggest causes of tropical deforestation on the planet. Source: Global Canopy & Trase Insights.
We live in a culture that celebrates meat-eating, it will take quite a lot of effort for some people to unlearn this. That is understandable. Wherever you are on the journey, even making some meals plant-based can make the difference to forests and wildlife.
Foodie inspiration
It is possible to make mouth-watering, indulgent, healthy and absolutely amazing food in your own home, all without hurting any animals, or the forests.
Brands love to virtue-signal about how green they are. They use PR-friendly phrasing which make them sound amazing, but these words mean absolutely nothing in terms of real action.
“We are committed to ending deforestation by xyz”
“We have started on a journey towards xyz”
“We engraved our brand name onto a tree in the Amazon…”
This is also known as green-washing. As you have seen on this website – there are very few truly sustainable multinational retail brands that are not destroying the earth in some way or another. A good place to start looking for brands who may be doing the right thing:
However, be aware that there is no real guarantee that any brand is sustainable. Be suspicious of green ticks of approval or websites with overly flowery language to describe environmental activities. Be vigilant for new information about brands. Subscribe to news from independent watchdogs of (palm oil, wood, soy, meat) deforestation such as:
When in doubt, look for small-to-mid sized local retail brands that you can liaise with directly yourself to find out about their policies. Shop at independent supermarkets that support these brands and that source ethical products.
Understand: The RSPO and WWF Palm Oil Scorecard are yet another form of green-washing
The WWF Scorecard allocates a high, score to multinational brands that have not yet stopped deforestation activities in their supply chain.
Recent research from industry watchdogs indicates that retail brands with ‘No Peatland and No Deforestation (NDPE) policies for their palm oil are still buying from mills destroying forests. This means that whatever ‘sustainable’ RSPO certified palm oil label is attached to their brand – they are clearly responsible for large-scale species extinction.
So far, no palm oil industry watchdogs have been able to give Palm Oil Detectives any confirmation of any brand using deforestation free palm oil – even despite major brands such as Nestle, Ferrero, Unilever and Mars supposedly using ‘sustainable’ palm oil and obtaining a high rating on the WWF Palm Oil Scorecard.
Ergo – RSPO certification is a form of green-washing.
But perhaps we shouldn’t throw the baby out with the bathwater just yet!
If the RSPO can tighten its rules under pressure from consumers, it may actually make a positive difference to the forests and the animals. Consumers want all brands in the RSPO to stop 100% of their deforestation activities – right now. You can do this by joining the boycott and using the hashtag #Boycott4Wildlife
Oversight of the RSPO by independent authorities is critical to make sure big retail brands who are the big polluters and destroyers of the natural world are held to account. Consumer boycotts of supermarket brands are also critical to force the hand of change.
The Counterpunch: Boycott! Boycott! Boycott!
Using this website, you can boycott all of the brands responsible for deforestation, until they agree to stop destroying forests.
Once there is evidence (provided by independent sources: Greenpeace, Environmental Investigation Agency, etc) that deforestation has ceased – then, you will be able to find an updated list of deforestation-free palm oil brands here. But only once these brands are proven to have stopped cutting down forests.
Not promised, not talked about, not virtue-signalled…but fully ceased deforestation!
Often (not always) small-scale SME businesses have better oversight of their supply chain. They can therefore give clear and definitive answers on where their ingredients come from and where their packaging comes from.
Shopping to support a local business means you support the local economy, rather than a nameless, faceless corporate giant.
When in doubt – reach out to the brand over the phone or in person. You should find it relatively easy to reach a flesh and blood human being and to have a conversation about deforestation free palm oil. If they are doing the wrong thing, rather than boycotting straight away, consider pressuring them initially to change to deforestation free palm oil or another oil source that is also deforestation free, often smaller companies have the ability to pivot quicker and change suppliers than larger companies.
I’m a Palm Oil Detector boycotting @Nestle @[url=https://mastodonapp.uk/users/Unilever]Unilever[/url] @[url=https://mastodon.social/users/Ferrero]Ferrero[/url] @[url=https://indieweb.social/users/mars]Mars[/url] @[url=https://mastodon.nz/users/avon]Karl von Randow[/url] @Loreal because of their #palmoil #deforestation Join the fight! #Boycott4Wildlife
Buy wholefood ingredients and cook meals instead of buying convenience foods
Benefits
Healthier for your body, gives you more energy and helps you maintain a healthy weight.
Often (not always) cheaper than convenience foods.
Cooking from ingredients means you know exactly what you’re eating.
If you buy plant-based, your food choices aren’t hurting the forests and the endangered species living there.
Boycotting the deforestation palm oil in your convenience food benefits all of the animals.
You won’t be exposed to the harmful additives in convenience food that you can’t pronounce.
Break up with your stuff
Donate, sell and giveaway your excess stuff. Take the Marie Condo approach and live better with less. The stuff you own can end up owning you. Once you are rid of it and learn to live with less, there is a huge amount of freedom in this way of living.
Jettison your petrol-guzzling car
Ask yourself…do you really need a car? Can you just use an Uber instead and have an ebike for getting around? The next time you buy a car, can you buy an EV instead of a petrol-guzzler?
Audit all of the stuff you own
There’s no reason why every household on our planet needs a power drill, a hair dryer, a juicer, several TVs, expensive sporting equipment that’s used once and then stashed away. Instead you could always ask someone in your local area or your neighbourhood if and when you need to borrow something. Sharing things you rarely use instead of buying them helps to lower the pressure on natural resources.
Join the Sharing Economy
Live simply and join a community of people where you can borrow things, as and when you need it, rather than owning things outright. It saves on space, saves you money and it helps to slow down deforestation.
Trading websites are great for this. You help your local community and also
Limit your exposure to advertising and surveillance with open-source software
When you rid your daily life of ads, it becomes easier to avoid feeling pressured to constantly buy furniture, tech, snack foods and all of those traps of modern life that are destroying rainforests.
Instead you can look after your privacy and limit your ad exposure with these open-source alternatives to Big Tech. The Big Tech companies buy and sell every aspect of your personal life to advertisers. Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Google and Amazon are the worst for this.
Here are some alternatives:
Signal: Free state-of-the-art open-source private messaging for mobile devices and web. Used by whistle-blowers such as Edward Snowdon. A fully private alternative to Facebook-owned WhatsApp.
Ecosia: A Google search engine alternative that will plants trees the more you use the search function.
UBlock Origin: A free, open-source ad blocking browser extension that works in Firefox for both web browser and mobile device. It can also block ads on Youtube when you view videos in Firefox.
Proton VPN:Free and paid versions allow you to use a fully encrypted VPN tunnel that ensures your passwords and data stays safe. It keeps your browsing history private and data is stored securely in Switzerland. It protects the identity of activists and journalists in countries where they may be at risk.
Protonmail: A free open-source email service that provides complete privacy. Designed by CERN Scientists in Switzerland who were motivated to create a fully secure email service. Data stored in Switzerland which has one of the strictest data privacy policies in the world.
Linux: A free open-source computer operating system. An alternative to Microsoft Windows and Apple. It has a small learning curve to use it but this is 100% worth it. The documents you create and store on a Linux computer are fully private, whereas for Microsoft and Apple operating systems, this is not the case.
Beware of tech FOMO
Tech FOMO (Fear or Missing Out) means being sucked into marketing to buy the latest iPhone, smart watch or smart TV. In accordance with creating this demand, tech companies also ensure that tech is designed intentionally to fail after only a few years, so that consumers are forced to buy new products.
Technology is deliberately very difficult to take apart, repair or replace parts inside of mobile phones, tablets and computers. This forces consumers to purchase a new phone or new computer. This has a terrible impact on the natural environment, as more components for tech means more deforestation and mining and more animal extinction.
The same practice occurs in fast-fashion and furniture. The practice of planned obsolescence by brands is highly unethical and unsustainable for the environment and the animals that live there.
Fast fashion is a mode of clothing production that is very cheap due to low labour costs in third world nations. Aside from the huge human rights issues with clothing production done in this way, fast fashion also has a devastating effect on the world’s natural resources. Consider that it takes nearly 2,000 gallons of water to produce one pair of jeans. According to one UN report:
The fashion industry produces 20 per cent of global wastewater and 10 per cent of global carbon emissions – more than all international flights and maritime shipping. Textile dyeing is the second largest polluter of water globally and it takes around 2,000 gallons of water to make a typical pair of jeans.
The good news is that you can contribute to slowing the pace of fast fashion by buying less clothes and buying clothes in biodegradable fabric like cotton, tencel or hemp. Before you hit ‘Buy Now’, ask yourself:
Do I need these new clothes or shoes or are the ones I own still OK?
Why do I want this item? Did I see an ad or see an influencer talking about this item and it made me want it?
Bookmark the page and then revisit the website in a week’s time. If you still want the item of clothing, then perhaps you should get it. Often we are held hostage by momentary urges that go away after a short period of time.
Am I feeling sad or frustrated or depressed? Is there something I am trying to escape by purchasing? Often we buy things to cheer ourselves up. This rarely works for more than a few hours, then you’re back to feeling sad again but with an emptier wallet.
A good place to start looking for fashion brands which may be sustainable is the B Corporation directory. You can filter your search to brands in a particular industry and part of the world.
Let me know what you think of these ideas, I hope you like them!
South America: Species Endangered by Palm Oil Deforestation
A young Bornean orangutan nursing. Erin Vogel, Author provided
Tooth growth creates daily lines (indicated by short white lines), as well as a neonatal line (NL) at birth. Growth starts at the junction between enamel and dentine, and progresses away from the junction and towards the root (arrows). Christine Austin and Tanya Smith
Wild Bornean orangutan mother and suckling 19-month old infant. Paige Prentice, Author provided
Light microscope image (left) of a wild orangutan molar contrasted with an elemental map of the same tooth (right) showing the distribution of barium. The timing of barium incorporation was determined from accentuated lines (in days of age on the left), which form during enamel and dentine secretion. Approximately annual bands of enriched barium are apparent in the dentine after the first year, likely due to seasonal increases in mother’s milk intake. Smith et al. (2017) Science Advances
Wild orangutan mother and 11-month old infant. Tim Laman, Author provided
Papua New Guinea & West Papua: Species Endangered by Palm Oil Deforestation
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – Virgin and untouched rainforest in Sumatra
The courageous team from HOCRU led by Panut Hadisiswoy, rescue orangutans daily from RSPO palm oil plantations and illegally destroyed forests in Sumatra. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – Animal World, the book that Craig Jones received from his mother which got him interested in wildlife conservation as a young boy.
Despite the shocking scenes I have witnessed, I am able to switch from the heart to my head and capture the true essence of the things I have seenCraig Jones Wildlife Photography. Craig sits devastated after seeing the destruction of Sumatra’s rainforests
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography. A female orangutan at dawn in Sumatra
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – A Sumatran Orangutan on the verge of death is saved from an RSPO “sustainable” palm oil plantation
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – A Sumatran Orangutan on the verge of death is saved from an RSPO “sustainable” palm oil plantation
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – Sumatran Orangutan baby
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – Sumatran Orangutan
Sumatran orangutan close up. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
Craig Jones Wildlife Photography – Sumatran Orangutan mother and baby
This baby orangutan was named Craig after we rescued him from the RSPO member palm oil plantation – Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
Orangutan baby named Craig, rescued from an RSPO certified palm oil plantation in Sumatra. By Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
Female orangutan at dawn in the Sumatran jungle – Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
Without direct intervention in National Parks, orangutans along with all other forest-dependant species like the Sumatran Tigers and Sumatran Elephants will become progressively scarcer until their populations are no longer viable.HOCRU – Brave wildlife rangers attempting to save animals on so-called “sustainable” palm oil plantations
The courageous team from HOCRU who rescue orangutans daily from RSPO palm oil plantations and illegally destroyed forests in Sumatra. Craig Jones Wildlife Photography
Craig Jones’ photography features on a billboard in London for the Spotlight on Sumatra exhibition.
Craig Jones gives public talks to raises awareness of the plight of orangutans and other animals in Sumatra and he advocates for better, ethical wildlife photography that does not harm animals.
The Guardian: 2021 Report Plant-based diets crucial to saving global wildlife
This is pretty gross really. If we don’t change this imbalance, firstly all of the wild animals will die (which we are seeing right now), then the forests will die and then the entire planet will die, including humans because there will be no more oxygen to breathe. According to experts, this will happen within the next few decades.Soy, followed by palm oil used in animal feed are some of the biggest causes of tropical deforestation on the planet. Source: Global Canopy & Trase Insights.
