Tampa Orangutans
Jan 23, 2020 09:02:55 #
The name "orangutan" is derived from the Malay and Indonesian words orang meaning "person" and hutan meaning "forest", thus "person of the forest".
ZooTampa at Lowry Park
Tampa, Florida
November 2019
Bornean Orangutan by Paul Sager, on Flickr
Fruit is the most important component of the orangutan diet; however, the apes will also eat vegetation, bark, honey, insects and even bird eggs. They can live over 30 years in both the wild and captivity. Orangutans are among the most intelligent primates; they use a variety of sophisticated tools and construct elaborate sleeping nests each night from branches and foliage.
Native to Malaysia and Indonesia, the longhaired red great apes can be found on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. The orangutan is considered endangered in the wild due to critical habitat loss, increased use of palm oil, poaching and pet trade. The population declined more than 50 percent during the last 60 years.
Bornean Orangutan
ZooTampa at Lowry Park in Tampa, Florida is home to three generations in an 8-member troup of orangutans. Three different mothers care for their young ones.
Bornean Orangutan
Josie is technically the "grandma" of the family, she gave birth to GoJo, a boy, in 2016.
GoJo and Josie
ZooTampa participates in 95 Species Survival Plan projects. The zoo also hosts a hospital for Florida manatees in which injured animals are rehabilitated with the intent of returning them to the wild. The zoo works in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to rescue, rehabilitate and release Florida’s endangered manatees.
These images are sized to fill your wide-screen display. Try using <F11> to maximize your browser window for the full effect. If the images overshoot your display, such as a laptop, just click on the image or the URL link and they'll resize to your screen from the host Flickr site. You can click a bit further into the image details on the Flickr page, if desired. EXIF data is available from the host Flickr pages as well. On the Flickr site, use your <L>key for Large and the <F11> for the full-screen.
ZooTampa at Lowry Park
Tampa, Florida
November 2019
Bornean Orangutan by Paul Sager, on Flickr
Fruit is the most important component of the orangutan diet; however, the apes will also eat vegetation, bark, honey, insects and even bird eggs. They can live over 30 years in both the wild and captivity. Orangutans are among the most intelligent primates; they use a variety of sophisticated tools and construct elaborate sleeping nests each night from branches and foliage.
Native to Malaysia and Indonesia, the longhaired red great apes can be found on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. The orangutan is considered endangered in the wild due to critical habitat loss, increased use of palm oil, poaching and pet trade. The population declined more than 50 percent during the last 60 years.
Bornean Orangutan
ZooTampa at Lowry Park in Tampa, Florida is home to three generations in an 8-member troup of orangutans. Three different mothers care for their young ones.
Bornean Orangutan
Josie is technically the "grandma" of the family, she gave birth to GoJo, a boy, in 2016.
GoJo and Josie
ZooTampa participates in 95 Species Survival Plan projects. The zoo also hosts a hospital for Florida manatees in which injured animals are rehabilitated with the intent of returning them to the wild. The zoo works in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to rescue, rehabilitate and release Florida’s endangered manatees.
These images are sized to fill your wide-screen display. Try using <F11> to maximize your browser window for the full effect. If the images overshoot your display, such as a laptop, just click on the image or the URL link and they'll resize to your screen from the host Flickr site. You can click a bit further into the image details on the Flickr page, if desired. EXIF data is available from the host Flickr pages as well. On the Flickr site, use your <L>key for Large and the <F11> for the full-screen.
Jan 23, 2020 09:12:49 #
Jan 23, 2020 09:33:51 #
Jan 23, 2020 09:45:34 #
Unbelievable detail in these portraits, always enjoy the descriptions you provide with your photos!
Jan 23, 2020 09:45:46 #
drc023
Loc: North Little Rock, Arkansas
Highly intelligent animals. I think it's a tragedy that so many animals are now endangered due to shrinking habitat.
Jan 23, 2020 09:49:25 #
Jan 23, 2020 10:12:23 #
Jan 23, 2020 10:17:00 #
Jan 23, 2020 11:08:41 #
Jan 23, 2020 11:12:35 #
drc023 wrote:
Highly intelligent animals. I think it's a tragedy that so many animals are now endangered due to shrinking habitat.
Thank you drc023! I spent some time yesterday reading about the rescues and treatment of koalas and the heartbreaking disposals of dead animals on Kangaroo Island in Australia after the recent fires. The orangutan story is equally heartbreaking.
Jan 23, 2020 11:12:38 #
Thank you Photolady2014, JohnD3, FL Streetrodder, Earnest, John, Ken! I encourage everyone to visit Zoo Tampa in time to be near the orangutans during the keeper discussion. In mid November the weather is pleasant too. Glad you enjoyed.
Jan 23, 2020 11:59:49 #
Some of your postings do spark a major outbreak of gear envy from me, Paul 
I wonder if this is the zoo I saw on a NatGeo Wild program a few nights ago (might have been older programming too). Wonderful photos here!
I wonder if this is the zoo I saw on a NatGeo Wild program a few nights ago (might have been older programming too). Wonderful photos here!Jan 23, 2020 12:12:25 #
Almostageezer
Loc: USA
Your photos make me want to visit them on my next trip to Florida. Very nice!
Jan 23, 2020 12:25:37 #
Almostageezer wrote:
Your photos make me want to visit them on my next trip to Florida. Very nice!
Thank you Almostageezer! I'll mention the zoo can be rather busy, especially the parking, and definitely relatively expensive. If you have a membership to another zoo, be sure to have your card with you as it might knock off half the price.
Jan 23, 2020 12:25:43 #
Linda From Maine wrote:
Some of your postings do spark a major outbreak of gear envy from me, Paul I wonder if this is the zoo I saw on a NatGeo Wild program a few nights ago (might have been older programming too). Wonderful photos here!
I wonder if this is the zoo I saw on a NatGeo Wild program a few nights ago (might have been older programming too). Wonderful photos here!Thank you Linda! These are from a 300mm lens on a full-frame body, a focal length probably most everyone has covered, regardless of camera type. When the keepers speak, they're also providing / throwing fruit and vegetables and the primate family is right there as close as can be. I believe this family is world famous for a zoo exhibit. It wouldn't surprise me so see them covered on NatGeo.
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