Five young orangutans have been rescued from a forest in eastern India, thousands of kilometres from their natural habitat, prompting an investigation into possible wildlife trafficking.
Image used for illustrative purposes/Nngowen/Wikimedia Commons
The orangutans were discovered by members of the public in a forest near Ranakata in Odisha’s Balasore district, close to the West Bengal border. According to the BBC, forest officials believe the animals had only been in the area for a few days.
Orangutans are not native to India. The critically endangered great apes are naturally found in the rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia.
Young orangutans found far from home
The five animals were spotted together on the forest floor and were later rescued by local forest officials. They were given first aid before being transferred to Nandankanan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar, where they are currently being quarantined and monitored.
Balasore District Forest Officer Pratik Prakash Indalkar told the BBC that the orangutans could not have reached the area naturally.
The forest where they were found is made up largely of casuarina trees rather than dense rainforest and is located near a state highway. Officials are investigating whether the animals were transported by road and abandoned there.
Officials found no other orangutans or evidence explaining how the animals arrived during a search of the surrounding area.
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Investigation into possible wildlife trafficking
The unusual discovery has raised concerns that the animals may have been brought into India as part of an international wildlife trafficking operation.
Odisha authorities have reportedly involved India’s Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, along with police, forest officials and a special task force, in the investigation.
The young age of the orangutans has added to concerns about their welfare. Young orangutans normally spend several years with their mothers, learning how to find food, move through the forest and survive independently.
The discovery of five young animals together, without any adult orangutans nearby, has therefore raised questions about where they came from and how they ended up in Odisha.
Orangutans are critically endangered
There are three recognised living species of orangutan: the Bornean, Sumatran and Tapanuli orangutan. All are classified as critically endangered.
Their populations have been severely affected by habitat loss, deforestation and hunting, while illegal wildlife trade remains another threat.
International commercial trade in orangutans is prohibited under CITES, the global agreement regulating trade in endangered wildlife. The animals are also protected under Indian law.
Despite these protections, orangutans can be targeted by traffickers supplying the exotic pet trade and private collectors.
This is not the first time young orangutans have been discovered in India. In 2022, two baby orangutans were found abandoned at a checkpoint near the border between Assam and Mizoram. Authorities suspected they had been brought into India from neighbouring Myanmar.
The five orangutans rescued in Odisha will remain under observation while authorities investigate how they came to be so far from their natural habitat.
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