Comforting an orangutan with facial injuries before applying leaves to the wound
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Orangutans have been spotted applying leaves of plants commonly used in traditional medicine to cuts on their faces, which appears to speed up healing. This is the first scientifically documented case of the use of a plant with proven therapeutic effect on open wounds in non-human animals.
There have been several previous reports of great apes attempting to self-medicate in other ways. For example, gorillas, chimpanzees, and bonobos sometimes swallow leaves from trees whole. Aspiria A plant that kills intestinal parasites. In 2022, a group of chimpanzees in Gabon were seen applying insects to open wounds, presumably as a form of first aid.
In the latest research, Isabel Romer Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Animal Behavior in Germany noticed a new cut on the cheek of a male Sumatran orangutan (pongo abeli) It is called Lacus and lives in Gunung Leuser National Park in Indonesia.
“Lacus was probably injured in a fight with a neighboring male,” Romer said.
About three days after the battle, the researchers found Lacus chewing on the stems and leaves of an evergreen climbing plant called Akal Kunin.fibrourea tinctoria) and swallow them. However, after about 13 minutes of feeding, the monkey stopped eating and instead smeared the chewed plant on the wound.
“This lasted seven minutes,” Romer said. “He repeatedly placed the plant precisely on the wound and not on any other part of the body. He then continued to eat it for 30 minutes.”
After 4 days, the wound closed. “It was really quick,” she says.
Lacus’ cheek completely healed in just one month, leaving behind a faint scar.
Lacus is 2 months after his wound was treated.
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Perhaps the healing process was facilitated by the plant, Romer said. This plant has been shown to have antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, and antioxidant properties. It is also commonly used by local people to treat conditions such as malaria and jaundice.
“To our knowledge, this is the first report of a wild animal using a highly potent medicinal plant to precisely treat wounds,” Romer said.
“It’s really great to see this,” he says Simone Pica at the University of Osnabrück, Germany. “Of course, that’s just one example. So there are still a lot of questions: Is this behavior that he would do again? Is this behavior that other people in his group would do?”
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Source: www.newscientist.com
