We are so proud of Clyde!
Clyde is doing really great at the Rolling Hills Wildlife Adventure in Salina, Kansas (he moved there in May 2011, see post Changes for Orangutans). Clyde and Rusa continue to get along well. Both animal staff and animals alike love Clyde. He is the only male with whom female Ruse has been paired that she likes! But who wouldn’t like Clyde? He is the sweetest male, and all the girls like him (well, except Indah, of course). There is not any expectation of an offspring from them, though. Rusa has some reproductive issues that would make getting pregnant very difficult. A baby would be a happy surprise. The keeper there was telling me that Clyde is funny about his browse; he is turning his nose up at the Midwest varieties of trees and leaves.
After a few setbacks, Cinta is with all of the orangutans at the St. Louis Zoo (he arrived there in October 2012). Originally, the staff was planning on introducing Cinta to the mother and daughter there, hoping for a successful pairing with the older female. Unfortunately, the females had a different idea! While reevaluating the situation, the staff noticed that Cinta and Robbie, their 19-year-old male, seemed compatible. They were separate from one another but were sharing food back and forth and hanging out near one another. Staff never planned on introducing the two males, but they decided to try and then, later on, Robbie and Cinta could together be reintroduced to the girls.
This has proven to the best of solutions. Cinta and Robbie are now best of friends! They hang out together and share food. Just last week, staff put all four together with a much-improved outcome. ☺ Now, whenever there are any problems, Robbie steps in and defends Cinta (not that Cinta needs much help—he is much faster that the girls! Keepers are very positive about the improvements they have seen and expect things to continue to get better. We will keep our fingers crossed for a successful pairing!
Tanya Howard is a keeper at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous post, Orangutans: Planned Parenthood.
Here’s a fun video created for our digital ZOONOOZ, available as a free app from the App Store:
So good to have an update on “the guys!”
Thanks, Tanya!
thanks for the report of my guy, Clyde. I’m understanding of the zoo system being a docent at another zoo, just miss Clyde. I’m happy to hear Cinta is thriving w/a buddy.
Thank you SO much for the update. I’ve been trying to go on St Louis web site now and then to see if they shared any info on Cinta. Good to hear the guys are doing well. Cinta’s still young, he has plenty of time to start a family!!!!
I do the exact same thing Sue hoping that the St. Louis Zoo website would have an update. I really miss seeing Cinta on the cam!
Thanks for the update Tanya. It is so nice to hear about animals after they have moved to other zoos.
Thank you so much for sharing info about Cinta and Clyde! I miss seeing them both here but understand the reason for their moves. I hope Cinta is able to form an relationship with the girls and happy to know that he has Robbie
. Is Robbie the male orangutan that was moved from Rolling Hills before Clyde was brought there? Thank you again for the update and I look forward to more blogs in the future! The orangs at SDZ have alot of fans here that love to read about them 
Yes, Robbie came from Rolling Hills.
Yes! Love those orangs and do appreciate the stories.
Why didn’t Indah like Clyde (I know it’s hard to say anything about thought processes and emotions, so I’m asking what behaviors indicated it)?
Also, when a member of a troop is removed, as Cinta was, do the others notice? Go around looking for him? Does he (e.g., Cinta) seem “lost” ithout them? Is the removal abrupt as opposed to, say, less and less daily time together?
If it was any indication of what I saw on the cams yesterday between Satu and Indah. I can see why she might not have been fond of Clyde. It was brutal to watch how he was mating with her. Punching, throwing her around, and it just kept going on. I was really worried for her, he looked he was really going to hurt her. I observed the same thing the day before with Karen. He really needs some lessons in etiquette before he hurts one of them. It seemed like it went on forever with Karen and the siamongs getting in the mix… looked like they were trying to help her. very brutal to see on the cams. I know it’s hard to not put human emotion into the animals, but went it looks like it goes to far, it goes to far.. whether it be human or animal. Just my 2 cents, and would love to hear from the primate team on this one. And cam operaters I do appreciate everything you do, but sometimes less is better.
Indah would move away from Clyde and did not want to be near him. When coming inside at night, she would wait until he was inside or away from her before she would come to the ground. Anyone who knows Indah knows that she is most comfortable up in the climbing structures.
It is natural for an 8-year-old orangutan to be leaving his mother, so Cinta and Indah did not seem too upset when he left. Indah looked for him on the first day, but after that she did not show much concern. As to if it is abrupt or gradual, that is determined by how the individuals interact and are grouped before a move. Cinta was separated from his mother at night but with her during the day, so it was fairly abrupt.
Tanya,
It would be nice if we could see a picture of him now.hmmm. maybe they could send you one? Would love to see the little guy!
Thank you for the information (and for answering our questions – I’m sure you can tell we’re very interested in these guys!). Having watched Indah for a few months now, I can easily visualize her behavior re: Clyde. She seems to be fine with Satu – he regularly hangs out with her up on the structures.
Thank you for the update! I’m glad Cinta has found a friend, and maybe the girls will warm up to him eventually.
Thank you Tanya for the update on Clyde and Cinta
FOR ANYONE WHO NEEDS A “CINTA” FIX, DOWNLOAD ZOONOOZ.
THERE’S GREAT VIDEO OF EVERYONE AND IT EXPLAINS ALOT! VERY
GOOD.
HOPEFULLY INDAH AND SATU HAVE SOME ACTION OFF CAMERA,
OTHERWISE WE COULD BE WAITING AWHILE FOR A BABY. SHE SURE
LIKES TO HANG OUT ALONE.
Moderator’s note: Yes, our free ZOONOOZ app is available in the App Store. The February issue features our orangutans.
I do not have a smart phone – is there an online version of zoonooz? (I saw the video above.)
Moderator’s note: How about an iPad? We do not have ZOONOOZ available online. However, the orangutan cover story for the February issue will be posted soon on the home page of our San Diego Zoo Animals website.
The article is up now: http://animals.sandiegozoo.org/zoonooz/changing-face-zoos-orangutan-troop
Thank you for the link to the article. I don’t have an iPad either (I can’t be the only person!) so I appreciate having all this info online. The article answered a couple more questions for me, e.g., about the interaction between the females – I hadn’t seen much and the article confirmed that my observations were correct.
A big thank you for the video — the bubbles especially were charming.
A question for Tanya if I may. Today we observed Karen walk up to Janey and begin hitting her and pulling on her fur totally unprovoked. Of course poor sweet Janey tried to defend herself and a scuffle ensued, but she’s obviously much older and weaker than Karen. We just wondered what your take on this might be. I’ve seen males act agressively and fight but never females. Is this common? Was it a territory issue or do you have any idea as to what might have caused her to do this?
I’ve read some blogs that have indicated that Karen can be challenging at times. It suprised me to see this behavior in her as I’ve only ever witnessed her being gentle and quite comical. Any thoughts on this?
Unfortunately, this is common behavior for Karen. I like to say she has poor social etiquette. Typically, female orangutans ignore one another and give each other plenty of space, but Karen will walk right up to others and displace them. She does occasionally give Janey a rough time. Other times, I have seen Karen and Janey grooming one another. Janey is usually leery of Karen because she is unsure how Karen is going to treat her. Janey will walk by Karen and hit, too, so it’s not all Karen.
Oh my, sounds like you have your hands full with them. They kind of remind me of rambunctious toddlers
Thanks as always for your answer.
Thanks for the updates on Clyde and Cinta. So happy to hear they are adapting to their new surroundings and making friends.
Was today (Feb 17) a special day? I saw brightly painted boxes and watched Satu having fun with one.
Moderator’s note: It was most likely part of our Discovery Days: Cool Cats celebration. Felines aren’t the only cool “cats” around.
Thank you. You’re right, the orangutans are pretty cool, too! I enjoy watching them more now that I’ve learned so much from what you write about them.
Hi Tanya or Moderator
Karen is looking like she has gained some weight. Maybe it’s just me or her fur! Does she have to be on any special diet, because of her heart surgery? I’m sure she doesn’t get anymore food than the others, but do you monitor her weight? Thank you.
Karen has not gained any weight. She lost some weight about 18 months ago (she was extremely overweight) and has maintained her current weight for the last year: 120 pounds (54.5 kilograms).
This makes me wonder where orangutans get the majority of their calories and how much they need (for nutritional health)? All I ever see them eat is the food (fruits and veggies?) that is tossed out to them during the day and leaves from branches left in their enclosure in the morning (I’ve also seen the siamangs eating grass). I read they like popcorn and that is something I may have seen left out for them in the mornings. I know they also get treats in the termite mounds (honey, mustard and bbq sauce) but only Satu seems to eat a lot of that. From the posts you referred me to earlier, I know they get fed “inside” before they come out for the day.
How did Karen gain too much weight? Was it in any way related to her surgery? Do primates get overweight primarily from over-eating or from lack of exercise? This would probably tell me how Karen lost weight, too.
Tanya responds: We have 3 nutritionists on staff, and they determine what diet each animal is fed based on species requirements and individual needs. At the zoo, we feed our orangutans a diet of fruit, vegetables, root vegetables, greens and pelleted grain with additional minerals, etc. The items that you mentioned seeing them eat on exhibit are, for the most part, enrichment items and are supplemental to their diet. Orangutans are ‘efficient energy users’ – they actually need a lot less food than you would think. And they can gain weight quickly. This being said, the time Karen gained weight corresponded with when she was staying inside every other day with Clyde, so her activity level decreased. We put her on a slight diet and tried to increase her activity.
I wonder if some of it is heriditary as Karen’s mother Karta also looks overweight?
Thank you for this information. I always like to learn a little bit more!
Hi Tanya,
There’s a female orangutan named Karta at the Adelaide zoo in Australia that looks exactly like Karen. Another viewer asked if there was any relation between the two and I don’t believe there was an answer. The similarities are striking! Do you know if the two are related? Thanks.
Moderator’s note: Yes, Karta is Karen’s mother.
Oh wow, thank you! There’s no mistaking that cute face
LOL! Twice now I’ve seen Satu pull himself up to a standing position and I had to laugh. His short little legs look so funny on his big bulky body. I just love these guys! Can’t wait to visit someday and see them in person!
A question for the moderator or Tanya: Btw, I’m sorry, I feel like I ask questions every day. I just love orangutans dearly and I’m so facinated by them.
Anyway, did anything ever happen to Indah to make her as gaurded and leary of people and new things as she is? Like had she ever been owned by a person as a pet before being in a zoo? I also noticed she won’t go anywhere near Karen. Maybe Karen hit her too?
Tanya responds: Indah came to us from Adelaide Zoo in Australia. She was hand raised and received excellent care there. Females are, by nature, more leery of people (they have the responsibility of child rearing). Indah doesn’t let Karen get close to her because female orangutans are solitary except for their offspring. They like to keep their distance from one another. If Janey would go up the climbing structures near Indah, she would move away from Janey also.
Thank you for taking the time to answer my question Tanya