Orangutan seen treating his wound with a medicinal plant

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Double Retired
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02 May 2024, 4:37 pm

"In a first, an orangutan was seen treating his wound with a medicinal plant"

Quote:
An orangutan named Rakus hit a rough patch in the summer of 2022.

Researchers heard a fight between male orangutans in the treetops of a rainforest in Sumatra, Indonesia; a day later, they spotted Rakus sporting a pink wound below his right eyelid.

A chunk of flesh about the size and shape of a puzzle piece was missing. When Rakus, who is most likely in his 30s, belted out a long call, the researchers noticed another wound inside his mouth.

Over the next several days, researchers followed Rakus at a distance — and saw something so surprising they wound up reporting it in great detail in the journal Scientific Reports.

According to their study, published Thursday, Rakus was observed repeatedly chewing on the leaves of a particular liana plant over several days. The climbing vine is not a typical food for orangutans, but it is known to humans as a pain reliever.

On at least one occasion, Rakus made a paste from the chewed leaves and applied it to his face. It’s the first time an animal has been seen applying medicine to a skin wound.

“It’s the first documentation of external self-medication — the application of leaves, I would argue, as a poultice, like humans do to treat wounds and pains,” said Michael Huffman, an associate professor at the Wildlife Research Center at Kyoto University in Japan, who was not involved in the new study.

Rakus’ wound never showed signs of becoming infected, and it closed up within a week.

:duh: OK. Fine. But I live in the U.S. What insurance plans does Rakus accept?


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naturalplastic
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02 May 2024, 7:38 pm

So...the world's second oldest profession maybe medicine. Or at least pharmacology.

The common ancestor of the African Apes (bonobos, chimps, gorillas, and humans) and the Asian Orangutan probably was skilled at remembering remedies from local plants.



Double Retired
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02 May 2024, 7:53 pm

...I'm not sure I like where you might go with the world's oldest profession.


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naturalplastic
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03 May 2024, 7:54 am

Double Retired wrote:
"In a first, an orangutan was seen treating his wound with a medicinal plant"
Quote:
An orangutan named Rakus hit a rough patch in the summer of 2022.

Researchers heard a fight between male orangutans in the treetops of a rainforest in Sumatra, Indonesia; a day later, they spotted Rakus sporting a pink wound below his right eyelid.

A chunk of flesh about the size and shape of a puzzle piece was missing. When Rakus, who is most likely in his 30s, belted out a long call, the researchers noticed another wound inside his mouth.

Over the next several days, researchers followed Rakus at a distance — and saw something so surprising they wound up reporting it in great detail in the journal Scientific Reports.

According to their study, published Thursday, Rakus was observed repeatedly chewing on the leaves of a particular liana plant over several days. The climbing vine is not a typical food for orangutans, but it is known to humans as a pain reliever.

On at least one occasion, Rakus made a paste from the chewed leaves and applied it to his face. It’s the first time an animal has been seen applying medicine to a skin wound.

“It’s the first documentation of external self-medication — the application of leaves, I would argue, as a poultice, like humans do to treat wounds and pains,” said Michael Huffman, an associate professor at the Wildlife Research Center at Kyoto University in Japan, who was not involved in the new study.

Rakus’ wound never showed signs of becoming infected, and it closed up within a week.

:duh: OK. Fine. But I live in the U.S. What insurance plans does Rakus accept?

He accepts United Fruit, or Chiciquita. Any bananas you can give him!



naturalplastic
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03 May 2024, 8:42 am

Double Retired wrote:
...I'm not sure I like where you might go with the world's oldest profession.



https://youtu.be/rDIeM2giy60



mgrand
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05 May 2024, 7:26 am

Another example of how humans are not as special as we like to think we are.