Behavior may come from a common ancestor shared by humans and great apes (Photo: Stock Images)
An orangutan from Sumatran, Indonesia, used a paste made from plants to heal a wound on his cheek, scientists say. The information is from g1.
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It is the first time that a creature in nature has been seen using a medicinal plant. After researchers saw the orangutan Rakus applying the plant poultice to his face, the wound healed within a month.
According to scientists, the behavior may come from a common ancestor shared by humans and great apes.
— They are our closest relatives and this points again to the similarities we have with them. We are more similar than different — says Isabella Laumer, a biologist at the Max Planck Institute, in Germany, and co-author of the research.
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Rakus was seen with a large wound on his cheek in June 2022, by a research team in Gunung Leuser National Park in Indonesia.
Researchers believe the orangutan was injured in a fight with rival orangutans because it made long, wailing calls a few days before scientists recorded the injury.
Soon after, the team saw Rakus chewing the stem and leaves of Akar Kuning — an anti-inflammatory and antibacterial plant that is used locally to treat malaria and diabetes.
The primate applied the plant liquid to his cheek for approximately seven minutes. Rakus spread the chewed leaves on his wound until it was completely covered. He continued eating the plant for more than 30 minutes.
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After this, the wound closed in five days and, after a month, Ratikus was cured.
— He applied the paste repeatedly and later also applied more solid plant matter from the plant. The whole process actually took a considerable amount of time – that’s why we believe he applied it intentionally — explains Laumer.
Scientists saw Rakus resting for much longer than usual — more than half the day — which suggests he was seeking to recover after his injury.
Laumer says it may have been the first time Rakus has performed this type of treatment.
— It could be that he accidentally touched the wound with the finger that contained the plant. And then, as the plant destroyed powerful pain-relieving substances, he may have felt immediate relief, which made him apply it repeatedly – he says.
He could also have learned the method by observing other orangutans in his group.
The team will now closely observe other orangutans to see if they can see the same medical abilities that Rakus displayed.
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— “I think that in the coming years we will discover even more behaviors and more abilities that are very similar to human ones,” she suggests.
The research is published in the scientific journal Scientific Reports.
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