Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme (SOCP)

Sikundur Monitoring Station, Sumatra, Indonesia

2018 Annual Report to Indianapolis Zoo

January 1, 2018 to November 31, 2018

Introduction

Throughout their range, Sumatran orangutans are threatened by two often related factors,
habitat loss and poaching/hunting. Deforestation in Sumatra, a product of ongoing human
extractive industries (e.g., development of infrastructure, expansion of large-scale agriculture,
logging concessions, mining, and small-scale localized encroachment), is primarily attributed to
inadequate cross-sectorial land use planning, desire for short-term economic growth, and a lack
of environmental law enforcement (Wich et al. 2011). Most worrisome is that Sumatra’s lowland
and swamp forests, areas known to house the highest densities of orangutans (Wich et al. 2016;
Wich et al. 2008), also have the highest rates of deforestation in Indonesia (Laumonier et al. 2010;
Margono et al. 2012). While more difficult to quantify (i.e., relative to forest loss),
poaching/hunting is an additional threat to the survival of Sumatran orangutans, and is largely
associated with access to forested areas, a byproduct of deforestation/habitat fragmentation and
population growth (Wich et al. 2011).

Interestingly, virtually all long-term monitoring studies of Sumatran orangutans, and indeed all
data in recent population viability analyses of the species (Marshall et al. 2009; Utami-Atmoko et
al. in press), have utilized ‘high-density’ orangutan populations situated in primary peat-swamp
forest (Suaq Balimbing, Aceh province) and primary lowland rainforest (Ketambe, Aceh province).
These two sites are regarded as “prime habitats” for Sumatran orangutans (Husson et al. 2009)
and historically have suffered relatively lower levels of human disturbance. Accordingly, we lack
knowledge of Sumatran orangutans in less productive and/or more degraded landscapes, and
thus also lack a complete grasp of their behavioral, demographic, ecological, and physiological
variability, factors vital to understanding their future population viability (Marshall et al. 2009).

The Sikundur Monitoring Post is located in the Langkat district of North Sumatra province, within
the Gunung Leuser National Park (GLNP) and larger Leuser Ecosystem National Strategic Area
[Fig. 1]. It consists of previously logged lowland dipterocarp tropical rainforest, and even so, is
one of the few remaining lowland areas that still maintains suitable forest habitat for the Critically
Endangered Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii). As such, the importance of the Sikundur
Monitoring Post and its relevance to long-term Sumatran orangutan conservation must be
highlighted. The Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme (SOCP) started orangutan and
habitat monitoring at Sikundur in the second half of 2012 and is now in its seventh year of
operation there. This report will highlight the activities undertaken from January to December
2018 and emphasize Sikundur’s importance to orangutan conservation and also the conservation
of Sumatra’s unique biodiversity.

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Fig. 1. The location of the Sikundur Monitoring Post in relation to the GLNP and the Leuser Ecosystem

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Activities Undertaken

Habitat Monitoring
As a major part of SOCP’s activities, we conduct regular habitat monitoring (field/UAV patrols
and geospatial analyses). Data generated are compiled in our long-term database and allow us
to make detailed analyses of habitat loss, which form the basis for conservation planning and
habitat protection. Based on a remote sensing analysis of orangutan habitat loss between 2013-
2017, we estimate that roughly 2.5% (0.5% loss / year) of orangutan habitat has been lost [Fig.
2]. This equates to a loss of 42,783 (8,557 ha / year) ha over that same period.

Our most recent habitat monitoring activities indicate that there were 55,381 Global Land
Analysis & Discovery (GLAD) (Hansen et al. 2016) alerts detected within Sumatran orangutan
habitat during January – November 2018 [Fig. 3]. Each alert is associated with a 30 x 30 m pixel,
and when converted to area, we calculate that there has been a loss of at least 4,984 ha of
Sumatran orangutan habitat during the aforementioned period. The highest number of alerts
were detected during the months of February (11,507 alerts) and June (11,905 alerts) [Fig. 3-4].
As will be highlighted below, these months coincide with lower levels of rainfall and higher
average temperatures - weather conducive for cutting and burning.

Despite these heavy losses, there were no detections of forest lost in the area of the Sikundur
Monitoring Post for 2018. The majority of loss is instead occurring in preferred lowland / hill
forest and peat swamp forest, and largely taking place in peripheral areas; however, recent road
developments within the Leuser Ecosystem are now opening the interior to loss as well [Fig. 2 &
5].

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Fig. 2. A map showing 2017 Sumatran orangutan habitat in relation to 207 primary forest cover and
canopy cover loss between 2013-present

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Fig. 3. A step line graph showing the cumulative sum of GLAD alerts within Sumatran orangutan habitat
for January – November 2018

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Fig. 4. A bar plot showing the total number of GLAD alerts per month within Sumatran orangutan habitat
for January – November 2018

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Fig. 5. A map showing all 2018 GLAD alerts mapped onto the current Sumatran orangutan distribution

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 Phenology and Weather Patterns
At the Sikundur Monitoring Post, the average monthly rainfall during August 2013 – November
2018 was 273.1 mm, with a monthly range of 4.8-639.4 mm [Fig. 6]. Average yearly rainfall at
Sikundur is 3,321 mm, albeit this only includes data points for 2014-2017. In general, higher levels
of rainfall occur during May, August-October, and December, whereas low levels of rainfall occur
during January-April, June-July, and November. Both February and March have recorded rainfall
levels below 100 mm, indicating extreme rainfall lows [Fig. 6-7]. Average monthly temperatures
from within the field station were 27.4° C, with a monthly range of 26.1-30.4° C [Fig. 6].
Temperature highs are generally recorded for the months February-July, whereas temperature
lows are generally recorded for the months of January and August-December [Fig. 6-7].

The average percent of liana and tree stems (>10 cm diameter at breast height) that were bearing
fruit in our 20 phenological plots was 2.1% for the period of June 2013 – November 2018, with a
range of 0.3-13.4% [Fig. 8]. High fruiting values are generally observed during May-October;
however, consistent levels of high fruit productivity were most apparent during August and
September. Conversely, consistent fruit lows are present during January-April and then again
during November-December [Fig. 7-8]. A fruiting mast was observed during June-September
2014, as indicated by an extreme level of fruit availability [Fig. 7-8].

Fig. 6. A graph displaying the total rainfall and average temperate at Sikundur for August 2013 – November
2018

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Fig. 7. A series of boxplots showing the monthly trends for average temperature (A), total rainfall (B), and
average fruit availability index (C) at Sikundur for 2013-2018.

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Fig. 8. A graph displaying the average fruit availability index at Sikundur for June 2013 – November 2018.
Points above the red line indicate periods of fruit masting

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 Orangutan Observations
A total of 287 focal animal follows were conducted by SOCP staff from January to November 2018
[Fig. 9-10]. This amounts to a total of 2,876 observation hours. No new individuals were
contacted this year, leaving our total of habituated animals at 23, consisting of 7 independent
females, 12 independent males, and 4 infants/juveniles. Generally, higher levels of orangutan
presence occur in the first quarter of the year and then again between the third and fourth
quarters [Fig. 11].

Fig. 9. A bar plot showing the number of focal animal follows per month conducted by SOCP staff from
January to November 2018, as compared to months from previous years

Analyses from the January to November 2018 study period show that overall focal orangutans
spent most of their time feeding (61.5%), followed by resting (18.3%), moving (16.5%), social
behavior (1.3%), other (1.3%), and nesting (1.1%) [Fig. 12]. There was relative consistency across
the 11 months examined for this report, though the behavioral profiles for January-March did
differ slightly with the rest of the observation period. Previous observations from Sikundur
indicate that feeding behavior tends to increase when preferred foods are scarce. Conversely,
there is an increase in non-feeding behaviors when preferred foods are more abundant [Fig. 13].
This appears to account for the behavioral variation observed during the 2018 study period.

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Fig. 10. Photographs of orangutans followed during the reporting period. Jhon (upper), Suci, Siboy,
Madeline, and Mala (lower)

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Fig. 10, cont. Photographs of orangutans followed during the reporting period. Bendot Besar (upper),
Hombing (lower)

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Fig. 11. A box plot showing the number of focal animal follows per month from 2013-2018

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Fig. 12. A stacked bar plot showing orangutan behavioral profiles from January to November 2018

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Fig. 13. Food resources consumed by orangutans at Sikundur during the observation period. Baccaurea
brevipes (above), Halban kapur fruit (below)

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Fig. 13, cont. Food resources consumed by orangutans at Sikundur during the observation period. Kayu
Mayang fruit (above), Kayu karet fruit (below)

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 Orangutan Ranging Patterns
One of the main behavioral aspects that SOCP focuses on is orangutan travel patterns at the
Sikundur Monitoring Post and trying to link these patterns to local ecology. During the reporting
period, orangutans primarily utilized the southwest portion of the Sikundur Monitoring Post. This
is likely related to an abundance of preferred food resources within the rich alluvial forests of the
Besitang River [Fig. 14-15].

Fig. 14. A Kernel Density plot generated from 8,567 15-min sample GPS orangutan location
waypoints. The sample period is January – November 2018

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Fig. 15. A map of the habitat use by orangutans at Sikundur with GPS points categorized by month for the
study period January – November 2018 (n=8,567 GPS points)

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 Research Projects from 2018
During the reporting period, a total of six international researchers were at the Sikundur
Monitoring Post conducting research projects [Fig. 16]. These researchers and their projects
include:

Researcher Name: Christopher Marsh

University: Bournemouth University, Bournemouth, Dorset, England
Thesis Title: “The effects of forest degradation on the ranging habits and behavioural of
arboreal apes in Sikundur, Northern Sumatra”

Researcher Name: Justin D’Agostino

University: Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL, USA
Thesis Title: “Effect of anthropogenic noise on the natural calling behaviour of siamang”

Researcher Name: Ziva Justinek

University: Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL, USA
Thesis Title: “Effect of anthropogenic noise on the natural calling behaviour of siamang”

Researcher Name: Tom Roth

University: Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
Thesis Title: “Influence of fruit availability on party size of Sumatran orangutans (Pongo abelii)
living in previously logged forest”

Researcher Name: Nathan Harrison

University: Bournemouth University, Bournemouth, Dorset, England
Thesis Title: “Habitat use and preference of mammals in Sumatra”

Researcher Name: Helen Slater

University: Bournemouth University, Bournemouth, Dorset, England
Thesis Title: “Human impacts on micro-climate and parasite loads on primates”

One research project in particular (i.e., that of Tom Roth from Utrecht University) sought to
better understand the social behavior of orangutans at the Sikundur Monitoring Post. In addition
to focal animal follows, Tom has utilized SOCP’s long-term database to correlate party size with
fruit availability. The initial results indicate that the average party size for orangutans at Sikundur
is 1.27 individuals, which is in general closer to the party size of Bornean orangutans as compared
to Sumatran orangutans. Furthermore, unflanged males were found to have significantly higher
party sizes than any other age-sex class. Lastly, party size was significantly correlated with fruit
availability [Fig. 17].

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Fig. 16. Photographs of student researchers and SOCP staff at the Sikundur Monitoring Post during the
reporting period

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Fig. 17. Correlation between average party size (y-axis) and fruit availability (x-axis) for dataset including
masting data. Dotted lines show 95% confidence interval (F(8.335)=2.682, p<0.01)

Professional Works from 2018

A collaborative manuscript involving SOCP staff and researchers from Bournemouth University,
Syiah Kuala University, Liverpool John Moores University, and Aarhus University was published
by the International Journal of Applied Earth Observations and Geoinformation in October 2018.
The reference for the publication and abstract are as follows:

Alexander C, Korstjens AH, Hankinson E, Usher G, Harrison N, Nowak MG, Abdullah A, Wich SA,
Hill RA. 2018. Locating emergent trees in a tropical rainforest using data from an Unmanned
Aerial Vehicle (UAV). International Journal of Applied Earth Observations and Geoinformation,
72, 86-90.

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 Abstract
Emergent trees, which are taller than surrounding trees with exposed crowns, provide crucial
services to several rainforest species especially to endangered primates such as gibbons and
siamangs (Hylobatidae). Hylobatids show a preference for emergent trees as sleeping sites and
for vocal displays, however, they are under threat from both habitat modifications and the
impacts of climate change. Traditional plot-based ground surveys have limitations in detecting
and mapping emergent trees across a landscape, especially in dense tropical forests. In this study,
a method is developed to detect emergent trees in a tropical rainforest in Sumatra, Indonesia,
using a photogrammetric point cloud derived from RGB images collected using an Unmanned
Aerial Vehicle (UAV). If a treetop, identified as a local maximum in a Digital Surface Model
generated from the point cloud, was higher than the surrounding treetops (Trees_EM), and its
crown was exposed above its neighbours (Trees_SL; assessed using slope and circularity
measures), it was identified as an emergent tree, which might therefore be selected preferentially
as a sleeping tree by hylobatids. A total of 54 out of 63 trees were classified as emergent by the
developed algorithm and in the field. The algorithm is based on relative height rather than canopy
height (due to a lack of terrain data in photogrammetric point clouds in a rainforest environment),
which makes it equally applicable to photogrammetric and airborne laser scanning point cloud
data.

This is among the first in a series of planned initiatives using UAV technology to study forest
structure and its impacts on local faunal populations. In the future, we will be looking at how
forest structure and microclimate impact the daily behaviors of the diurnal primate community,
including orangutans.

Outreach During 2017-2018

During March 2018, SOCP hosted the Venture Force school group [Fig. 18]. The school group
came to the Sikundur Monitoring Post and learned about the work that SOCP conducts on a daily
and the projects that the current researchers were working on. The Venture Force group also got
to experience what it takes to work in a tropical rainforest and to observer local flora and fauna.

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Fig. 18. Photograph of the Venture Force school groups that visited the Sikundur Monitoring Post during
the reporting period

Conclusion

The scientific need and justification for long-term field studies can be separated into aspects
related to the study of behavior and life history. Because primates and especially orangutans are
extremely long lived, short-term studies provide only but a brief snapshot of an animal
population. Conversely, long-term study of these factors is critical because they are directly
linked to fitness determinants, which themselves are associated with phenomena that play out
over long periods and to events that are rare but important (Kappeler et al. 2012).

Our work at Sikundur has thus far focused on short-term systematic interactions between the
orangutan population and their local environment (e.g., behavioral profiles, feeding ecology,
travel patterns, etc.), in addition to basic social interactions. The majority of results indicate that
the orangutans from Sikundur display behavioral profiles that are intermediate between
previously studied Sumatran orangutans at Ketambe and Suaq Balimbing (i.e., populations in
extremely productive perhaps outlier habitats) and Bornean orangutans (i.e., populations
generally known to occupy less productive habitats) (Serge A Wich et al. 2009).

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This together with the fact that the overall fruiting phenology of our Sikundur study site displays
low levels of fruit availability compared to all previous orangutan study sites (Serge A Wich et al.
2011), indicates that aspects such as the spatiotemporal availability of food resources, resource
patch size, and/or resource nutrient quality play a significant role in our observed results. All of
these aspects, save the temporal availability of food resources can initially be measured with
short-term studies; however, long-term studies are required to identify how variable or
invariable these aspects are, and how these aspects correlate with Sikundur orangutan
behavioral ecology at various time scales. Furthermore, key factors such as individual
development (i.e., from infant to reproductively viable) and fitness can only be measured with
long-term data, both of which can be severely impacted by relatively rare but important events
(e.g., mast fruiting).

As such, continued study of the Sikundur orangutan population is key to truly understanding the
species’ behavioral ecology, something we currently only have a snapshot view of. Our focus on
future aspects of their ecology will include more detailed studies of habitat productivity (e.g.,
patch size, distribution, and nutrient quality) and how these factors impact orangutan behavioral
ecology. In addition, it is imperative that we are able to study the orangutan populations across
several masting periods, as dramatic fluctuations of resource availability are often cited as key
components to orangutan livelihoods (Serge A Wich et al. 2009). To this point, even after six years
of continuous phenological study, we have only documented a single mast fruiting event (i.e.,
June-September 2014). This underscores the importance of long-term studies of orangutans as
related to ecology and species conservation.

Secondly, a key component to Population Habitat Viability Analyses (PHVA) are life history data
(e.g., age- and sex-specific mortality rates, reproductive life span, and inter-birth interval). To our
knowledge, all PHVA analyses of Sumatran orangutans (Marshall et al. 2009; Singleton et al. 2004;
Utami-Atmoko et al. in prep) have utilized data from the only two long-term study sites of
Ketambe and Suaq Balimbing, with the majority of which being from Ketambe. If, as our
preliminary analyses of Sikundur indicate, Sumatran orangutans are ecologically and behaviorally
more variable than previously thought, our PHVA analyses for many if not most orangutan
populations may not be reflective of their condition and conservation efforts based on these
results may be inadequate.

Orangutans have extremely slow life histories, which require long-term data sets for any
adequate life history results. For instance, despite six years of study at Sikundur, we have only
witnessed three births, the oldest being 4.5 years of age and the youngest being 1.5. None of
these individuals are close to being reproductively active and even the oldest individual is not yet
living on her own. This means that we still are unable to calculate simple life history

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characteristics for the Sikundur population, let alone analyze how these parameters might be
impacted by rare but significant ecological events (e.g., mast fruiting). Again, only with long-term
observations of individuals within the Sikundur population will this be possible.

Lastly, in addition to a continued need for basic long-term data for the Sikundur orangutan
population, our analyses of local threats within the Leuser Ecosystem, especially in the North
Sumatran component of the ecosystem, have highlighted a need to be more proactive in our
habitat monitoring efforts. As such, we would like to start to implement a small investigative
team(s) to explore forest disturbance and loss in the Leuser Ecosystem. This team(s) will work
closely with our GIS personnel and be responsible for investigating forest disturbance/loss,
including detailed field surveys and drone mapping of disturbance/loss areas. Not only will these
investigations complement our current GIS work, but they will also provide needed data for
understanding disturbance/loss and for our local governmental counterparts in their efforts to
enforce current environmental legislation.

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References Cited

Hansen, M. C., Krylov, A., Tyukavina, A., Potapov, P. V, Turubanova, S., Zutta, B., et al. (2016). Humid
tropical forest disturbance alerts using Landsat data. Environmental Research Letters, 11(3), 34008.
doi:10.1088/1748-9326/11/3/034008
Husson, S. J., Wich, S. A., Marshall, A. J., Dennis, R. D., Ancrenaz, M. A., Brassey, R., et al. (2009). Orangutan
distribution, density, abundance and impacts of disturbance. In Orangutans: Geographic Variation
in Behavioral Ecology and Conservation. Oxford University Press.
Kappeler, P. M., Schaik, C. P. van, & Watts, D. P. (2012). The Values and Challenges of Long-Term Field
Studies. In P. M. Kappeler & D. P. Watts (Eds.), Long-Term Field Studies of Primates. Springer.
Laumonier, Y., Uryu, Y., Stüwe, M., Budiman, A., Setiabudi, B., Hadian, O., & Stuwe, M. (2010). Ecofloristic
sectors and deforestation threats in Sumatra: identifying new conservation area network priorities
for ecosystem-based land use planning. Biodiversity and Conservation, 19(4), 1153–1174.
Margono, B. A., Turubanova, S., Zhuravleva, I., Potapov, P., Tyukavina, A., Baccini, A., et al. (2012).
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Marshall, A. J., Lacy, R., Ancrenaz, M., Byers, O., Husson, S. J., Leighton, M., et al. (2009). Orangutan
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Singleton, I., Wich, S., & Husson, S. Stephens, S. Utami Atmoko, M. Leighton, N. Rosen, K. Traylor-Holzer,
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Breeding Specialist Group. Apple Valley, MN.
Wich, S. A., Meijaard, E., Marshall, A. J., Husson, S., Ancrenaz, M., Lacy, R. C., et al. (2008). Distribution
and conservation status of the orang-utan (Pongo spp.) on Borneo and Sumatra: how many remain?
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Wich, S. A., Singleton, I., Nowak, M. G., Utami Atmoko, S. S., Nisam, G., Mhd. Arif, S., et al. (2016). Land-
cover changes predict steep declines for the Sumatran orang-utan (Pongo abelii). Science Advances,
(March), 1–9.
Wich, S. A., Utami-Atmoko, S. S., Mitra Setia, T., & van Schaik, C. P. (2009). Orangutans: Geographic
Variation in Behavioral Ecology and Conservation. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press.
Wich, S. A., Vogel, E. R., Larsen, M. D., Fredriksson, G., Leighton, M., Yeager, C. P., et al. (2011). Forest fruit
production is higher on Sumatra than on Borneo. PloS one, 6(6), e21278.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0021278
Wich, S., Riswan, Jenson, J., Refisch, J., & Nellemann, C. (2011). Orangutans and the Economics of
Sustainable Forest Management in Sumatra. Birkeland Trykkeri AS, Norway.

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Finances

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