Borneo Fires Threaten Orangutans as El Niño Intensifies

Conservation groups are working to rescue critically endangered Bornean orangutans from wildfires spreading across the island, fueled by a strengthening El Niño.

BANJARMASIN, Indonesia — Wildfires are spreading across Borneo, exacerbated by a strengthening El Niño, prompting conservation groups and government officials to increase efforts to save critically endangered Bornean orangutans.

Through August, the Indonesian wildlife conservation NGO Yayasan International Animal Rescue Indonesia (YIARI) and government conservation officials recovered seven Bornean orangutans from the blazes. One animal died from smoke exposure. Others were taken to YIARI's rehabilitation center, and some were released into a nearby national park. YIARI workers in Ketapang district, West Kalimantan province, remain on high alert for orangutans affected by wildfires.

Heribertus Suciadi, a spokesperson for YIARI, confirmed seven orangutans were rescued through August. The Bornean orangutan is one of three orangutan species, all critically endangered and native to Indonesia. The IUCN, a global wildlife conservation authority, estimated just over 100,000 Bornean orangutans in the wild in 2016. The species population is projected to decline by about 86% between 1950 and 2025 due to habitat loss, direct killing, and their slow reproduction rate. Major wildfire crises accelerate this decline, with the IUCN noting that recurrent fires, especially in peat forests, cause sharp population drops about once every decade.

Indonesian meteorologists anticipate an intense fire season through October. El Niño, a warming of sea surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, disrupts global weather patterns and typically brings hot, dry conditions to Indonesia, increasing wildfire risk.

Several specific rescue operations took place in August. On August 30, residents in Laman Satong village, Ketapang, found an adult male orangutan named Sampurna in a weak state near an oil palm plantation. Sarbandi, a spokesperson for the provincial conservation agency BKSDA, stated that a field inspection was conducted. YIARI veterinarian Komara said Sampurna was evacuated to their rehabilitation center but died hours later from smoke exposure. Komara noted that severe smoke exposure can lead to respiratory distress and oxygen deficiency in orangutans.

Three days earlier, a team from YIARI, BKSDA, and Gunung Palung National Park rescued a mother and infant orangutan, named Mama Yayuk and Yayuk, from an oil palm plantation in Mayak village, Ketapang. The pair were released into Gunung Palung National Park. On August 21, YIARI evacuated Mama Yuni and her two offspring, Pura and Yuni, from a community orchard in Tanjungpura village, Ketapang, after fires cut them off from their habitat. Earlier in the month, on August 6, the YIARI team recovered Wak, a male orangutan, who had wandered into a community orchard in Kuala Tolak village, also in Ketapang.

Murlan Dameria Pane, head of the BKSDA, stated the agency is on high alert for wildlife threatened by fires and follows up on public reports. Argitoe Ranting, YIARI operational lead, advised the public to report orangutan sightings rather than approach the animals, emphasizing that smoke exposure can cause serious health problems beyond burns.

Indonesia’s disaster management agency, BNPB, reported 28,680 hectares (70,870 acres) of land burned in West Kalimantan through August 9, representing over half of the 48,889 hectares (120,807 acres) burned across the six worst-hit provinces. Ketapang district had the highest concentration of hotspots in West Kalimantan through July 27, with 3,715 recorded. Ketapang's landscape includes extensive peatlands. When drained for plantations and dried by prolonged drought, these carbon-rich soils become highly flammable. An all-women firefighting unit called “the Power of Mama” was formed in Ketapang in 2022 to combat wildfires. Argitoe of Walhi, the Indonesian Forum for the Environment, noted some fires in Ketapang are burning on land previously designated as protected but later converted for agricultural use.

For travelers considering jungle stays or hosts building them in fire-prone regions, understanding local conservation efforts and the environmental impact of climate events like El Niño is important for responsible engagement with these ecosystems.