The incessant destruction and deforestation rates the Sumatra

The Sumatran Orangutans and the Threat to Their Survival

The Sumatran orangutans have been put in grave danger due to the ongoing devastation and deforestation rates of Sumatra's rainforests. Less than 15,000 orangutans are still found in the wild, making the species severely endangered. If nothing is done to save the so-called human relatives, these numbers may decline even further during the next ten years. In order to make room for palm oil plants, the woods are destroyed. In addition, poaching and other damaging human actions pose a threat to endangered species. For instance, a greater number of orangutans were killed during the 1997–1998 fires that decimated a significant portion of the forest (Orangutans Conservancy). The massive destructions of forests and animal habitations in the Sumatra region and entire world evidence enough of the extinction faced by critically endangered species. However, this paper will investigate the cause of these problems and how they can be prevented. The input of the government, federal and state to stop illegal animal trading, poaching, logging and illegal clearing of forests by fires.

Research Question

Primary research question that this paper shall extensively attempt to answer shall be;

Is government laxity in legislation threatening the safety and survival of Sumatran Orangutan in the Sumatra rainforests?

Other research questions

What are the main threats facing the Sumatran orangutans?

What can be done to protect the orangutans from illegal poaching and pet trade?

How to avoid human-animal conflicts in areas neighboring forest?

Research Results

Primary Threats Facing Sumatran Orangutans

Several factors are leading the population of orangutans to drop in the entire globe significantly. In most occasions, human activities receive the biggest share of the blame. For example, these Sumatran orangutans are becoming extinct due to loss of vegetation and habitat an action instigated by the activities of mankind. Therefore, this section is going to highlight the various threats that are as a result of man's intervention including deforestation, clearing forests to get space to plant palm oil trees, illegal hunting and illegal pet trade (Gaveau, et al. 193-204).

Loss of Habitation

The population of man has immensely increased over the past decades causing pressure on the available resources and land to till. People then resort to deforestation through the clearing of forest covers by fire. The Sumatran orangutans inhabit the rainforests of Sumatra especially the North Sumatra and the Aceh Provinces. However, the monkeys used to occupy the entire Sumatra rainforests before people in these areas started clearing forests recklessly. The animals depend on the forests for food and habitation. When the forests are cleared, and individuals replace them with crops, the Orangutans resort to eating the plants for food which aggravates the human-animal conflict (Drake 18).

The federal and local governments seem not to be disturbed by the reducing populations of these animals which form a spectacular attraction for the tourists. The legislation and laws that are supposed to protect the animals are non-existent giving people room to do whatever they want with the forests which are the natural homes to these endangered species of animals. In fact, the Aceh Province's local administration has pushed forward a plan that is meant open up much of this important and crucial ecosystem to mining, agricultural, logging and road construction activities. The program is also pushing for the energy development projects to cater for the rising demand of energy in the country (Wich, et al. 1-12).

The most disappointing thing about this plan is that it does not take into consideration the magnitude of harm that it will cause to this ecosystem. Moreover, it cares not about the risk of extinction of biodiversities dependent on the forest. Not only that the government supports such activities, but also indirectly promotes deforestation as people that cause fires in the woods are not charged responsible for their actions. When fires erupt in this forested areas, they not only destroy the habitats for the Sumatran orangutans but as well kills quite many them (Carne, et al. 940-954).

Illegal Pet Trade on the Baby Orangutans

The business of illegally trading in baby orangutans is fast thriving and spreading across the entire globe causing another profound challenge for the existence of the Sumatran orangutans. The kids are not taken easily as someone may imagine, but they are brutally snatched from their mothers and transported for sale elsewhere. In most occasions, the parents are killed by the poachers. Moreover, on top of the fear and the trauma of witnessing their mothers die brutally, these orangutans can die before even reaching the market. Some even die as a result of falling from the several hundreds of feet on the forest floor. Following their capture, they are often put in horrible conditions which contributes to the contraction of human diseases and subsequent demise (Carne, et al. 950-954).

Though in International Law owning or trading orangutans is prohibited as listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), people still illegally capture and sell these endangered species of animals. Moreover, the continued dealing and selling of orangutans locally and internationally due to the rising demand for them for keeping as pets. Eliminating the illegal and unlicensed trade in orangutans has become a challenge because top Indonesian officials are allowed to maintain the animals as a symbol of status (Fa and Tagg 143-156).

Local Farmers and the Demand for Palm Oil

The extensive usage of the palm oil product in producing chocolate to toothpaste has seen its demand rise significantly across the world. The land is fast shrinking hence pushing the local farmers to encroach and destroy forested areas to create room for planting palm oil trees and other crops. Such a situation puts the orangutans in a compromising position as they are forced into the farmlands in search of food. Therefore, they become so much exposed to capture, poaching and subject for illegal and unlicensed trading. Additionally, these close-range interactions are more likely to lead to human-animal conflict (Gaveau, et al. 193-204).

The global demand for palm oil products has tremendously tripled especially in the last decade for its extensive use in the manufacture of lipstick, toothpaste, body lotions and packaged food. The US forms the major importer of this agricultural product, and now that the demand has gone so high above what the market can supply, farmers have been forced into the thick rainforests. Moreover, the crop does so well in the tropical nations of Papua New Guinea, Malaysia and Indonesia. The availability of conducive climatic factors that favor the cultivation of palm oil makes it the biggest cause of global deforestation. Expanding the scale of the plantations has a severe impact on the land occupied by forests and subsequently contributing to the extinction of Sumatran orangutans (Fa and Tagg 143-156).

Conclusion

From the above research results, it is evident that human interference is causing the extinction of the Sumatran orangutans. For example, people are clearing rainforests to create room for planting and growing palm oil crops to meet the rising global demand. In so doing, the forest cover is slowly diminishing causing starvation of the animals that greatly depend on them for food and natural habitat. However, some big brands such as Colgate-Palmolive, Johnson & Johnson and PepsiCo should be socially responsible by not using palm oil products that have their origin from the deforested lands.

The government, both local and federal, have failed in their duties to come up with laws that will supplement those defined by CITES to ensure that unlicensed trade in endangered species is controlled. Serious action needs to be taken to protect the Sumatran orangutans or else they will be extinct in the next decade. Also, companies whose products use palm oil should be encouraged not to use such raw materials from deforested areas. They also have a responsibility in raising awareness on the need to reforest so as to give the orangutans a natural habitat and save them for future generations.

The research has also identified that the provision allowing Indonesian officials to keep orangutans as symbols of status reduces the effectiveness of strategies meant to discourage illegal pet trade. Therefore, these officials should participate actively in the fight against poaching and illegal hunting of the animals by enacting strict legislation to punish those found guilty of illegal transportation or possession of the Sumatran orangutans.

Works Cited

Carne, Charlotte, et al. "Investigating Constraints on the Survival of Orangutans across Borneo and Sumatra." Tropical Conservation Science, vol. 8, no. 4, 2015, pp. 940-954.

Drake, Nadia. "Indonesia blazes threaten endangered orangutans." Nature, vol. 527, no. 7576, 2015, pp. 18-18.

Fa, John E., and Nikki Tagg. "Hunting and primate conservation." An Introduction to Primate Conservation, 2016, pp. 143-156.

Gaveau, D.L.A., et al. "Are protected areas conserving primate habitat in Indonesia?" An Introduction to Primate Conservation, 2016, pp. 193-204.

Orangutan Conservancy. "Threats to Orangutans « Orangutan Conservancy." Orangutan Conservancy, www.orangutan.com/threats-to-orangutans/.

Wich, Serge A., and Andrew J. Marshall. "An introduction to primate conservation." An Introduction to Primate Conservation, 2016, pp. 1-12.