Critically endangered orangutan born at Chester Zoo

  • Granada

One of the world’s most endangered primates has been born at Chester Zoo.

The precious youngster - a critically endangered Sumatran orangutan – has arrived to mum Emma (34), following an eight and a half month pregnancy. Dad Puluh is also aged 34.

The great apes have largely disappeared as their home is cleared for unsustainable palm oil plantations

Primate experts at the zoo say they are yet to determine the sex of the tiny newcomer, who has been clinging tightly to mum since entering the world on Saturday 19 June.

The birth is being celebrated by conservationists around the world, including in the species’ native South East Asia, where fewer than 14,000 of the great apes remain in the wild. Sumatran orangutans are listed as critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and face an extremely high risk of extinction.

The baby is first of its kind to be born at the zoo since its group of Sumatran orangutans moved back to their ‘Monsoon Forest’ home - nine months after the UK’s largest zoological building was restored to its former glory following a tragic fire in December 2019. Chester Zoo is currently the only zoo in mainland Britain which cares for Sumatran orangutans.

Claire Parry, one of the zoo’s specialist Primate Keepers, said:

The way mum Emma gently cradles her precious newborn

She continued: "Sumatran orangutans are one of the world’s most threatened large mammals and so the safe arrival of a new baby is an incredibly special moment. Emma is an experienced mum and already she’s formed a really close bond with the little one – it’s wonderful to see her cradling it so gently. 

  • Palm oil is a highly efficient oil that is found in more than 50% of supermarket products globally. As the demand for unsustainable palm oil intensifies, orangutans are increasingly being edged towards extinction.

  • A team of conservationists at Chester Zoo are working in Indonesia, alongside sustainable palm oil farms and NGOs, to help prevent further deforestation.

  • The city of Chester became the world’s first Sustainable Palm Oil City after conservationists at the zoo completely revamped the supply chains of businesses in the area to only include palm oil from sustainable, deforestation-free suppliers. This included local restaurants, cafes, hotels, fast food outlets, schools and workplaces. The project is now being used a blueprint in other communities in the UK in a bid to save South East Asia’s most precious wildlife.