Our Hungry Neighbor: Self-Reported Data from Farmers’ Perspective on Tapanuli Orangutans in the Batang Toru Forest, Indonesia

Abstract

Human-orangutan conflicts are a growing problem in the tropical rainforests of Sumatra. Habitat degradation and fragmentation can drive orangutans to move on to agroforestry plantations and into conflict with farmers. This research examines farmers’ awareness of the roles that Tapanuli orangutans play, their attitudes towards orangutans when they come on their land and the broader political-economic factors which influence interactions between smallholders and orangutans. We used a mixed methods approach of quantitative surveys with 275 farmers and qualitative in-depth interviews with 22 key informants from 11 villages on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia. We found that while many farmers had negative encounters with orangutans eating their crops, their responses differed. Some tolerated the orangutans; others chased them away. The difference stemmed from cultural beliefs about orangutans and their relationship to humans. Some communities hold them as neighbours, others fear them, but in both cases would not harm them. Most farmers do not perceive them as significant threats but as hunger-driven neighbours. Rather than blaming the orang-utans per se, they argue that habitat loss caused by expanding extractive activities is the driving factor of this conflict. They want to see limits on the expansion of extractive industry, alternative income sources and compensation for their orangutan losses. The study concludes by highlighting five aspects that need consideration for reducing human-orangutan conflicts and with a broader discussion on the need to include the socio-cultural context of the human populations in conservation initiatives. The study underscores the imperative of integrating local farmers’ perspectives in conserving critically endangered Tapanuli orangutans. It advocates coexistence through crop loss mitigation, deforestation prevention, and compensation strategies, emphasizing the need for holistic, sustainable conservation measures encompassing ecological, social, and economic facets within the region.