A blue-eyed albino orangutan, locked in a cage by the inhabitants of a village on the Indonesian side of the island of Borneo, was rescued by the authorities!

A blue-eyed albino orangutan, locked in a cage by the inhabitants of a village on the Indonesian side of the island of Borneo, was rescued by the authorities and animal rights defenders.

The blond-haired orangutan – a rare species, contrasting with reddish-brown monkeys – was discovered last week in an isolated village in Kapuas Hulu district in Central Kalimantan province.

“An orangutan is rare, and an albino orangutan is even rarer,” said Nico Hermanu of the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation (BOSF).

“Since the creation of the BOSF 25 years ago, we have never received an albino orangutan in our rehabilitation center,” he added.

In some photos, spots of dry blood can be noticed under the female’s nose. According to the organization, the animal could have been injured trying to escape when it was captured by the villagers, who kept it for two days.

The orangutan, about five years old, was taken to the BOSF rehabilitation center in Nyaru Menteng, where the NGO takes care of about 500 monkeys.

Currently, in Borneo, the fourth largest island in the world, divided between three countries – Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei – live about 100,000 orangutans, compared to 288,500 in 1973. According to estimates, by 2025, their number will reach about 47,000, AFP recalls.