HowToDrawWildLife.Com

It was my third day on site at the Friends of the National Parks Foundation in Borneo and I was invited to visit quarantine where sick and rehabilitating orang-utans stay until they are well enough to go back into the wild.

I thought to myself how do they stand the heat and humidity with all that fur as my clothes were sticking to my body and sweat was rolling down my face. The air felt so thick, heavy and steamy yet as I walked towards one of the cages the thick, steamy air suddenly became easier to breathe as I was captivated by the cutest most loving big brown eyes I had ever seen.

I asked my hostess and project manager of FNPF Yen all about this beautiful baby orang-utan who caught my eye that was about 12 months old. Her name was Jodie and evidently she contracted tuberculosis. I found that hard to believe as she swung and jumped around the cage full of energy looking as cheeky as ever and giving a toothy smile, as she swung past.

In the next cage there were two male orang-utans who were older than Jodie but still young. As I approached the bars of the cage one of them lent towards me and grabbed my hand and pulled it towards him between the bars. He looked at my hand as to study it and compare it to his own, as though we were the same but not quite.

His hand was warm and his palm felt rough and well padded like a leather cushion. His fur was thick and course that felt like thin wire with beautiful auburn highlights through it that sparkled when caught by the light of the sun. I was so amazed by his curiosity and persistence to study my hand. When he finally let go the other orang-utan came over and pulled my hand in just like the other only with more force. This one wouldn’t let go for quite a while and was more interested in playing than studying my hand. I guess that goes to show how individual they are.

It was time to leave as Yen called me over to get back for lunch. There was a lot planned for the rest of the afternoon yet this experience of seeing the orang-utans up close will remain with me for the rest of my life.

When I returned home to Australia I received a sad email from Yen to say that Jodie had passed away from her disease. I’ll never forget those warm brown eyes…..

There’s nothing more thrilling than witnessing local wildlife in your own backyard and having your camera ready just at the right time.

I feel so blessed to be surrounded by an abundance of striking bird life that colours my day and cuddly, wide-eyed possums that come out at night. I might even be lucky enough to see a koala, though not in my actual backyard, yet only a few suburbs away if I happen to be there at the right time. (Unfortunately, due to urban development encroaching on their habitat, with the threat of dogs and disease there appears to be a lot less koalas in our local area).

In order to attract more wildlife to our backyards or patios we need some things that would be a part of their natural habitat. It can be as simple as providing water, a clump of native grasses in a corner, a pile of sticks or small logs for shelter, a birdhouse, and perhaps a possum house in a tree. Even people that live in high-rise buildings or apartments can do their bit to help the ecological balance by planting the right plants from their balconies providing natural habitat for birds and butterflies.

For native birds there needs to be the right kind of trees or shrubs for them to feed. We can do this by sourcing native plants from our nearest nursery. For example if you wanted to attract more lorikeets you would need to plant grevilleas and if your yard was big enough a eucalypt tree could attract up to 30 of them.

To provide shelter for lizards you can put a pile of sticks in a corner and grow a native vine over it and this would most likely attract small birds such as finches and wrens. Creating a pond will encourage native frogs to visit your garden and provide a place for them to live and breed if the correct conditions are created.

No matter what part of the world you are from you can find out from your local nursery which plants or trees you need to plant in order to attract more wildlife as well as visiting the library for any guide books. It’s important to remove anything hazardous that you think could harm them such as garden poisons. Most importantly of all, keep your cats inside at night. Cats are a great threat to wildlife, especially smaller species.

So even in our own backyards all it takes a bit of research and time to attract the wonder, colour and excitement of these beautiful animals that share our world that make it such a rich and diverse place.