0:00:07 > 0:00:13This is Durrell. Jersey's famous wildlife conservation trust.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15Outside, the animals enjoy the sunshine.
0:00:17 > 0:00:22Inside, one very special creature is being closely watched.
0:00:22 > 0:00:27Dana, the Sumatran orang-utan, is almost ready to give birth.
0:00:27 > 0:00:30Staff are anxious about the arrival of her baby
0:00:30 > 0:00:34because Dana's last pregnancy ended in tragedy.
0:00:34 > 0:00:37Here, Dana and the other apes live safely,
0:00:37 > 0:00:41but her wild relatives are on the edge of extinction.
0:00:43 > 0:00:47These orang-utans live on the Indonesian island of Sumatra.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51It's one of their last wild strongholds.
0:00:51 > 0:00:56They cling on as land is cleared and burnt to make way for industry.
0:00:56 > 0:00:59But with half of the island's rainforest already gone,
0:00:59 > 0:01:01can they survive?
0:01:01 > 0:01:05I really get sick up of seeing just the scale of destruction.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08You see fires, you see plantations going.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11Not just a few trees being chopped down here,
0:01:11 > 0:01:13but whole landscapes being converted.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19Dana's keeper, Gordon Hunt, is making the hard journey to Sumatra
0:01:19 > 0:01:23to see for himself what can be done to help these great apes.
0:01:23 > 0:01:25He knows it's going to be tough.
0:01:25 > 0:01:30I'm expecting to see cages full of orphaned orang-utans,
0:01:30 > 0:01:33which is...not great.
0:01:36 > 0:01:40He's come in search of the refugees of the lost rainforest.
0:01:51 > 0:01:54Day one. And Gordon's going deep into the jungle.
0:01:54 > 0:01:58Road? What road? There is no road.
0:02:03 > 0:02:08It's a boggy ravine, rut, riverbed mixture of...
0:02:08 > 0:02:11No track at all.
0:02:21 > 0:02:22But this is the only way
0:02:22 > 0:02:25to get to the orang-utan release site in northern Sumatra,
0:02:25 > 0:02:27where he's going to meet a man
0:02:27 > 0:02:30who's devoted his life to saving these animals.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37Today, Dr Ian Singleton's home is in the jungle,
0:02:37 > 0:02:40but he was once a keeper at Jersey Zoo.
0:02:43 > 0:02:45While Gordon wrestles with the rutted road,
0:02:45 > 0:02:48his orang-utans in Jersey are on his mind.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53Good girl, Dana.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57He's got two expectant mums to think about - Anette and Dana.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01And just like any pregnant mums, they're having ultrasound scans.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04Dana's scans are crucial because her last baby was stillborn
0:03:04 > 0:03:06and she almost died.
0:03:06 > 0:03:09Luckily, this time, she's in the hands
0:03:09 > 0:03:13of Jersey hospital's Neil MacLachlan, consultant gynaecologist.
0:03:13 > 0:03:17We are concerned as to how she's going to perform in this pregnancy
0:03:17 > 0:03:20because she's never actually had a live-born baby before.
0:03:20 > 0:03:23So we've been watching today on the scan
0:03:23 > 0:03:25to see if the baby is developing well.
0:03:27 > 0:03:31Gerald Durrell's intention was never to imprison endangered animals,
0:03:31 > 0:03:33but to protect them.
0:03:33 > 0:03:36Captive breeding is now a vital part of the wildlife trust's work.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39Because who knows if one day these Jersey-born youngsters
0:03:39 > 0:03:42will be among the few orang-utans that remain.
0:03:47 > 0:03:50Back in the forests of Sumatra, it's thought there are fewer
0:03:50 > 0:03:54than 7,000 orang-utans left in the wild.
0:03:54 > 0:03:56They're being pushed to the edge of their habitat
0:03:56 > 0:03:59as nature and industry compete for space.
0:04:02 > 0:04:06Here, vast palm oil plantations have replaced the jungle.
0:04:11 > 0:04:13There are still thousands of hectares of forest,
0:04:13 > 0:04:16alive with some of the world's rarest species.
0:04:16 > 0:04:19The Great Argus pheasant.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34And one of the biggest forest geckos in the world.
0:04:38 > 0:04:41At the top of the tree, the orang-utans.
0:04:41 > 0:04:44They are among the world's most critically endangered great apes
0:04:44 > 0:04:47and protected under Indonesian law.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50But despite this, many will end up here with Ian
0:04:50 > 0:04:53at Sumatra's only rehabilitation project
0:04:53 > 0:04:55in the far north of the island near Medan.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05Ian takes in rescued and injured animals in the hope
0:05:05 > 0:05:09they can be one day released back into the jungle.
0:05:09 > 0:05:15The orang-utans that come here are mostly confiscated illegal pets.
0:05:15 > 0:05:18So they come in from back gardens, where they've been kept in a cage
0:05:18 > 0:05:21or chained up by the neck or something like that.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23One or two of them have come here
0:05:23 > 0:05:26because we've had to rescue them from the wild
0:05:26 > 0:05:31because they were in patches of forest that were being destroyed.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34And usually, if we do that, we'll release them immediately
0:05:34 > 0:05:37in another safer area of forest.
0:05:39 > 0:05:44This is Ian almost 20 years ago looking after the apes in Jersey.
0:05:44 > 0:05:48The passion to protect them began here at Durrell.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50In my early zoo career,
0:05:50 > 0:05:53I felt I enjoyed working with the animals
0:05:53 > 0:05:55and working closely with them
0:05:55 > 0:06:00and not working with people and being responsible for them.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03And when I started at Jersey Zoo, I really liked the fact that
0:06:03 > 0:06:04I ended up on the orang-utans
0:06:04 > 0:06:07and we built a new enclosure in the far corner of the zoo
0:06:07 > 0:06:12so I could go up there and just hide with my charges and get on with it.
0:06:13 > 0:06:15Naturalist and author Gerald Durrell
0:06:15 > 0:06:19inspired a generation of readers with his love of wildlife.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22About the otters,
0:06:22 > 0:06:26if we could have a sort of cement thing about two foot...
0:06:26 > 0:06:28Three foot? Yes, about three foot wide.
0:06:30 > 0:06:35The zoo was his ark and home to orang-utans since the 1960s.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37He hoped they would teach his visitors
0:06:37 > 0:06:40that their fate is in our hands.
0:06:40 > 0:06:45If we can indoctrinate people as they come through our gates,
0:06:45 > 0:06:49if we can indoctrinate them with the idea that it's terribly sad
0:06:49 > 0:06:53that creatures are being killed all over the world
0:06:53 > 0:06:55in hundreds of thousands,
0:06:55 > 0:06:58and if, during the course of our existence,
0:06:58 > 0:07:02we can save one or two species from extinction,
0:07:02 > 0:07:04then the whole thing would be...
0:07:04 > 0:07:05It would be worth it, certainly.
0:07:08 > 0:07:12The Durrell Wildlife Trust is now an international organisation
0:07:12 > 0:07:14and it supports Ian's work in Sumatra
0:07:14 > 0:07:17with funding, equipment and publicity.
0:07:18 > 0:07:20Indonesia is one of those counties where Jersey
0:07:20 > 0:07:24didn't traditionally have a big role and a big influence.
0:07:24 > 0:07:26Even today, it's still not that well known.
0:07:26 > 0:07:31And I would like to change that by showing people by example
0:07:31 > 0:07:33exactly the kind of things that can be achieved
0:07:33 > 0:07:36by following Durrell's philosophy.
0:07:47 > 0:07:49After hours of hard driving,
0:07:49 > 0:07:51Gordon has almost made it to his destination.
0:07:54 > 0:07:59A boat ride across the River Aceh welcome relief from the muddy roads.
0:08:00 > 0:08:02He's come to the jungle reserve
0:08:02 > 0:08:05where Ian Singleton is waiting to meet him.
0:08:05 > 0:08:09Morning. Hey. How's it going? Good. You?
0:08:09 > 0:08:13You have any trouble on the trip in? No, it was fine.
0:08:13 > 0:08:15It was a bumpy ride, but, yeah, it was pretty good.
0:08:17 > 0:08:18Ian is taking Gordon to the site
0:08:18 > 0:08:22where orang-utans who have been rehabilitated in quarantine
0:08:22 > 0:08:23are finally set free.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27For me, it's massively exciting.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30Is it still massively exciting for you to see the finished product?
0:08:30 > 0:08:33It is, it is. Because this is...this is what the whole thing's about.
0:08:33 > 0:08:37And I still get a massive kick out of it when I come out here
0:08:37 > 0:08:41and see Marco or somebody hanging about in the trees.
0:08:41 > 0:08:46And they're behaving just like wild orang-utans. It brings it home.
0:08:46 > 0:08:48Because when you first meet a lot of these animals,
0:08:48 > 0:08:51they're little, skinny, covered in fungus, chain around their neck,
0:08:51 > 0:08:53really terrified of people.
0:08:53 > 0:08:56And then to get them from that stage, out through the quarantine
0:08:56 > 0:08:59and they're living as wild orang-utans again,
0:08:59 > 0:09:02you feel like everything you're doing is worthwhile. Yeah.
0:09:04 > 0:09:06This is Udin.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09At about six years old, he was confiscated by police
0:09:09 > 0:09:12who found him near the swamps where he used to live.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16Ian's team says his home had been burned and cleared for industry,
0:09:16 > 0:09:20making him vulnerable to the illegal pet trade.
0:09:20 > 0:09:24Given to Ian's team, Udin has been learning how to feed himself
0:09:24 > 0:09:26and make nests.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28Wow! Look at that. Ooh!
0:09:28 > 0:09:30Is he going to open the door himself? Yeah.
0:09:30 > 0:09:33Oh! You're very enthusiastic.
0:09:36 > 0:09:38Udin is one of about 30 orang-utans
0:09:38 > 0:09:41rescued each year by Ian's organisation.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44It's taken two years to get him ready for this,
0:09:44 > 0:09:46but there's always a risk.
0:09:47 > 0:09:50I feel much better giving an animal a second chance
0:09:50 > 0:09:53at a life in the wild, and maybe it's lucky and it makes it,
0:09:53 > 0:09:55maybe it's not so lucky and it doesn't make it,
0:09:55 > 0:09:59but I feel much better giving them that chance.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02Great to see them out of the cages.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06I think Udin is in... Looks like he's in really good condition.
0:10:06 > 0:10:09Bright eyes, wet nose, glossy hair.
0:10:15 > 0:10:18It's the moment Ian's been waiting for.
0:10:25 > 0:10:29Oh, look at that. Straight up. Wow! Fantastic, yeah!
0:10:29 > 0:10:31Look at that! That is brilliant.
0:10:31 > 0:10:34Up the liana. Go on, off you go, mate.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37Wow! A whole new world.
0:11:01 > 0:11:03As Udin ventures out to explore his new home,
0:11:03 > 0:11:06he won't be left to his own devices.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12Like the other orang-utans released here,
0:11:12 > 0:11:14he has a transmitter chip in his neck,
0:11:14 > 0:11:15so his progress can be tracked.
0:11:17 > 0:11:21For Ian, new developments are playing a growing role
0:11:21 > 0:11:23in efforts to save the species.
0:11:23 > 0:11:25Yeah, there's two up there.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27See that big branch up there?
0:11:27 > 0:11:30See that big branch? Yeah.
0:11:31 > 0:11:33So, that is the signal from one orang-utan?
0:11:33 > 0:11:35So, who is it? Nelly.
0:11:35 > 0:11:37Nelly, yeah?
0:11:39 > 0:11:43But they're not the only orang-utans in the world being closely watched.
0:11:45 > 0:11:49In Jersey, Anette and Dana are having a regular checkup.
0:11:49 > 0:11:51Touch.
0:11:51 > 0:11:53Ape keeper Sarah Foulkes has trained them
0:11:53 > 0:11:56to position their tummies against the cage so they can be scanned.
0:11:56 > 0:11:58Hold, hold. Good girl.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01Scanning an orang-utan's a little bit different from a human
0:12:01 > 0:12:03because an orang-utan is not quite as obliging.
0:12:03 > 0:12:05So sometimes you see things that maybe look unusual
0:12:05 > 0:12:07or you're not expecting to see.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11And that partially can be just because it's the complications
0:12:11 > 0:12:13and the logistics of trying to scan an animal
0:12:13 > 0:12:15that's hanging on bars rather than lying down.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20In April, Anette gave birth
0:12:20 > 0:12:22in the middle of the night to a healthy male.
0:12:22 > 0:12:26He's been named Jantho after the release site in Sumatra.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33Now all eyes are on Dana.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36Her story is interesting and amazing
0:12:36 > 0:12:41because she came to Jersey to breed with the male there, Dagu.
0:12:41 > 0:12:47She did so very quickly and she went full term,
0:12:47 > 0:12:49eight and a half months with the youngster,
0:12:49 > 0:12:53which turned out to be a female, but she had a stillborn.
0:12:53 > 0:12:56The placenta sheared off inside her
0:12:56 > 0:12:59and we almost lost her as well as the youngster.
0:12:59 > 0:13:00She was bleeding to death.
0:13:02 > 0:13:06But this time, medical science is helping Dana. Good girl.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10There's a lot more amniotic fluid than before, as well.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14Would you like me to do anything? No. Just keep going. Hold. Hold.
0:13:14 > 0:13:18Neil MacLachlan operated on her fallopian tubes
0:13:18 > 0:13:20so later she could become pregnant.
0:13:22 > 0:13:26Now he's making sure his patient's latest pregnancy is going to plan.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29That's the heartbeat.
0:13:32 > 0:13:34It's a departure from his daily routine at the hospital.
0:13:36 > 0:13:37That looks nice and regular.
0:13:39 > 0:13:41I was really interested in the breeding programme
0:13:41 > 0:13:46and because one of my big interests is in fertility, um...
0:13:46 > 0:13:50And because Durrell is all about breeding endangered species,
0:13:50 > 0:13:54it was just a wonderful place to go and get involved with.
0:13:56 > 0:13:59There were occasions where they felt they needed to compare
0:13:59 > 0:14:02with a sort of human doctor, as it were.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06All's well in the hospital today, but Neil once had to perform
0:14:06 > 0:14:09an extraordinary operation on an orang-utan.
0:14:09 > 0:14:12She needed an emergency Caesarean.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15We need some oxygen. Get the oxygen on. Turn the baby over.
0:14:15 > 0:14:19Neil went up to Durrell to carry out the surgery.
0:14:19 > 0:14:23As these incredible pictures show, he was able to save the baby.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25185, 186. OK.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28Thankfully, the anatomy was very similar.
0:14:28 > 0:14:33I'd never done this before, but I just...pretended I was operating
0:14:33 > 0:14:37on one of my human patients that just was a little bit hairier than normal.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40And it was incredibly similar.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49We thought initially that maybe the baby wasn't going to survive.
0:14:49 > 0:14:51INDISTINCT
0:14:54 > 0:15:01And after many minutes, when he threw his arms up and started crying,
0:15:01 > 0:15:05there was a great roar from everyone in theatre.
0:15:05 > 0:15:10and it was really a very emotional moment for everyone.
0:15:11 > 0:15:12Oh, look at him!
0:15:20 > 0:15:21Fantastic.
0:15:21 > 0:15:23'I said at the time that it was'
0:15:23 > 0:15:28the greatest day of my life and my wife was not over pleased!
0:15:31 > 0:15:33Come on then.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36Jaya is now a healthy nine-year-old
0:15:36 > 0:15:39and is being taken to a zoo in France to breed.
0:15:39 > 0:15:41Oh, look at his little chest.
0:15:46 > 0:15:48And now there's concern he might have to do
0:15:48 > 0:15:51the same operation again, this time for Dana.
0:15:53 > 0:15:55If we can keep the scanning going
0:15:55 > 0:15:57and see that the pregnancy is developing
0:15:57 > 0:16:01as normally as possible, then I think she'll be OK,
0:16:01 > 0:16:05but we do need to be prepared for a similar thing
0:16:05 > 0:16:07to what happened last time.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13In Sumatra, Gordon is waiting to hear how Dana is.
0:16:15 > 0:16:17But he's 7,000 miles away
0:16:17 > 0:16:20and mobile phones don't work too well out in the jungle.
0:16:22 > 0:16:24Getting connected is tricky,
0:16:24 > 0:16:26but not impossible.
0:16:28 > 0:16:29PHONE RINGS
0:16:31 > 0:16:32Here we go.
0:16:35 > 0:16:37Ah! Hello, how are you doing?
0:16:37 > 0:16:40'Everything's going really well, Jantho's really good.
0:16:40 > 0:16:44'He's getting more active and he's looking around more.'
0:16:44 > 0:16:46Fantastic. And Dana?
0:16:47 > 0:16:50'Dana's doing really well as well.
0:16:50 > 0:16:53'She's looking like the pregnancy's developing normally.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56'She is spending more time sleeping and resting and she is getting
0:16:56 > 0:16:59'increasingly hungry, so I think it's probably pretty soon.'
0:16:59 > 0:17:01OK, yes. Yes.
0:17:01 > 0:17:03That's great news.
0:17:03 > 0:17:07Safe in Jersey or deep in the jungle, both Gordon and Ian
0:17:07 > 0:17:11are continuing what Gerald Durrell started 50 years ago.
0:17:11 > 0:17:13You knew Gerald Durrell?
0:17:13 > 0:17:18Yes, I mean I didn't meet him a lot, but...
0:17:18 > 0:17:23I mean, I started in '89 and I was kind of interested in this idea
0:17:23 > 0:17:26that you can take a species that's on the brink,
0:17:26 > 0:17:29for relatively little investment compared to some of these
0:17:29 > 0:17:32big conservation projects, relatively little investment,
0:17:32 > 0:17:34and you can actually save a species from extinction.
0:17:36 > 0:17:39Recent research says that since 1985,
0:17:39 > 0:17:43half of Sumatra's rainforest has been lost.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48Ian has filmed the scale of forest destruction.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50He says much of it is caused by large industries
0:17:50 > 0:17:52demanding more land to develop.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56He believes some of the native species, already endangered,
0:17:56 > 0:17:58are being pushed to the brink.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03The biggest threat to most species right now
0:18:03 > 0:18:07is not hunting and collection, it's loss of entire ecosystems
0:18:07 > 0:18:10and by destroying them you're losing your water sources,
0:18:10 > 0:18:15your climate regulation, and a host of other resources.
0:18:15 > 0:18:20For me, the aim is to use these species, these iconic species,
0:18:20 > 0:18:23that can get international attention and public support
0:18:23 > 0:18:25in the battle to save the bigger picture,
0:18:25 > 0:18:27to save whole ecosystems.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32Now, there is another threat on the horizon.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35More than a million hectares of protected forest,
0:18:35 > 0:18:38in the region where most of the remaining Sumatran orang-utans live,
0:18:38 > 0:18:41could be opened up to industry.
0:18:41 > 0:18:45Conservationists such as Ian fear the animals they work so hard
0:18:45 > 0:18:48to protect will be left more vulnerable than ever.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52Gerald Durrell's vision is being put to the test.
0:18:56 > 0:19:01Campaigners and the regional government disagree over what's planned.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06The head of forestry for the Aceh region says while no protected land
0:19:06 > 0:19:11can be used for industry, there is a growing need for human settlements.
0:19:11 > 0:19:13HE SPEAKS IN HIS NATIVE LANGUAGE
0:19:15 > 0:19:18TRANSLATION: So I can tell you that we do not issue
0:19:18 > 0:19:22the land clearing permit or licence for palm oil businessmen,
0:19:22 > 0:19:27no permits for mining businessmen or any other businessmen.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31If you want to convert forest areas into other purposes,
0:19:31 > 0:19:35it is purely for people's settlement. People need space.
0:19:40 > 0:19:44Gordon remains unconvinced by assurances from the authorities.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48He argues industry is competing
0:19:48 > 0:19:51for the areas of forest the orang-utans live in.
0:19:53 > 0:19:56That competition looks like this.
0:19:58 > 0:19:59Palm oil.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03It's farmed extensively throughout Sumatra
0:20:03 > 0:20:06and Indonesia is the world's largest exporter.
0:20:06 > 0:20:10More than 30 million tonnes were produced this year.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15The oil is extracted from the fruit of these trees
0:20:15 > 0:20:19and it's used in products from shampoo to biscuits.
0:20:21 > 0:20:25Indonesia Palm Oil Association says it gives people jobs.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28It says its members are committed to protecting the environment.
0:20:30 > 0:20:33But as Gordon travels further in Sumatra,
0:20:33 > 0:20:36he's worried more industries on this scale
0:20:36 > 0:20:38could ruin the remaining rainforest.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44Finding out what's going on on the ground
0:20:44 > 0:20:46is hard in such a vast country.
0:20:48 > 0:20:50But there are ways.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54Just a few miles from Ian's head office near Medan,
0:20:54 > 0:20:59Graham Usher and David Dellatore are testing the latest spy technology.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01ENGINE WHIRRS
0:21:02 > 0:21:04BEEPING
0:21:06 > 0:21:08Yes, that should do it.
0:21:10 > 0:21:14They're working with Ian, and today they're testing a mini drone.
0:21:23 > 0:21:25One, two, three.
0:21:25 > 0:21:27Engine on.
0:21:27 > 0:21:29ENGINE WHIRRS
0:21:33 > 0:21:35David and Graham have high hopes.
0:21:37 > 0:21:39You can use a video camera for spotting fires,
0:21:39 > 0:21:42encroachment in the forest.
0:21:42 > 0:21:46It has been used in the past for surveying for orang-utan nests,
0:21:46 > 0:21:50which you can see from the air if you fly low enough over the forest.
0:21:51 > 0:21:54The spy-plane can travel to remote areas
0:21:54 > 0:21:57and its on-board camera records the scene below.
0:22:00 > 0:22:03It's the cutting edge of conservation technology.
0:22:05 > 0:22:09I see lots of interesting new technologies coming out now
0:22:09 > 0:22:13which we will support and try and test
0:22:13 > 0:22:15and try and refine in the field,
0:22:15 > 0:22:18but in five to ten years, I think we're going to see big advantages
0:22:18 > 0:22:20from all of these things.
0:22:23 > 0:22:27These young orang-utans are among those made homeless
0:22:27 > 0:22:29as their habitat disappears.
0:22:29 > 0:22:31There are many mouths to feed,
0:22:31 > 0:22:34many infants with no mothers,
0:22:34 > 0:22:35many very ill.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40Some of them are just so bad, some of them are critically ill
0:22:40 > 0:22:43and so late in the disease progression
0:22:43 > 0:22:46that you really haven't got much hope of saving them,
0:22:46 > 0:22:47whereas other ones you have
0:22:47 > 0:22:50and you just focus on the ones that you can do.
0:22:52 > 0:22:56It would be amazing to get all of these orang-utans
0:22:56 > 0:23:00back into the wild, but there are ones that can't go back
0:23:00 > 0:23:03for various reasons - they've been maimed so badly,
0:23:03 > 0:23:09one is blind, permanently blind, and that is really sad
0:23:09 > 0:23:13because it requires full-time care
0:23:13 > 0:23:17from people and they shouldn't need to.
0:23:17 > 0:23:21They should be able to return to their home where they came from.
0:23:21 > 0:23:23But some can't.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36Gordon's preparing to say goodbye and head home to Jersey.
0:23:38 > 0:23:40He has mixed feelings.
0:23:42 > 0:23:47There are more orang-utans here than the last time I visited.
0:23:47 > 0:23:51There are some extremely sick orang-utans being cared for.
0:23:51 > 0:23:53One has a broken neck.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56Another one has been bitten by a dog.
0:23:57 > 0:24:01It's quite tragic really to see them.
0:24:01 > 0:24:04And they are all, as Ian describes them,
0:24:04 > 0:24:09refugees, being looked after in this refugee camp.
0:24:11 > 0:24:15No-one knows what future these animals are facing,
0:24:15 > 0:24:17but Ian's not giving up on them.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20It's like what Gerald Durrell always said,
0:24:20 > 0:24:23the happiest day of my life will be the day I can close the zoo
0:24:23 > 0:24:24because it's not needed any more.
0:24:24 > 0:24:27The happiest day of my life would be the day
0:24:27 > 0:24:30I could stop doing this job because I didn't need to do it any more.
0:24:35 > 0:24:39Durrell, Jersey. Gordon's back at work.
0:24:41 > 0:24:43Dana's baby is due any day now.
0:24:43 > 0:24:45It's been eight and a half months in the waiting
0:24:45 > 0:24:48but no-one quite knows when the baby will come.
0:24:48 > 0:24:52And worried staff are doing all they can to keep an eye on her.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55Cameras are recording and sending pictures to the laptops
0:24:55 > 0:24:57and phones of everyone involved in her welfare.
0:24:57 > 0:24:59They've been rigged up specially,
0:24:59 > 0:25:02some updating mobiles every 15 seconds.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06There are hours of anxious watching and waiting.
0:25:12 > 0:25:15If Dana gives birth to a healthy orang-utan,
0:25:15 > 0:25:19in terms of it being miraculous, then I think it's close.
0:25:20 > 0:25:24If you think that most new life is miraculous in itself,
0:25:24 > 0:25:27then the process that we have gone through
0:25:27 > 0:25:34so that she is able to conceive is a miracle of science.
0:25:37 > 0:25:42One night in June, staff see her behaviour changing.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49She's preparing her nest.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55At 11.45pm Gordon's patience pays off.
0:25:57 > 0:25:59Here it comes, here it comes.
0:25:59 > 0:26:00Here it comes.
0:26:00 > 0:26:02This is it, that's the head.
0:26:02 > 0:26:06That's it, it's out.
0:26:07 > 0:26:08That's it.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14Yes, it's alive, it's moving.
0:26:14 > 0:26:15It's moving.
0:26:29 > 0:26:31She's only minutes old.
0:26:32 > 0:26:34It's life in Dana's arms
0:26:34 > 0:26:38when only a few years ago this new mum faced death.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44These animals are incredible characters.
0:26:44 > 0:26:46Realising that their characters are so different
0:26:46 > 0:26:50and being able to help them is very special.
0:26:50 > 0:26:52They're very close to humans.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58Dana and Anette's babies are growing up.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01The efforts of Gordon and Neil have helped
0:27:01 > 0:27:03bring two new babies into the world.
0:27:03 > 0:27:05She's still learning. She is.
0:27:05 > 0:27:08Dana and her baby are venturing outside for the first time.
0:27:11 > 0:27:13But how will Anette respond to the new addition
0:27:13 > 0:27:15to the Durrell family?
0:27:30 > 0:27:34Captive orang-utans could become the last of their kind
0:27:34 > 0:27:38if their relatives die out in Sumatra.
0:27:40 > 0:27:43Hundreds of species go extinct
0:27:43 > 0:27:46but what we're seeing now
0:27:46 > 0:27:51is an increase in the amount of extinctions that occur.
0:27:51 > 0:27:56The timeframe is shorter, and the reason is us.
0:27:58 > 0:28:01He's echoing the fears Gerald Durrell raised
0:28:01 > 0:28:03more than 40 years ago.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06It's the most incredible, the most beautiful garden,
0:28:06 > 0:28:08and what have we done?
0:28:08 > 0:28:11We've trampled through it with our great hobnailed boots.
0:28:14 > 0:28:15For better or worse,
0:28:15 > 0:28:19the Sumatran orang-utan is at the mercy of human intervention.
0:28:21 > 0:28:24Understanding the close links between our species and theirs
0:28:24 > 0:28:28is the key to their survival.
0:28:37 > 0:28:40Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:29:02 > 0:29:04Watch this. It is amazing.
0:29:04 > 0:29:09The BBC and the OU, inspiring learning.
0:29:12 > 0:29:15You can see why humans value this so much.
0:29:17 > 0:29:21It can have a significant impact on the rest of your life.
0:29:21 > 0:29:25What happens next depends on us.