WARF NEWS APRIL-MAY

Gibbon Adoption Programmewill help them to be free and providebasic necessities like food and health care

WildAnimalrescue VOLUME 9 ISSUE 4April and May, 2010

Kushta FamilyNew Plan for Release

Released of Pangolin

Gibbon Islands

Dedicated to our beloved

“Mary”

(October 2002-May 2010)The Wild Animal Rescue Foundation of Thailand (WARF)

May 2010

CONTENT

General News

Rescue News

Story of Mary

New Plan for Release

Gibbon Families Currently in the Wild

WARF IS A FULLY LICENSED CHARITY UNDER THAI LAW - LICENSE NO. GT 20

www.war tha i .org

65/1 3rd Floor, Sukhumvit 55, Klongton, Wattana, Bangkok 10110Telephone: +6627129715, Fax: + 662 7129778

Project Co-ordinator [email protected]

EditorMay Ampika

Contributing WritersNikki Dokken, Jammaree Kaewrat, Wanvisa Promma, Owart Maprang, ToffeeOmyim

PhotographersMay Ampika, Owart Maprang, ToffeeOmyim, Wanvisa Promma

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Animal Adoption [email protected]

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Story of Mary

Gibbon Updates

rescueWildAnimal3 April and May, 2010

rescueWildAnimal4April and May, 2010

On the 5th of May 2010 we received a report that 2 Pig-tailed Macaque (Macaca nemestrina), a mother and baby, had been hit by car at To Sae hill in Phuket town. We went immediately to see these monkey's and to help catch them so that they could receive medical attention. Sadly, the mother died, but the baby survived. The baby will be taken care of until healthy, and then released.

Editor's note:Each year, a number of macaque suffer injury in car accidents, electrocution incidents from climbing power lines and caused by fight between macaques.

Rescue News

Story by Nikki Dokken & Toffe OmyimPicture by Toffee Omyim & Tilly Clough

Mother and Baby hit by car..

On the 19th of May we received a report from a villager to go check on a group of Crab-eating macaques which live in a mangrove forest near the pier in Bang rong Village. This mangrove forest is located only a kilometer away from WARF-GRP Head office. We were informed that a particular macaque was not getting along with the group and was looking weak and unhealthy. Unfortunately by the time our staff went to investigate she had already died.

Crab-eating macaque Bang Rong Pier

On the 9th of May a Pangolin was brought into WARF Project by a concerned villager. This Pangolin had been found near their rubber plantation. On the 10th we carried the Pangolin up into the Khao Phra Taew Non- Hunting area and released it in the forest far away from potential human interaction.

Released of Pangolin

Editor's note:Pangolin are easily recognized by their scaly body, long tail and long pointed muzzel. Pangolins feed underground, on the surface, or in trees, preying on the numerous ants and termites found only in Africa and the tropical Asian forests. With scales all over their body, pangolins superficially recemble reptiles, but are true mammals, with hairs between the scales (which are themselves formed from the same proteins as hair), and other features of mammal.


On April 12, 2010 the Gibbon Rehabilitation Project had the joy of welcoming a new member to their gibbon family. Nuan, with father Max, had given birth to a healthy baby girl subsequently named Maesa. A few days after birth however, it was apparent that all was not well in their family. Contrary to normal gibbon behavior of the baby being carried all day by the mother, Nuan was frequently seen abandoning Maesa by hanging her on the fencing, or leaving her lying on the bottom of the cage. This led to continual crying by Maesa for motherly attention. After observing the family for one month the difficult decision was made to remove Maesa from Nuan, and have her raised by the staff and volunteers of GRP.

Maesa has been doing well in her new environment, eating and sleeping regularly, and slowly learning gibbon behaviors such as hanging and using her arms for movement. At three months of age Maesa will start to slowly be introduced to other gibbons, and should be able to be paired up with other gibbons of similar age at six months. Once she reaches sexual maturity between six and eight years, it is hoped that she will be successfully paired with a male to have a family of her own, and eventually be released into the forest. Nuan and Max will be given another chance to have a baby who can successfully be raised in the forest.

Progress continues from last month to be made fixing the electric fences on the gibbon islands. 2 of the 3 islands that needed fences repaired from flooding have now been fixed and are ready to have gibbons on them. That leaves 2 islands that are currently inhabited by gibbons, 2 waiting for gibbons, and only one island left to have the fences fixed.

Story by Nikki Dokken, Jammaree Kaewrat, Wanvisa PrommaPictures by Owart Maprang, Wanvisa Promma & May Ampika

GeneralNEWS

Maesa, our new arrival

Gibbon Islands

Editor's note:We have constructed 7 gibbon islands - plots of land surrounded by moats of water which the gibbons cannot cross. The water levels can change drastically depending on whether it is the dry or rainy season, and as an added precaution it was necessary to build an electric fence surrounding the outer perimeter of the island.


A youth camp from Baan Talaenork has been using the area for their camp activities. The camp is aimed at creating awareness of conservation and sustainability in the area.

Youth Camp

Meghan, Pungkung, and Kong have had a door between their cages added so they can now visit each other. This expands their personal space and also adds to their mental well being as they now have companions. Kong is separated at feeding time as he eats too slowly and the baby Pungkung would take all of his food.

Due to deteriorating conditions of the macaques cages which were built in 2001 there have been 2 escapes. The same macaque has escaped twice into 2 different enclosures, and has bitten a different macaque on each occasion.

Megan, Pungkung and Kong


“Mary”


May 2010



“Mary”


May 2010


The GRP suffered the loss of Mary who was found lying on the bottom of her cage on the morning of April 24th . Mary had been living with epilepsy since birth. She was on a daily regimeof medication, and for the last 2 years had only experienced minor seizures approximately once a month. Prior to being put on the current medication, Mary suffered much more severe seizures more frequently, and it was thought that this medication was working well. Her last seizure caused her to stop breathing, and since it occurred at night she was unable to be revived. She will missed by staff and volunteers. The quarantine site will seem especially empty withouther usual antics of running around her cage and throwing her food basket on the ground.

Story of MaryMary was born at the GRP on the 1st October 2002 by caesarean section, because her mother Pompam was having problems in the late stages of her pregnancy. Sadly, her mother then rejected Mary and she was hand raised by staff and volunteers. She was an energetic, healthy baby with a strong will to survive. As soon as she was old enough, she was placed into a cage with other gibbons to minimize human contact. It was discovered shortly after that Mary had epilepsy and we therefore had to separate her from the other gibbons in the cage because we found them sitting on her during a seizure. Mary was housed permanently on her own after

"From the Loss of a Sister to the Loss

of a Family"

Story of Mary

Story by Nikki Dokken


The fifth group will soon to be released


The Kushta family consisting of Kushta, her son Nat, daughter Pee Mai, and adoptive son Muki are scheduled for release in late 2010.

Nat was born to Kushta and Bozo (now deceased) in September 2004. He was released into the forest in March 2006 with his parents, but him and Kushta had to return to the rehabilitation site shortly after release when Bozo went missing. Kushta was then paired up with Mai in 2008, and gave birth to their first child Pee Mai in January 2009. The outlook was positive for this family for release once Pee Mai reached one year old. However, in May 2009 Mai’s eye sight began to detoriate. He is now nearly completely blind, and has since been moved into his own cage in quarantine as he is no longer a candidate for release.

Kushta has since been living at the rehabilitation site with her two children, and adoptive son Muki, who is close in age to Nat. We have several young males in the forest who are

now sexually mature and looking for a partner. We are hoping to pair Kushta with one of these males. There are also several young females in the forest who are close in age to Nat and Muki, and once they reach sexual maturity it is hoped that they will be able to pair with a female and have their own families.

The original plan was to move the Kushta family to the training cage in July, then to the acclimatization cage for release in October. Due to a lack of volunteers these dates have been pushed back to August and late 2010.

Kushta Family

New Plan for Release

Story Nikki Dokken

First group .... "Hope Group"


The family was observed interacting with Arun from Arun family in one of these visits. Thong also returned to his home territory which he usually shies away from, but then once his father Joe returned, Thong left the territory again. Toffee has also been seen playing frequently with Hope, and the family is looking happy and healthy.

On the 24th of April we went to observe this group and we found Hope (the juvenile from Hope family) together with Arun. Yoge then came and might have been jealous of Hope spending time with Arun, as he and Hope have previously been seen having sex. Yoge and Hope then had sex, with Hope then returing to her territory. After this, the rest of Arun group came together, and the baby Redy was seen playing with the others.

Gibbon Families Currently in the Wild

(6 gibbons: Joe, Kip, Thong, Hope, Toffee and Omyim)

Second group .... "Arun Group"(5 gibbons: Lek, Bank, Arun, Yoge, and Redy)

For nearly a month we did not see this group, but on the 25th of May we found all of them in their territory. Everyone in this group appeared happy and healthy, brachiatting through the canopy and singing with each other.

Since the release of this group on the 10th of December 2009, we have continued to feed them daily. Between March and April there was food left in their basket everyday, and we thus reduced their food from 3 Kg per day to 2.5 Kg per day. This is an excellent sign, as it shows that the family is becoming more self reliant, and are able to forage food for themselves. We have also moved their food basket in an attempt to move their territory. We hope to move their territory to an area where staff who are feeding will be safer from the somewhat aggressive Tony.

Third group .... "Payu Group"(4 gibbons: Payu, Dao, Namthip and Mek (or Newbe))

Fourth group .... "Jira Group"(3 gibbons: Jita, Tony, and Claire)

Gib

bon Rehabilitation Project

The first and only successful gibbon projec

t in

the

wor

ld


Photographs courtesy of WARF Staff and Volunteers neither graphics nor text

maybe produced without WARF's express

written consent.

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WARF NEWS APRIL-MAY