Orangutan Uses Medicinal Plant to Treat Wound in Groundbreaking Discovery

In June 2022, scientists saw an orangutan in the tropical rain forest of Sumatra treating a wound on its face with a medicinal plant. This is the first time an animal has been seen doing this in this way.

Rakus, as the orangutan is called by scientists, is one of the alpha males in the area on the Indonesian island. He probably sustained the wound in a fight with another animal and used the leaves of the kuning akar plant, which is known for its disinfectant and anti-inflammatory effects.

First he chewed the leaves, then he put the juice of the plant on the wound and then he covered the wound with the leaves as a kind of plaster. The wound was not infected and healed in five days.

This approach is no coincidence, scientists believe. “His behavior seemed purposeful. He specifically treated the wound on his face with the plant juice, not other parts of the body. He did this several times.”

Liesbeth Sterck, a behavioral biologist at Utrecht University, also says that it is unlikely that the orangutan accidentally rubbed the wound with the plant. “This man was very sensitive. He fixed it on the wound.”

According to Sterck, this focus is unique. “We know that animals eat certain plants because they have a medicinal effect, but they don’t need much to do that. What’s so special is that he has edited the plant.”

Although the behavior of Rakus indicates that animals are able to treat wounds with suitable plants, it is not yet clear to what extent they understand exactly what they are doing.

He is still not sure how he found out that he needed to use this particular plant. He may have discovered this by chance himself, but he may have learned from orangutans in his area.

Orangutans are good at solving problems. They learn by watching each other and pass their knowledge from generation to generation. They also use tools in different situations.

Akar kuning is common in China and Southeast Asia and is used in traditional medicine to fight malaria, for example.