Abstract
Despite several recent orang-utan (Pongo pygmaeus) field studies in Borneo and Sumatra, tool-use has never been reported among wild orang-utan populations in contexts other than agonistic displays or nesting/covering behaviors. During a continuous 9-year study at Tanjung Puting Reserve, Central Indonesian Borneo, only one instance of wild orang-utan tool-use outside these two contexts was observed: an adult male orang-utan broke off a dead branch and used it to scratch his rear for half a minute.
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Galdikas, B.M.F. An unusual instance of tool-use among wild orang-utans in tanjung puting reserve, indonesian borneo. Primates 23, 138–139 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02381445
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02381445