Masarang HK Society Limited 青山綠水協會有限公司

It is World Animal Day on October 4^th and we would like to celebrate in a special way this year.  We are proud to co-sponsor a baby orangutan at the Sintang Orangutan Centre (SOC).

We do not want orangutans in rescue centres; we want them in forests. However, whilst forests are being cut down and animals, especially babies, are being taken by ruthless traders, rescue centres are essential.

Orangutans, the great apes of Asia, are critically endangered. The Sintang Orangutan Centre (SOC) has been doing wonderful work for more than 14 years. By providing a rescue and release programme, as well as a ‘forest school’ programme, the rescued orangutans at SOC have a chance at being successfully released back to their forest home.

This year we are very happy to work with a German volunteer group, Lebensraum Regenwald, to co-sponsor a specific orangutan at SOC. We believe the sponsorship will not only help “Rosi”, our sponsored baby orangutan, but also encourage others to support the work of the Centre. There are many other orangutans at SOC that could be sponsored. Please do consider helping SOC in any way possible and let us know if you are interested in supporting the centre or sponsoring an orangutan.

We have provided more information below about the sponsorship of lovely baby ‘Rosi’.

Please do whatever you can to help animals in need this World Animal Day (and any other day too, if possible).

Thank you very much for the generous donor, Dr Krieger, who has enabled Masarang HK to co-sponsor baby Rosi. We sincerely appreciate your kindness and generosity.

Thank you.

Masarang HK Volunteers

The bond between Annette and Rosi at the Sintang Quarantine Centre is remarkably strong and deep. Day after day, the two are almost inseparable, always seen in each other’s company, with Rosi consistently following Annette wherever she goes. Whether Annette is walking around the enclosure or swinging from the ropes inside, Rosi stays close, clinging to her. Their companionship is so tight-knit that it’s difficult to imagine one without the other, as they seem to move through every part of their day together, side by side.

One afternoon, after they had finished their usual meal, Annette noticed something that caught her eye—some leftover kale in Beno’s enclosure. Always the observant one, Annette’s attention was drawn to the remnants of food, and it seemed Rosi instantly understood what she had in mind. Without hesitation, Rosi followed Annette closely as they both climbed to the top of the enclosure. Working together, they managed to retrieve the leftover kale and happily shared the spoils, eating together until every last bit was gone.

This particular routine wasn’t an isolated incident; in fact, a similar pattern is observed during their lunch sessions. Rosi, displaying a remarkable sense of deference, always waits for Annette to take her portion first before helping herself. It’s as though Rosi is constantly attuned to Annette’s actions, hesitating to grab her own food if Annette hasn’t started eating yet. While they usually share their meals side by side, there was an occasion when Rosi, feeling a bit more independent, chose to distance herself slightly from Annette. She climbed up high and began eating alone, swinging in the air. But even in moments like these, their bond was evident. Just as Rosi was nearing the end of her meal, Annette appeared, making her way over to her friend. Without any fuss, Annette managed to sneak a small portion of Rosi’s food, as if gently reminding her of their shared companionship. After that brief interlude, the two were back to their usual selves, resuming their activities together as though nothing had changed.

What’s particularly fascinating about Rosi is her protective nature when the animal keepers approach. If Annette seeks attention or wants to be stroked by a keeper, Rosi will often spring into action, positioning herself as a barrier between Annette and the keeper. She will bare her teeth and sometimes even attempt to bite, as if to show her deep sense of loyalty and protectiveness over her close companion. It’s a clear sign that Rosi sees herself as Annette’s guardian, always looking out for her wellbeing.

Beyond her close relationship with Annette, Rosi has her own playful side, particularly when it comes to her personal space within the enclosure. She has a special fondness for her shelter, where she often disappears. Inside the shelter, she can be seen spinning around playfully, only to then swing on her hammock with visible enjoyment. Her hammock is her favorite spot, and she often combines playtime with other activities, such as eating her food or engaging with her enrichment items. It’s in these quiet moments of play that Rosi’s personality truly shines, revealing not just her attachment to Annette, but also her playful, independent streak.

It is with great pleasure that we include some recent information from the Sintang Orangutan Centre.
With orang-utans rescued and released as well as success attending forest school, the Centre is continuing.

it’s wonderful work.

We have some exciting news about a particular orangutan from the Centre which will be uploaded very soon!

As thousands of animals before this week Tasikoki handed back the many confiscated animals of many different protected species to the Ministry of Forestry and Environment and supported the transport to their various places of natural occurrence to be returned to the wild. Billy Lolowang, the Tasikoki manager also personally accompanied the transport to Ambon and helped caring for them during the transport. After arrival he also took time to educate and train some local staff about these species and their special care requirements.

Our loyal simple mini pick up that has been essential over the years to pick up so many animals from rescues and confiscations and provide our project with all the supplies for the hundreds of animals with all their different needs of the right food types from all over. Here ready to take the soon to be released animals to the boat that will take them to Ambon and Ternate islands.

People normally just see a row of people in uniforms and with surgical masks in front of some cages with birds to show the work. But so much of the hardest work is invisible. It starts with the rescues and facing off with angry people and threats. After the evacuation the vets have to go through strictly controlled protocols for quarantine and medical tests and have to deal with wounded and stressed animals first. Then the process of rehabilitation and socialization. And then to get the special made transport cages and supplies ready and a final medical check before the animals can finally be on their way to freedom. All this work and these expenses are seldom realized by people visiting the news clips. Sometimes the animals are for years in our care before we have the means and places to bring them back to where they belong. So I think the following two pictures show a much more complete picture of the ongoing challenges Masarang’s Tasikoki Wildlife Rescue and Education Center is facing to achieve this final step that we normally only see in newspapers and clips and short interviews with officials.

This time we sent back 68 protected animals of 7 different species out of which 63 were parrots, some of the most traded and threatened species that are hugely popular pets inside as well as outside of Indonesia. We still have to take in hundreds more from The Philippines for example. And the trade still continues. Without the presence of our Tasikoki Wildlife Rescue Center near the Bitung hub port the trade would likely be even worse.

These two pictures below show that there will be more needed… Law enforcement has to be the key. On the right two of the dogs at Tasikoki trained to smell for smuggled wildlife in luggage at airports and harbors.

Below is the report by Billy Lolowang on this transport of animals. We want to thank all our donors that enable us to continue to stand up for nature.

Friday, June 21 2024, a total of 68 animals consisting of 11 White Cockatoos (Cacatua alba), 29 Chattering Lory (Lorius garrulus), 4 Violet-necked Lory (Eos squamata), 1 Sailfin Lizard (Hydrosaurus amboinensis), 3 Halmahera Ground Boa (Candoia paulsoni), 11 Red Lory (Eos bornea) and 9 Moluccan Cockatoos (Cacatua moluccensis) departed from Bitung Port to their home areas in Ternate (North Maluku) and Ambon (Maluku).

These animals were confiscated and rescued from illegal wildlife trade and illegal pets by the North Sulawesi Natural Resources and Conservation Agency (BKSDA Ssulawesi Utara), which were then entrusted to the Tasikoki Wildlife Rescue Center to undergo treatment and rehabilitation. These animals have had their health checked and declared fit to be returned to their original habitat to be released back into nature.

This translocation is actually scheduled to take place last year. But, during the health check for sampling the Psittacine Feather and Beak Diseases (PBFD), some of the parrots that are planned to be translocated are indicated by this disease. We had to repeat the health check and do full screening for all the parrots in Tasikoki to make sure which one got infected and needed to be isolated and which one is healthy and ready to be translocated or released.

The translocation of the animals was carried out by the North Sulawesi Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA Sulawesi Utara) with support from the BKSDA Maluku and positive partners WCS-IP, the Masarang Foundation (PPS Tasikoki), and the World Parrot Trust. To make sure the safety of the animals on the boat during the translocation, the transport was joined by the staff from BKSDA Sulawesi Utara, drh. Avivah (vet) and Noldy (animal keeper) from Tasikoki WRC and also drh. Fahmi (vet) and Angela from World Parrot Trust. Every few hours on the ship to Molucca, we are checking the birds to make sure they are okay. On the board we feed them, give them enrichment and also extra nutritious supplements to keep the birds in a good shape before they arrive at their destination.

22 June 2024, morning around 7am we arrive at the Ternate Sea-Port, where there are the officers from BKSDA in Ternate already waiting to pickup the animals. In total there is 48 animals are off board in Ternate, immediately transferred to the transit cages under BKSDA facilities. Drh. Avivah (Tasikoki) and Angela (WPT) are off board the ship also to help the officers in Ternate taking care these birds for a few days.

The next day on 23 June 2024, the rest of the translocation team and 20 other birds are arrived at Ambon Sea-port. We immediately transferred these birds to the Pusat Konservasi Satwa (Wildlife Conservation Center/WCC) under BKSDA Maluku facilities. Noldy, Billy (Tasikoki), and Fahmi (WPT) are also stayed for a few days in Ambon to help the officers in WCC to taking care these new arrived birds and doing a little bit of capacity building for the animal’s keepers in WCC Ambon.

We would like to thank to all the peoples that donated and help for the rehabilitation of this animals in Tasikoki, so we were able to send them back to where they belong including Artenschutzstiftung Zoo Karlsruhe and Dr. Manfred Krieger who contributed much to the care before this transport became possible.

Hopefully these animals will be released soon to the wild in Halmahera and Ceram Island; after they got rest a little bit from the journey back home on the boat. We hope to keep you updated on their progress in these final steps.

THE LIST OF THE TRANSLOCATED ANIMALS

We are proud to continue to help support the Sintang Orangutan Centre. Since 2020 we have not been able to do as much as we would like due to limited funds.  However, we hope to sponsor an orangutan in 2024 in a joint effort with the dedicated volunteers in the German organisation Lebensraum Regenwald. Fingers crossed we can raise enough funds to do this.

For the Hong Kong-based artisanal chocolate company, Cacao: Guilt Free Luxury Chocolates, 

Masarang’s Arenga palm sugar is a key ingredient in almost all of their products. 

On their trip to Indonesia in 2023, they sat down with Willie to talk about the making of the

Masarang Foundation palm sugar, and its many benefits to local people, wildlife and habitats.