Orangutans Move to the Dja Reserve

Loading the crates carrying their precious cargo. Photo: Petr Hamerník, Prague Zoo.

“After lengthy and thorough discussions, which also involved leading European experts on orangutan husbandry, moving these three animals and subsequently rebuilding their enclosure emerged as the best possible solution. The young orangutan will no longer be exposed to the risk posed by the water moat, while visitors will still be able to see these much-loved animals,” says Jan Mengr, Prague Zoo’s Curator of Primates.

The 37-year-old female Mawar, however, will remain in her original enclosure for the time being. “Orangutans are naturally solitary animals, and the ageing Mawar, who is suffering from age-related ailments, is not compatible with the other orangutans in our care. Taking this into account, and also considering that she herself faces no danger from the water, we have decided to let her remain in the area she is familiar with until construction work begins,” Mengr adds.

Thirteen-year-old female Diri and her first-born son Harapan, who was born in May 2024. Photo: Petr Hamerník, Prague Zoo.

Prague Zoo is making these changes following the drowning of five-year-old male orangutan Kawi last year. Immediately after the tragic incident, a system was installed to detect falls into the water and alert staff at once, enabling them to respond immediately with equipment available to rescue a primate in distress. The area was also monitored by visitor services staff. Although keeping great apes in enclosures with water barriers has been a well-established practice for decades at some of the world's most respected zoos (including San Diego, Melbourne, Dublin, Frankfurt, Leipzig and Vienna), the tragic accident made it necessary to find a different structural and technical solution for the enclosure.

The Dja Reserve has been preparing for the orangutans' arrival for several months. Among other things, the ceiling of the selected enclosure had to be fitted with protective netting and the lighting secured, taking into account the orangutans' ingenuity. New ropes also had to be installed, the substrate replaced and, last but not least, temporary homes found for the De Brazza's monkeys and red river hogs. While the monkeys can stay in the modern off-exhibit facilities of the pavilion that is only a few years old, the red river hogs have found a new home at Ústí nad Labem Zoo. Prague Zoo would like to extend its sincere thanks to its colleagues there for their help and cooperation.

The transport itself went smoothly, largely thanks to the keepers, who had regularly trained the orangutans to enter their transport crates voluntarily. This meant that the move could be completed without the need to anaesthetise the animals and took just 45 minutes.

Prague Zoo will keep the public informed about the orangutans' adaptation to their new home in the Dja Reserve and their eventual move from the off-exhibit area into the exhibit. Bellow, you can watch a video documenting yesterday's move.

Initial visualisation of the reconstruction of the Sumatran orangutan enclosure in the Indonesian Jungle pavilion. View in the direction of the visitor route, looking from the the steps leading up from the nocturnal exhibits. Source: Prague Zoo / AND Architectural Studio.

Initial visualisation of the reconstruction of the Sumatran orangutan enclosure in the Indonesian Jungle pavilion. View against the direction of the visitor route, looking from the current Palawan porcupine exhibit. Source: Prague Zoo / AND Architectural Studio.