Amid the indirect competition on Badak Kecil Island, where orangutans vie for additional fruit supplements usually provided by the technicians, Jelapat remains faithful to his old strategy: surviving through intelligence rather than strength.
Fully aware that he must compete with larger and more dominant individuals, Jelapat chooses not to engage in physical confrontation. He is a patient observer. Instead of risking conflict, he prefers to take long, winding routes to obtain extra food, ensuring he stays safely out of reach of more aggressive orangutans
Jelapat’s excitement peaks whenever he spots the technicians’ klotok approaching. He watches closely, sometimes moving closer to check whether there are bananas or piles of corn, his two favourite supplemental foods. Once he confirms their presence, Jelapat springs into action. With agility, he moves from branch to branch, shadowing the klotok as it occasionally stops at each feeding platform to distribute fruit to the orangutans.
He continues to follow the klotok until he reaches what he considers a safe point or when there are no aggressive orangutans nearby. The technician team, who are already very familiar with this pattern, usually wait for the right moment to give Jelapat his portion separately, ensuring that this “master strategist” receives the nutrition he needs without disturbance.
Although Jelapat appears to rely heavily on supplemental feeding, he is actually a highly skilled natural forager. In the forest, he is adept at finding hidden forest fruits and harvesting young leaf shoots, which form his natural diet.
Observing Jelapat’s resilience, the field team concludes that he is a remarkable survivor. With stable health conditions and very active forest behaviour, there is no medical or nutritional reason to evacuate him from the island. Jelapat has proven that even if he must yield to the stronger ones, he has his own way of continuing to grow healthy and remain sovereign in his habitat.