A critically endangered Bornean orangutan lovingly cuddles and feeds her newborn baby after giving birth at Chester Zoo.<br /><br />The youngster, which is too tiny for zookeepers to determine its sex, was born to doting mum Sarikei in the early hours of last Thursday (31/8).<br /><br />Bornean orangutans are declared critically endangered – which is classed as one step away from total extinction.<br /><br />The newborn orangutan will join a European-wide conservation breeding programme aiming to bolster the population of the rare primate in conservation zoos.<br /><br />Mark Brayshaw, Head of Mammals at Chester Zoo, said: “The birth of an animal that’s so rare is always something to celebrate and seeing the new baby in the arms of mum Sarikei is incredibly special. <br /><br />“She’s a great mum and has spent the first few days cradling her baby closely, feeding it regularly and building close bonds – all the signs are great so far. <br /><br />“With the newborn just a few days old we’ve not yet managed to clearly identify if it’s male or female. <br /><br />“What’s most important though is that there’s another healthy Bornean orangutan on the planet. <br /><br />“To have a new addition within the international conservation breeding programme that’s working to safeguard the species’ future, is a hugely positive step in the right direction.”<br /><br />The baby was born to mum Sarikei, 40, and her toyboy partner 21-year-old Willie. <br /><br />Sarikei will help bring the baby up with her mother Martha, who also lives at the zoo.<br /><br />Hundreds of thousands of orangutans have died in the past four decades across <br />Borneo – with many slaughtered by hunters, burned in land-clearing fires or starved to death because of their loss of habitat.<br /><br />The rapid expansion of palm oil operations across the island has reduced the species’ habitat by at least 55 percent in only two decades.<br /><br />Mike Jordan, Animal and Plant Director at the zoo, said: “The birth of a Bornean orangutan holds an incredible amount of significance for those fighting for this species. <br /><br />“The island of Borneo, the only place where these magnificent apes are found, has lost more than 40 per cent of its rainforests since the turn of the millennia. <br /><br />“This relentless habitat loss has seen rainforests, and many of the thousands of species living in them, completely disappear with incredible pace.”
