Summary

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Southwest Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) are present in Mawas Conservation Area.
The population size is unknown.
The orangutan population trend is unknown.
The total site area is 3,090 km².
The main reported threats include human wildlife conflict, illegal logging, and forest fires.
The main conservation activities have focused on raising awareness in the community and restoring habitats.
Within the site there is a research center established since 2002, known as Tuanan Orangutan Research Station.

Site characteristics

The Mawas Conservation Area spans approximately 309,000 hectares of peat-swamp forest in Central Kalimantan—making it one of the largest intact peat-forest systems in Indonesia de.wikipedia.org+13orangutan.de+13redapes.org+13. This region supports one of the last major wild populations of Bornean orangutans, estimated at 2,550–3,000 individuals (Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation 2022).

Table 1. Basic site information for Mawas Conservation Area

Species	Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii
Area	3,090 km²
Coordinates	Lat: -2.305240 , Lon: 114.497831
Type of site	Conservation area
Habitat types	Subtropical/tropical swamp forest
Type of governance	Private governance

Types of sites Governance types Habitat types

Ape status

Table 2. Ape population estimates reported for Mawas Conservation Area

Species	Year	Occurrence	Encounter or vistation rate (nests/km; ind/day)	Density estimate [ind./ km²] (95% CI)	Abundance estimate (95% CI)	Survey area	Sampling method	Analytical framework	Source	Comments	A.P.E.S. database ID
Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii

Sampling methods Analytical frameworks

Threats

Table 3. Threats to apes reported for Mawas Conservation Area

Category	Specific threats	Threat level	Description	Year of threat
5 Biological resource use	5.1.5 Persecution/human wildlife conflict	Present (unknown severity)	Human wildlife conflict reported, but details are unknown (Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation 2022, Orangutan Outreach 2016).	2016-Ongoing (2022)
5 Biological resource use	5.3 Logging & wood harvesting	High (more than 70% of population affected)	Reports indicate ongoing illegal logging, with hundreds of trees being unlawfully logged from untouched forest areas each month (BOS Germany 2025).	Ongoing (2025)
7 Natural system modifications	7.1 Fire & fire suppression	Present (unknown severity)	Frequent forest fires set off a dangerous cycle, as previously burned peat becomes extremely flammable and fuels new blazes. A further risk is that peat can ignite below the surface, making fires harder to detect and extinguish, and increasing the overall threat to the environment (BOS Germany 2025).	Ongoing (2025)

Threats

Conservation activities

Table 4. Conservation activities reported for Mawas Conservation Area

Category	Specific activity	Description	Implementing organization(s)	Year of activity
2 Counter-wildlife crime	2.3 Conduct regular anti-poaching patrols	The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation protects the site's ecosystems and orangutans by actively managing and patrolling the site to prevent illegal and environmentally damaging activities. (Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation 2022).	BOSF-Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation	Ongoing (2022)
4 Education & awareness	4.1 Educate local communities about apes and sustainable use	Community outreach and capacity building engage local communities by helping them build capacity for the sustainable use of natural resources, educating the younger generation on conservation issues, and employing locals for their skills and purchasing consumables (Sherman et al. 2022, Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation 2022).	BOSF-Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation	Ongoing (2022)
5 Protection & restoration	5.6 Habitat restoration	Restoration of degraded areas through canal blocking and tree planting, as well as fire prevention and biodiversity monitoring (Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation 2022).	BOSF-Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation	Ongoing (2022)
2 Counter-wildlife crime	Other	The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation contributes to mitigating human-orangutan conflict by conducting regular patrols (Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation 2022).	BOSF-Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation	Ongoing (2022)

Conservation activities

Challenges

Enablers

Research activities

As an initiative within the Mawas Conservation Program, the BOS Foundation established the Tuanan Orangutan Research Station in 2002 (Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation, 2013). Since then, the station has become a leading site for pioneering studies on wild orangutan behavior and peatland ecosystems. Non-invasive research on wild orangutans conducted from the Tuanan Research Station includes behavioral sampling, population counts, and general projects on the ecology of peat swamp forests (Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation, 2022).

Documented behaviours

Exposure to climate change impacts

External links

References

BOS Germany. (2025). Mawas – Reforestation projects. Borneo Orangutan Survival Deutschland e.V. Retrieved June 26, 2025, from https://www.orangutan.de/en/our-work/rainforest-protection/reforestation-projects/mawas/

Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation. (2013). Tuanan Orangutan Research Station. https://www.orangutan.or.id/tuanan-orangutan-research-station

Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation. (2022). Mawas: A tale of forest restoration. https://www.orangutan.or.id/mawas-a-tale-of-forest-restoration

Orangutan Foundation International. (2022). Orangutan ecosystem conservation. https://www.orangutan.or.id/orangutan-ecosystem-conservation

Orangutan Outreach. (2016). BOS news: Orangutans in conservation forest still under threat. Retrieved June 26, 2025, from https://redapes.org/bos-news-orangutans-in-conservation-forest-still-under-threat/

Sherman, J., Voigt, M., Ancrenaz, M., Wich, S. A., Qomariah, I. N., Lyman, E., Massingham, E., & Meijaard, E. (2022). Orangutan killing and trade in Indonesia: Wildlife crime, enforcement, and deterrence patterns. Biological Conservation, 276, 109744. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2022.109744

Page created by: Aime Mizero Date: 2025-05-28