In June 2022, a male Sumatran orangutan named Rakus suffered a facial wound below the right eye, apparently during a fight with another male orangutan at the Suaq Balimbing research site, a protected rainforest area in Indonesia. What Rakus did three days later really caught the attention of scientists.
Researchers described Thursday how Rakus appeared to treat the wound with a plant known for its analgesic properties and for supporting wound healing due to its antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antifungal and antioxidant properties.
According to primatologist and cognitive biologist Isabelle Laumer, the orangutan chewed the leaves of the plant to produce a liquid that Rakus repeatedly smeared on the wound and then applied the chewed plant material directly to the wound, similar to a wound plaster used by doctors was administered. Max Planck Institute for Animal Behavior in Germany.
