April 2008

Zoo’s New Infant Orangutan, Mahal,
Interacting Well with New
Surrogate Mom, MJ

Mahal

Look who's on Facebook!

Mahal, the Milwaukee County Zoo's baby orangutan, has his own Facebook group called Friends of Mahal. You can view the Friends of Mahal Group page here.

If you are registered with Facebook, join the Friends of Mahal Group.

A nine-month-old male Bornean orangutan, Mahal, arrived at the Milwaukee County Zoo on February 7, to be paired with the Zoo’s female orangutan, MJ. It was the Zoo’s hope that MJ would bond with Mahal, as his surrogate mother.

Mahal arrived from the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado, where, shortly after his April birth, his mother rejected him. He was then given 24-hour-a-day care, seven-days-a-week by the Zoo’s dedicated hand-rearing team until a surrogate could be found. In November, Mahal was introduced to Sandra, the Zoo’s 51-year-old orangutan matriarch. Sandra had raised nine of her own offspring, and immediately took to Mahal. The zookeepers noticed a renewed energy in Sandra and the two were inseparable. Unfortunately, Sandra died in her sleep in mid-December.

The search for a new surrogate then began, while Mahal continued to receive 24-hour-care from the team. It was determined there were six possible surrogates, out of a total of 117 females, in zoos accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

For various factors, the Milwaukee County Zoo’s female orangutan, MJ, was chosen as a possible surrogate for Mahal. MJ came to the Milwaukee County Zoo from the Toledo Zoo, where she served as a surrogate for another infant orangutan.

Mahal arrived in style (via private plane) thanks to a donation from Terry Kohler and the flight team of Windway Capital Corp., who have made significant and generous contributions to various conservation-related causes throughout the years.

Mahal continued to receive 24-hour care from both his Cheyenne Mountain keepers who accompanied him to Milwaukee, and from MCZ keepers. Over the course of several days, the hand-rearing team slowly introduced Mahal to MJ, and they began to bond.

Currently, the two can be seen on exhibit together, getting along very well with one another, in the Apes of Africa Building. The Zoo’s male orangutan, Tom, also has been given access to interact with MJ and the infant.

The orangutan’s current existence in the wild is severely threatened. Economic crises, combined with natural disasters and human abuse of the forest, are pushing this species to extinction. Experts estimate orangutans could be extinct in the wild in as few as 10 years.