This is the heart-breaking moment a tiny baby orangutan desperately clung to his mother moments after the starving ape had been tranquilized by rescue workers.
The fearful baby orangutan hugs its mother after she was tranquilized by animal rescue workers
Scared to leave its mother’s side, the baby ape clings on to her unconscious carer while workers rush to separate the two
The orangutan was tranquilized after it was found with its baby starving on a plantation in Borneo
The pair were struggling to find food having fled forest fires that destroyed their natural habitat
Both were clearly emaciated and starving to death. Here the mother’s leg and hip bones are clearly visible
Without the help of the International Animal Rescue (pictured), the two apes would likely have starved to death
Rescue workers used tranquilizer darts to prise the terrified pair from their home in a tree (pictured)
After being shot, rescue workers used netting to catch the orangutans as they fell from the tree
After being rescued in late January, they were transported back to the charity’s base in Ketapang
The pictures show the mother was so emaciated from lack of food her leg and hip bones are clearly visible.
The baby orangutan, estimated to be aged two or three, appears terrified during the separation from its mother
After its mother was tranquilized, she released her grip from the tree and the pair fell to the ground
The International Animal Rescue warns forest fires in Borneo are threatening the livelihood of the species
Rescuers workers located the mother and father and camped out under the tree in which they were nesting
The pair were found badly starving on a plantation after villagers in Semanai, Simpang Tiga village complained that the animals were eating their crops.
They were found on a plantation after villagers had complained that the animals were eating their crops
Since being taken in by the charity, the orangutan mother has now started to produce breast milk for her baby
‘And we are expecting a long drought season again this year as a result of the El Nino, with the risk of more forest fires to come.
‘I hope it won’t be long before both mother and baby are fit enough to be released into a protected area of forest where there is a plentiful supply of fruits and other food to sustain them.
‘I do urge the public please to continue supporting International Animal Rescue so that our team in Borneo is fully equipped to continue the fight to save these magnificent orangutans during the difficult months ahead.’
Rescuers say witnessing huge forest fires wiping out the orangutans’ habitat is almost ‘impossible to bear’