Carel van Schaik has done ground-breaking work on the behavior of
wild orangutans. His science has helped pave the way for urgent
conservation work in the apes' rainforest homes. "Among Orangutans"
is his van Schaik's story, written with passion and eloquence, and
beautifully illustrated with photos of the apes in their forest
home.--Craig Stanford, Author Of "chimpanzee And Red Colobus"
Finally a special and clear voice for the orangutans. Carel van
Schaik has written a fascinating account which is supported by
magnificent photographs. I thoroughly enjoyed this book which has
set a high standard for popular yet scientific narrative on species
conservation. The orangutans will gain many new supporters as they
continue to struggle for survival.--Richard Leakey
In this clearly written and lusciously illustrated book, Carel van
Schaik takes the reader on a trek into the world of the most
mysterious of the great apes -- the orangutan. With passion for his
science, and compassion for his subjects, he shows how the forces
of evolution have crafted a large bodied, big brained, slow moving,
fruit chomping, technologically sophisticated, culturally varied,
solitary creature. Unfortunately, the orangutan's future is in a
perilous stat thanks to one of its closest relatives -- the big
brained, technologically sophisticated, culturally variable,
omnivorous and highly social human. Hopefully, van Schaik's book
won't be the last word for the fascinating red ape.--Marc Hauser,
Harvard College Professor, Author Of Wild Minds (Holt, 2000)
The red ape is here described by one of the world's greatest
experts, who writes with one eye on scientific discoveries and
another on conservation. In a lively, beautifully illustrated
account, Carel van Schaik relates how he found a unique tool-using
population of orangutans. But he also explains how this population
presently suffers from loggers, farmers, and poachers, like so many
other populations across Indonesia. What a loss the disappearance
of this precious primate would be!--Frans De Waal, Author Of "my
Family Album" And "good Natured"
This book is a fascinating journey through the vanishing swamp
forests of Indonesia, in pursuit of orangutans and the clues these
apes hold about our own cultural origins. In this expertly told
tale, exquisite details of orangutan lifestyles sparkle against the
stark realities of habitat loss that now threaten the orangutan's
survival. While leading this scientific odyssey into the
human-nonhuman continuum, van Schaik also makes a compelling case
for why we should care about the conservation of orangutans and
what we will lose if they are lost to extinction.--Karen B. Strier,
Professor, Department Of Anthropology, University Of
Wisconsin-Madison
This book offers fascinating insights into ape behavior, including
that of the human ape, based on a spectacular, once-in-a-lifetime
discovery emerging from some murky coastal swamps in Sumatra: an
unusually social, surprisingly intelligent, and prolifically
tool-using group of orangutans who overturn much of the
conventional primatological wisdom about their species. "Among
Orangutans" is essential reading for anyone interested in apes and
what it means to be human.--Dale Peterson, Author Of "eating
Apes"
"Among Orangutans" tells the story of van Schaik's discoveries, and
their challenge to theories of primatology and the insights they
offer into key moments in human evolution. Van Schaik covers the
slog of six years' fieldwork in mosquito-ridden swamps, punctuated
by the dizzy excitement of discovery--and followed by the grim
necessity of conserving the creatures and their environment.
Beautiful photos of wild orangutans taken by Perry van Duijnhoven
complement a fine text that effortlessly manages to combine
profound scientific knowledge with popular appeal.--Adrian
Barnett"New Scientist" (01/22/2005)
In a beautifully written, compelling narrative that reads like a
detective story, [van Schaik] weaves together several threads of
evidence to argue that orangutan intelligence is intimately related
to technological innovations that are passed down through social
learning...Through the large number of outstanding color
photographs, we meet many of the 100 orangutans his team recognized
individually. They are handsome creatures with long red hair,
expressive faces and round eyes that gaze out of the photographs
with keen awareness.--Barbara Smuts"Scientific American"
(12/01/2004)
Required reading for anyone who wants to understand our nearest
relatives, the great apes, in a world full of humans, and who
believes that our cousins also deserve to live.--Alison
Jolly"Nature" (02/03/2005)
expressive faces and round eyes that gaze out of the photographs
with keen awareness.
light on the origins of human intelligence, technology, and
culture.
orangutans taken by Perry van Duijnhoven complement a fine text
that effortlessly manages to combine profound scientific knowledge
with popular appeal.
The orangutan is a reclusive breed that lives only in parts of
Indonesia. Its propensity for roaming high in treetops and for
favoring areas inhospitable to people makes the species difficult
to study. Van Schaik and his team were fortunate, then, to have
stumbled upon Suaq Balimbing--a swamp in the forests of Aceh,
Sumatra's northernmost province...He shares his discoveries of the
orangutans of Suaq Balimbing and shows how these findings shed
light on the origins of human intelligence, technology, and
culture.
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