What is an Orangutan?
The Orangutan is not just your typical monkey swinging from tree to tree behind Tarzan. The orangutan is one of the great ape species. This means they are large, strong and smart. These large apes can be found in Indonesia and Malaysia as they are native to these countries. Orangutans are currently only found in the rain forests of Borneo and Sumatra But of course as with any other animal, they are caught and shipped to many other countries whether it be in zoos or for personal use. There are three species of Orangutan, the Sumatran Orangutan, Tapanuli and the Bornean Orangutan. Let’s explore these  species a bit.

Sumatran Orangutan

• These apes are found on the island of Sumatra. The Sumatran Orangutan have slight differences in appearance compared to their Bornean counterparts. They have slightly smaller with narrower faces, slightly lighter color, slightly longer hair and the dominant male Sumatran Orangutan has bigger cheek pads than that of the Bornean. There is little difference in behavior as it relates to both species of Orangutans, depending on survival instincts, for example the Sumatran will spend more time in trees hiding from predators such as the Sumatran Tiger.

 
Tapanuli Orangutan

• The Tapanuli orangutan is a species of orangutan restricted to South Tapanuli in the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. It is one of three known species of orangutan, alongside the Sumatran orangutan, found farther northwest on the island, and Bornean orangutan. It was described as a distinct species in 2017

 
Bornean Orangutan

• These great apes are found on the Island of Bornea. Borneo is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic center of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands. The Bornean Orangutan has little differences to the Sumatran Orangutan other than what was mentioned. The Bornean Orangutan has a lifespan of about 30 -45 years in wild and may live a bit longer in captivation (zoos) The male weighs in at around 50-100 Kg while the female is much smaller at 30 to 50 kg. Males are about 1.4 meter tall while females are 120 cm.

Orangutan Temperament
Bornean orangutan are more solitary than their Sumatran relatives.  Although orangutans are not territorial, adult males will display threatening behaviors upon meeting other males, and only socialize with females to mate. Males are considered the most solitary of the orangutans. The Orangutan is  large, but in general they are quite gentle. Orangutans  will attack when felt threatened and their tremendous strength makes them dangerous.
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The gestation period for the female orangutan is approximately 9 months. They will then give birth to a single baby orangutan in a new nest which she had built at the top of a tree. The baby orangutan then sticks closely hitching free rides on its mommy’s back. The baby orangutan is weaned from the mother after a couple of years. During this period, the baby orangutan will learn critical survival skills from its mother. The Orangutan does not produce a lot of offspring during its lifetime. The Orangutan may have up to a maximum of three offspring during its entire existence. This slow breeding makes it easy for population reduction and extinction as Orangutans are often hunted, captured or killed.
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Orangutans are omnivores. They will feed mostly on plants and vegetables. The Orangutan will feed on shoots and buds along with insects and just about any kind of eggs they can lay their hands on. But One of their preferred foods is the fruit of the Durian tree, which has a very strong smell and tastes somewhat like sweet, cheesy, garlic custard.

​Orangutan Endangerment Predators and Threat
Orangutans takes mostly to the trees to avoid predators such as Tigers and Leopards which hunt and feast on them. The Orangutan is also a delicacy for large snakes which may sometime infiltrate the trees and snatch an Orangutan. The Sumatran Orangutan biggest threat was the Sumatran Tiger. But not many Sumatran Tigers exist today and as such man has moved up and taken the place of the tiger. Humans have hunted the Orangutan killing parents, capturing the young Orangutans which they will sell as pets in the black market exotic pet trade.​
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Many people fancy exotic pets and the Orangutan is not excluded from the list. The sad thing about people who buy Orangutan for pet don't realize that the seller of such an animal has probably committed some atrocity to nature to obtain the ape. People who seek orangutan pets normally buy the baby monkies as the younger they are the more they can adapt and accept a human lifestyle. This often means that the baby orangutans are snatched from their mothers and often times the mothers are slaughtered to get the baby monkey to be sold as a exotic pet.

Orangutan Diseases
Great apes are susceptible to a wide range of diseases, including Ebola, polio-like diseases and mange , measles and scabies , influenza, tuberculosis  and various respiratory diseases. Baby Orangutans captured to be sold as pets may also have these diseases. This is why it is dangerous to buy the orangutan as a pet.
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When you think of endangered species, the orangutan may not be the first picture that springs to mind. These incredibly intelligent great apes are so closely associated with humans that people often assume that they are in no danger of going extinct - but this could not be any further away from the truth.

Orangutan conservation efforts are drastically needed to help provide this species of Great Ape with a future for years to come. Endemic to only Borneo and Sumatra, the orangutans are only found in the ever-depleting rainforests of the two islands and at a number of orangutan sanctuaries scattered. You may wonder what you can do to change the lives of these amazing animals, but the answer is simple. Joining an orangutan conservation project gives you the chance to help ensure a future for the apes, and without the help of dedicated volunteers, it is unlikely that the “man of the forest” will be around for much longer.
 
If you are considering venturing out to help the orangutans in their Bornean home, then here at The Great Projects we are happy to be able to offer you the chance to do that on some of our amazing orangutan conservation programs. It will be a holiday you'll never forget, so what are you waiting for?

For More Information Dial
+44 (0) 208-885-4987 or Visit
https://www.thegreatprojects.com/orangutan-conservation

What is a beaver​?
​When people hear the word rodent they begin to automatically think about rats. But there are many other unique type of rodents and the beaver is one of them. The beaver is a large, primarily nocturnal, semi-aquatic rodent. The two species of beaver which exist today are the Eurasian Beaver and The North American beaver. Beavers are the second largest rodent in the world with the first being the Capybara. American Beavers can reach mass of 11-32 kg. While their Eurasians counterpart may reach mass of 11-30 kg.  Beavers live in water mostly and are quite known for their construction skills as they build canals, dams and lodges.

Where do Beavers Live?
Beavers love water, they spend most of their time in water and can hold their breath under water for at least 15 minutes. You will find beavers dwelling around bodies of water such as lakes, swamps, ponds, marshes and rivers. North American beavers are found in Canada and America, while Eurasian beavers are found in Asia and Europe.

What Do Beavers Eat?
Unlike it's cousin the rat. Beavers have a very healthy diet of vegetation. Beavers do not eat meat, that includes fish also. Beavers diet may consist of fruits, vegetables and plants such as stems, buds, maple, mushrooms, woody shrubs, ferns leaves and some tree roots.

Beavers and Gestation.
Gestation is basically how long a  baby beaver stays in the mother before being ready to born. The gestation period for a beaver is 107 days. Male beavers play their role in ensuring that the litter is OK as they take up temporary residence in a bank den while the little beavers are born. The birth process can last several days. The litter is 3 to 5 at birth.

What hunts beavers?
Beavers maybe the second largest rodent, but they are small animals compared to many predators and will make a taste meal for large cats such as lynx, mountain lions, large birds of prey like hawks, owl and Eagles, wolves and otters. Just about any aggressive or large carnivorous prey will kill and eat the beaver. The beavers best defense is to hide in the damns they have built in the water.
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Beavers live in the water. They build the dams to basically slow down the flow of water so their homes are not washed away and to create their own swimming space of deep and much quieter water.​

How Tough Are Beavers Teeth?
Talk about never have a need to visit the dentist if you had teeth as strong as a beaver's.  Beavers chew through trees, shrubs and branches and then drag those to their dams and lodges. They chew fast and are able to fell an 8-foot tree in only five minutes. Beavers don’t have the most beautiful teeth. In fact, they have dark orange teeth, because their teeth have a different chemical makeup than human teeth. Beaver teeth have thick enamel on the front side that contain iron, keeping the teeth firm and strong.

That sweet thick substance found in bees hive is called the honey. It is what bee keepers raise bees to produce and sell. But where does this honey come from? How do bees get to make so much honey? Well read along and find out.

Adult honeybees in peak season don't live long. They usually have a short life of about 30 days give and take a day or two, The bee quick departure from life is not because the honey bee grows old quickly, but rather because the honey bee wears its wings out on their rush to create enough supplies to survive the next dormant period.

Each hardworking little lady only produces about a 1/12 teaspoon of this delicious sweetener in her lifetime. This is why you need a lot of bees in a bee colony to produce enough honey to last.  Adult worker honey bees are designed by nature not to be fertile. You don't want pregnant bees being unable to do their precious work which is to produce honey. These bees basically have two stomachs. One of course to eat and digest and the other basically to gather and store nectar (A sweet watery substances from various blossoms) from plants and then bring back that sweet nectar to the hive and placed in a hexagon cell. Bees typically gather nectar from ,flowering plants including but not limited to; milkweed, dandelions, clover, goldenrod and a variety of fruit trees. Only worker bees forage for food, consuming as much nectar from each flower as they can. You should also know that bees which gather honey are all female.

Fermenting The Nectar
Once our honey bees return home for the night after a long day gathering nectar, she  empties her purse out and her sister Bee quickly gets to work filling the cells with nectar. This sweet stuff isn't considered honey quite yet. The housekeeping girls lay on top of it and use their wings to promote evaporation. Once the moisture level has reached 18% or less it will get a beeswax cap and it can now proudly be called Honey. The only food that doesn't spoil! 

This honey wasn't made for us humans to take as we please, as taking away the bees honey will probably destroy the colony because of starvation. Bees make honey as storage food. Bees in captivity, or bee farms are reared to produce the honey we consume. 


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