- Brugelette, Belgium -
On March 31, the Pairi Daiza Zoo has shared on their Facebook page amazing pictures of a blossoming friendship between a family of orangutans and their Asian small-clawed otters neighbors.
The two species share an exhibit space, and their co-existence and interaction with another can teach humans a thing or two.
The group of Asian small-clawed otters lives in the river that runs through the enclosure housing the orangutans.
The orangutan family, who arrived at the zoo in 2017, is made of 24-year-old Uijan, 15-year-old Sari, and their 3-year-old son Berani.
Pairi Daiza spokesman Mathieu Goedefroy says the two animals live together as part of the zoo’s enrichment program which is designed so different animal species interact with one another.
According to Goedefroy, the otters really enjoy getting out of the water and onto the orangutan island to go and play with their furry friends.
He also said that Berani and his dad have developed a particularly strong bond with their neighbors.
Zookeepers say orangutans share 97% of their DNA with humans and as a result require a lot of attention and activities to keep them occupied.
So, staff entertain them all day long with mind games, riddles, puzzles, and other brainy stuff to train their intelligence.
Goedefroy added: “It makes life more fun and interesting for both animal species, which makes it a very successful experiment.”
There are another two orangutans who live there, a male named Gempa, and a female named Sinta.