Wildlife Photo Competition 6 2016 : Entry Number 35

This round’s fun photo. You have caught their expressions so well…

Shot with a Canon PowerShot G7X. This is is an image from a series of (semi)Wild orangutans in Gunung Leuser National Park, North Sumatra from February 2016. They live, eat, and breed in the jungle, but the orangutans who live near this access to the park are habituated to people. We saw at least 10 orangutans perched in trees, mostly uninterested in the occasional groups passing. This is Jackie, reintroduced to the jungle from captivity, with two babes that have been born in the wild. She isn't afraid of people, and has learned that if she comes to see and interact with the humans the trekking guides give her food. As a traveler this is a conflicting moment of excitement to see wild orangutans up close, learning about animal rehabilitation, and sadness that our visit has now reinforced this behavior.