Orphaned Orangutan In School

Newcastle Herald

Tuesday July 19, 2005

By CAYLA STRAHAN, GRACE NICOLL and STACEY WICKS

SCHOOL'S in and lessons include climbing, finding fruit and exercising. The classroom is a jungle and the students monkey around all the time.

Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre is in North Borneo. The centre rescues, rehabilitates and releases orangutans back into the rainforest.

In 2004, Carol Binks, 1/2B's class teacher, visited Sepilok.

"It was a different experience for me," Mrs Binks said. "It was in the middle of the jungle and it was very, very steamy."

After seeing the orangutans and the work that the centre was doing, Mrs Binks decided to adopt one of the orphans.

"I thought that it would be good for my class to take an interest in the welfare of these animals because they are endangered," Mrs Binks said.

With their habitat disappearing fast, it is estimated that orangutans could be extinct within the next 10 years.

Naru, Mrs Binks' adopted orangutan, was found in a local quarry after his mother had been attacked and frightened away by wild dogs.

"Often these animals are left to die and if somebody hadn't taken Naru to Sepilok Park he would have," Mrs Binks said.

Naru is just over two years old and every day he learns more about surviving in the wild. Eventually, he will be released into the Kabilli Reserve.