[GRANDIOSE MUSIC]
NARRATOR: April usually marks
the end of the wet season
in Central Kalimantan.
But this year, the mid-morning
storms won't let up.
The Nyaru Menteng teknisi
are used to delivering food
in the rain, as they head up
the Rungan River to Bangamat,
one of the prerelease islands.
In these protected environments,
the older graduates
of jungle school
hone their survival
skills, the final step in
proving their suitability
for wild release.
Today, there's a challenge
for the teknisi when
they reach the feeding site.
Just weeks ago, the rope
bridge to the feeding platform
was 6 feet above the water.
Now only one rope
is above the water,
and the platform is
completely submerged.
The food will float away.
With hungry orangutans desperate
to eat, a clump of vegetation
becomes a temporary platform.
The challenge now is how the
orangutans will get to it,
as there are no ropes
to help and orangutans
do not like to swim.
This is why the babysitters work
so hard through jungle school
to teach their students
how to safely negotiate
the forest during floods.
Breakfast is the perfect
opportunity for a head count.
 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
NARRATOR: And there's one
orangutan the teknisi are
keen to tick off their list.
 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
NARRATOR: It's Ponti.
Six months after giving birth,
mother and baby are thriving.
She needs her breakfast, as her
infant is suckling many times
a day.
She takes a moment to
figure out the best plan,
but she misjudges the depth of
the water and submerges Ponji.
[WHIMPERING]
The teknisi are quick to
ensure Ponti doesn't go hungry.
