Groundbreaking: Orangutan Uses Medicinal Plant to Heal Wound – A World First

Summary: Orangutan Rakus’s Remarkable Self-Treatment

• Discovery: Rakus, a Sumatran orangutan, was observed treating a wound with a medicinal plant, revealing animals’ natural self-soothing behaviors.
• Behavior Unprecedented: This behavior marks the first known instance of a wild animal using a potent medicinal plant directly on a wound, as noted by Isabelle Laumer from Max Planck.
• Event Details: The incident occurred in June 2022 in Indonesia’s Gunung Leuser National Park, where Rakus likely sustained the injury in a confrontation with rival orangutans.
• Plant Usage: Rakus chewed leaves of Fibraurea tinctoria, known as Akar Kuning, applying its juices to the wound, leading to successful healing within a month.
• Rakus’s Profile: Born in 1989, Rakus is a dominant male orangutan identified by his prominent cheek pads, indicative of his status in the region.
• Scientific Insights: Biologist Jacobus de Roode highlights the importance of single observations, suggesting Rakus’s behavior as a form of self-medication.
• Learning Potential: Co-author Caroline Schuppli speculates Rakus might have learned the technique from orangutans outside the park, underscoring the significance of further research.

Rakus, a Sumatran orangutan, utilizes a plant to heal a facial injury, likely from a skirmish.

In Indonesia, a Sumatran orangutan named Rakus was seen treating a wound with a tropical plant, highlighting how animals use natural remedies. Scientists observed Rakus chewing leaves of a medicinal plant, commonly used in Southeast Asia for pain relief. He then applied the plant’s juices to a cheek injury, followed by using the chewed leaves to cover the wound, resembling a bandage. This discovery, featured in Scientific Reports, sheds light on animals’ self-soothing behaviors.

In previous studies, great apes were observed seeking medicinal plants in forests for self-healing, but this behavior was unprecedented. Isabelle Laumer, a biologist from the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour, noted it as the first instance of a wild animal using a potent medicinal plant directly on a wound.

The event occurred in June 2022 in Indonesia’s Gunung Leuser National Park on Sumatra, where researchers noticed Rakus with an injury likely from a confrontation with rival orangutans. Rakus chewed leaves of Fibraurea tinctoria, applying the plant’s juice directly from his mouth using his fingers.

The plant, called Akar Kuning in Indonesia, is seldom consumed by orangutans in the region’s peat swamp forest, home to approximately 150 critically endangered Sumatran orangutans. Photos revealed Rakus’s wound healed within a month without complications.

Rakus, estimated to be born in 1989, is a flanged male orangutan, distinguished by prominent cheek pads, indicating his status as a dominant male in the region.

Emory University biologist Jacobus de Roode, not part of the study, emphasized the significance of single observations in discovering new behaviors. He suggested Rakus’s action likely constitutes self-medication, given the focused application of the plant solely on the wound.

Co-author Caroline Schuppli from Max Planck mentioned the possibility of Rakus learning the technique from orangutans outside the park. These orangutans might not be under daily observation by researchers.

Prior instances of primates using plants for self-treatment have been documented by scientists.