The Scorpion Foundation Indonesia and the Wildlife Authority in North Sumatra (BBKSDA_SU) celebrated the World Orangutan Day 2021 in Simaninggir village, Marancar subdistrict of South Tapanuli on Friday (2021-08-20).
This celebration aimed at raising the awareness of the importance of protecting Tapanuli orangutan and the environment in Batang Toru Ecosystem. 40 students, teachers, BBKSA-SU and Scorpion staff attended the celebration.
During the celebration, an Awareness Officer
of BBKSDA-SU field office in Sipirok, Efrina Rizkiya Pohan, talked to her audience
that it was so important to protect Tapanuli orangutan and the environment in
Batang Toru landscape. She expressed that the remaining population of Tapanuli
orangutan was less than 800 individuals, therefore, the young generation should support protection of this rare species.
“The young
generation needs to realize how important it is to save this endangered
species. This is the rarest species of great apes in the world,” she stressed.
The presentation was followed by a question and
answer session between the audience and the BBKSDA-SU officer. The students and teachers, asked various
question about Tapanuli orangutan. One of the questions was from the principal
of the Simaninggir Elementary School, Marnawati Lubis: “Why the Tapanuli orangutans
currently often enter plantation area of local community?” To answer this
question, Efrina Rizkiya explained that the orangutans enter
plantation area because their habitat is destroyed.
Pictures of the celebration in Simaninggir Elementary School.
