There are over 1,000 orphan orangutans in care who would struggle to remember what it was like to have a mother as they were either killed or died as a result of the logging and deforestation in Kalimantan and Borneo. Others were snatched to be sold as illegal pets.
The Australian Orangutan Project not only looks after orphans but also those who were born in captivity such the new infant twins Ganteng and Ginting, who were born on January 21t at the Batu Mbelin orangutan quarantine centre near Medan in North Sumatra. Twins are not unheard of amongst orangutans and the other great apes (chimpanzees, gorillas and bonobos) but they very rare, and relatively few zoos around the world have experience of them.
This birth is also particularly notable in that BOTH parents are BLIND. The mother, Gober, is an elderly female, probably well over 40 years old, who is blind in both eyes due to cataracts. The father, named Leuser, was found in 2006 having been shot by local villagers 62 times with an air rifle. Three of the rifle pellets lodged in his eyes, two in the left and one in the right, and he is now totally blind as a result.
Mother and father and the two new twins are all housed at the Batu Mbelin orangutan quarantine centre, near Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia which is the only such centre in the world for Sumatran orangutans. The twins are available to ‘foster’ annually for just $110, helping to care for all their food, shelter and care needs. OR for the sum of just $55 a year, families and individuals can adopt an orphan orangutan and make a real difference to this unique and special species. Care of these infants is costly and requires round the clock veterinary and nurse care to ensure they are in a healthy condition, have fresh food, are jungle trained and the best chance to survive – and possibly even return to the wild. Each family and/or individual adopting an orphaned orangutan receives an adoption pack.
“Adoption is an opportunity to make a real difference to orangutans’ lives by improving their survival
chances, offering them a safe, secure and stable future and habitat. From what our adoptive families tell us it is an enormously rewarding experience for them too,” says Leif Cocks, President and Founder of the Australian Orangutan Project.

• Interesting facts about Orangutans
• Orangutans are the only Great Ape found outside Africa.
• Orangutans are the only “red” ape.
• Orangutans are the only strictly arboreal ape, meaning that they spend their lives in the forest canopy.
•  Orangutans breed slower than any other primate and have approximately 3 offspring in their lifetime.
• Sumatran orangutans have lighter hair, longer beards and narrower cheekpads than Borean orangutans.
• Orangutans brachiate (swing arm-over-arm through the forest) better than any other ape.
• Orangutans are the only apes in the world that are from Asia.
• Orangutans are diurnal which means they are active during the day.
• Orangutans have opposable thumbs which means they can touch each of their fingers with their thumb.
• A male orangutan’s cheek pads keep growing for most of their life.
• Orangutans have 32 permanent teeth (the same amount as humans). They have sharp canine teeth with the male orangutan having longer canine teeth that they use for threat displays and fighting.
• Mosquitoes bother orangutans just like they do humans and they will use branches like fly swatters to swish them away.
• When it rains or the sun is hot an orangutan will hold a leafy branch or two over its head to protect itself from getting wet or overheated.
• Most orangutans build a nest every night high up in a tree and sometimes even add a roof leaves.
• •Orangutans can make approximately 13 to 15 different vocalizations.
• The name “orangutan” translates into English as “man of the forest”. It comes from Malay and Bahasa Indonesian orang (man) and hutan (forest).
• At this time orangutans can still be found in the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra.
• An orangutan arms can have a reach of more than 8 feet! How tall are you? Probably not 8 feet or higher. So, an orangutan can have a reach of a length longer than you are tall
• In their true habitat, male orangutans live alone and females live alone or with their infants.
• Male orangutans reach a height of approximately 4.5 feet and females about 3.5 feet tall.
• •An orangutan is expected to live in their true habitat between 35 to 50 years (when not having their lives interrupted by poachers or other humans). There are cases of orangutans
• in captivity living over 50 years–but what kind of life is that? Give me 35 years of freedom instead of 50 years in a cage.
• •Female orangutans usually have one baby at a time and will only have one every 6 to 7 years.
• •Orangutans eat tropical fruits, leaves, sprouts, bark and insects.
• Baby orangutans cry when they’re hungry, whimper when they’re hurt and smile at their mothers.
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You can help the orphans and the new twin orangutans by giving them a future. Visiting www.orangutan.org.au and following the prompts, if you’d like to make a donation or ‘adopt’ and Orangutan orphan.

St David, or Dewi Sant as he's called in the Welsh language, is the Welsh patron saint and the only Welsh saint to be canonised. St David's believed monks should live simply, and he prescribed a harsh life for his followers. This must have been a popular regime at the time as St David founded 10 monasteries and established an order of monks devoted to austerity, manual labour and worship. St David and his monks were vegetarian and they had to pull the plough themselves as they were not permitted to use animals for hard work. St David died around 600AD after founding a monastery in the area of Pembrokeshire which now bears his name. A couple of hundred years later, his feast day was set as March 1. To commemorate this day, many Welsh wear leeks or daffodils pinned to their caps or jackets.

Welsh leek and cheddar cheese risotto
Serves 4
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion finely chopped
4 cloves garlic finely chopped
150g smoked pancetta or streaky bacon
200g leeks thinly sliced
420g risotto rice such as Arborio
200ml dry white wine
1.2 litres stock
80g mature cheddar cheese - freshly grated

Heat the stock in a saucepan until boiling and keep simmering while you prepare the risotto. Heat the oil in a shallow casserole or saucepan and fry the onion gently until translucent, making sure it does not colour. Add the bacon, garlic and leek and mix into the onion. Add the rice and stir gently so as to absorb the oil. Fry for five minutes then add the wine and cook until absorbed. Start adding the stock a ladle at a time and cook stirring until it is absorbed before adding more stock. This process should take about 20 minutes after which time the rice should be al dente. Remove the risotto from the heat and add the cheese, mix well then leave to rest for a few minutes before serving. Serve with rocket leaves or a light green salad.