Orangutan
Borneo, Indonesia
We humans belong to the Hominidae family. Among our closest relatives are four species of great apes: the gorillas, chimpanzees, and bonobos of Africa, and the orangutans of Southeast Asia. I traveled to Borneo, Indonesia to meet the orangutan. The island, situated just below the equator, is blanketed in vast stretches of tropical rainforest and enveloped in heavy humidity. After a half-day boat ride up a river flowing into the Java Sea, its waters stained the color of black tea by tannins, I arrived at the jungle where orangutans live.
Inside the jungle, the towering trees shielded me from the sun, and the heat seemed to ease just a little. As I walked along a narrow path, I came across an orangutan sitting with his back against a tree. He was a large, flanged male, his cheek pads hanging prominently. He exuded the aura of a boss, as if claiming this domain as his.
His face and body were enormous, his presence commanding, with an air of intimidation. I wanted to get closer to take a photo, but approaching a flanged male is both dangerous and frightening. If he were to get angry and attack, a human wouldn鈥檛 stand a chance.
So, I thought to approach while looking through my camera鈥檚 viewfinder. It wasn鈥檛 any safer, but somehow, seeing him through the lens made the fear feel less intense than if I had approached him directly. Carefully watching his reactions, I moved slowly, little by little, until I was just 50 centimeters away. My heart pounded, bracing for the moment he might strike. But he didn鈥檛 get angry. He simply let me be.
