VIDEOS

Meet the Sunbears - Each Sunbear at Samboja Lestari has their own name and unique markings which make them all individual. Because of recent projects to help the welfare of these amazing animals, there has been a great improvement and they are healthy and happy in their captive environment. But there is so much more to do. Have a look at the projects below and see what we have been up to.

Sunbear Enrichment Project -Stage 1

Sunbear Rainforest Enclosure Project -Stage 2

Listed as Vulnerable by IUCN in 2008, the sun bear is already extinct in Bangladesh, Singapore, and possibly India and China due to human caused death and habitat loss.

There remain some isolated sun bear subpopulations in Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. We have no clear idea just how many sun bears make up these populations, or if they are genetically viable, and we know very little about the mortality rates that threaten them.

In Borneo, East Kalimantan, the BOS Foundation who is best known for its work with orangutans, began care for confiscated sun bears. Samboja Lestari very soon became home to 52 sun bears in confined and unsuitable conditions.

In September 2008, however, the lives of these sun bears were transformed. Animal behaviourist Darek Figa and his team developed an innovative new enrichment program and successfully grouped uncastrated male bears for the first time ever, enabling them to access the 1 ha enclosures in groups peacefully.

ENRICHMENT PROGRAM

The purpose of enrichment is to encourage natural behaviours within the captive environment. The enrichment program encourages sun bears to work for their food in the same way they would in the wild – foraging in leaf litter, climbing trees for fruit, tearing rotten logs apart in search of termites, and licking food out of natural crevices.

At the sanctuary bamboo climbing frames, bridges, tyre swings, dens and ponds have been constructed. Food is hidden in food puzzles, bamboo food tubes, up trees, and under logs. It is scattered in leaf litter, smeared onto surfaces, or buried in the ground. Hiding places are varied so that the bears must find it by using their excellent sense of smell rather than relying on their memory.

More than six months later, the male bears are still living together peacefully without castration or hormone suppressing drugs. The improvements continue and it is the aim of the Samboja Lestari Sun Bear Sanctuary to provide these sun bears with the best care possible in an environment that so closely mimics their natural habitat that the bears can behave much as they would in the wild. And should the day come for release these bears will be ready and suitable.