Critically endangered

Extinction
is next

Orangutans are critically endangered and are the highest risk category before Extinct in the Wild.

Volunteer-run Australian charity
Donations over $2 tax deductible
Supporting BOS Foundation since 2001

Why us

BOS Australia funds the largest orangutan rescue and rehabilitation programme on earth.

What we do

Seven to nine years with us. No shortcuts.

Rescue and quarantine, then Forest School, then a river island unassisted, then the wild. Your support directly supports their rehabilitiation.

The four stages of rehabilitation

01 Rescue & quarantine

Stage 01

Rescue & quarantine

Confiscation from the pet trade or rescue from cleared forest, then medical triage and quarantine before any contact with other orangutans.

Nyaru Menteng · Samboja Lestari
02 Forest School

Stage 02

Forest School

Years of daily lessons with surrogate nannies — climbing, nest-building, foraging and learning which of hundreds of forest foods are safe.

Five graded school stages
03 Pre-release islands

Stage 03

Pre-release islands

A final exam in semi-wild conditions. Candidates live unassisted on forested river islands while staff watch for genuine independence.

The Salat Island cluster
04 Wild release

Stage 04

Wild release

Transport by boat, road and helicopter into protected forest, followed by years of post-release monitoring to confirm they are thriving.

Kehje Sewen · Bukit Baka

Threats

Critically endangered for a reason.

Fire, deforestation, palm oil plantations and the illegal pet trade are the major causes of the decline.

The four perils

The wild population has fallen by more than 80% in fifty years, and every one of those losses traces back to something people chose to do.

01 — Habitat

Deforestation

Logging and clearing fragment the canopy into islands too small to feed a population, stranding orangutans in isolated pockets of forest.
02 — Agriculture

Palm oil plantations

Monoculture replaces mixed rainforest with rows of a single crop that supports almost none of the species that lived there.
03 — Fire

Peatland burning

Drained peat swamps burn underground for months, destroying habitat and releasing globally significant volumes of carbon.
04 — Trade

Poaching & the pet trade

Infants are taken for the illegal pet trade — and because they cling to their mothers, an infant taken almost always means a mother killed.

Impact

Over 25 Years of Australian supporters.

1,200+ orangutans rescued. 556 released back to the wild. 460,000+ hectares of Kalimantan, Borneo protected.

Your support matters

Every number here is an orangutan that had a name, a nanny and a release date.

1,200+

Orangutans rescued

From the pet trade and from forest being cleared.
556

Released back home

Returned to protected forest.
340+

In our care

Living across two sanctuaries in Kalimantan.
70+

Sun bears in our care

Rescued alongside orangutans, at Samboja Lestari.
470+

Indonesian staff

Nannies, vets, technicians and rangers on the ground.
2001

Fundraising since

Two decades of Australian supporters behind them.

Donate

How You Can Help.

BOS Australia is run by volunteers, and we fund exactly what the sanctuaries and their staff need.

Donate now

Your donation goes straight to Borneo

BOS Australia is run by volunteers. Donations over $2 are tax deductible in Australia, and we fund exactly what the sanctuaries & staff need to care for the orangutans.