Langkah Sumari terhenti, saat mendengar bunyi dan dan ranting patah. “Kalau seperti itu, pasti perbuatan orang hutan,” ujar anggota Tim Penjaga Hutan (TPH) Hutan Desa Gogong. itu Peristiwa yang dialami Sumari saat patroli, kegiatan rutin yang dilakukan TPH untuk menjaga kawasan hutan desa.
Orangutan Kalimantan (Pongo pygmaeus) adalah satu dari tiga spesies orangutan di dunia, dan sekaligus yang paling terancam. Populasinya tinggal sekitar 57.350 di alam liar (IUCN Red List 2023). Angka yang terdengar besar, tetapi sesungguhnya rapuh karena mayoritas hidup di pulau yang terus dilanda pembukaan dan kebakaran hutan.
Setiap sore, Heron, rekan Sumari, melakukan patroli berjalan menyusuri kanal dan deretan pohon jelutung dan balangeran. “Kami tidak punya senjata, cuma kamera dan buku catatan. Tapi rasa sayang sama hutan ini jauh lebih kuat dari peluru,” ujarnya sambil tertawa.
Mereka bukan peneliti, bukan aparat bersenjata. Tapi mereka hafal setiap jejak orangutan yang bertengger di batang pohon. Mereka tahu bedanya suara orangutan jantan dewasa yang mengaum panjang (long call) dengan suara anak orangutan yang rewel mencari induknya. “Kalau orangutan sudah tidak ada, hutan ini ikut mati,” kata Sumari. Hasil penelitian WWF Indonesia, orangutan mampu menyebarkan biji hingga radius puluhan bahkan ratusan meter dari titik mereka memakan buah. Proses ini tidak hanya membantu regenerasi hutan secara alami, tetapi juga menjaga keragaman jenis pohon tetap lestari. Sejalan dengan itu, Sumari berkata, “Dia yang nanam hutan. Dia makan buah, bijinya dia buang lagi jauh-jauh. Kami manusia saja kalah rajin sebar bibit.”
Berdasarkan data dari Kementerian Kehutanan melalui laman Sipongi, periode 1 Januari hingga 31 Agustus 2025, total luasan karhutla di Kalimantan Tengah mencapai 1.353,73 hektar. Kebakaran ini berdampak pada hilang atau berpindahnya ruang hidup orangutan. Saat asap datang, orangutan lari tercerai-berai tak tentu arah. “Kalau hutan dikelola masyarakat, orangutan ikut aman. Karena kami jaga bukan karena digaji, tapi karena kami tinggal di sini,” tegas Sumari.
Sore itu, matahari turun perlahan. Dari balik rimbun pohon galam, muncul sosok oranye bergelayut pelan. Heron berdiri diam, menundukkan kepala semacam salam hormat tak tertulis. “Dia bukan hewan. Dia tetangga,” ujarnya pelan. Di tengah dunia yang makin bising, yang menyelamatkan hutan bukan teknologi canggih. Rasa persaudaraan antara manusia dan makhluk yang sama-sama ingin hidup tenang di rumahnya, menjadi kunci.
Referensi
- Wawancara lapangan Tim Penjaga Hutan Desa Buntoi, 2024. ↩
- IUCN Red List, Pongo pygmaeus Assessment, 2023. ↩
- WWF Indonesia, “Peran Orangutan sebagai Penyebar Biji”, 2022. ↩
Sumari stopped in her tracks when she heard the sound of branches snapping. “If that’s the case, it must be the work of forest people,” said a member of the Gogong Village Forest Ranger Team (TPH). Sumari experienced this during a routine patrol conducted by the TPH to protect the village forest area.
The Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) is one of three orangutan species in the world and also the most endangered. Its population is estimated at 57,350 in the wild (IUCN Red List 2023). This number sounds large, but it is actually fragile, as the majority live on islands constantly affected by forest clearing and fires.
Every afternoon, Heron, Sumari’s partner, patrols the canals and rows of jelutung and balangeran trees. “We don’t have weapons, just cameras and notebooks. But our love for this forest is far stronger than bullets,” he said with a laugh.
They aren’t researchers, nor armed personnel. But they know every orangutan’s footprint perched on a tree trunk. They know the difference between the long roar of an adult male orangutan and the fussy call of a baby orangutan searching for its mother. “If the orangutans are gone, this forest will die,” said Sumari. Research by WWF Indonesia shows that orangutans can disperse seeds tens or even hundreds of meters from where they feed on fruit. This process not only helps natural forest regeneration but also maintains tree species diversity. In line with this, Sumari said, “They plant the forest. They eat the fruit, and then they throw the seeds far away. We humans are less diligent in spreading seeds.”
According to data from the Ministry of Forestry on the Sipongi website, the total area of ​​forest and land fires in Central Kalimantan reached 1,353.73 hectares between January 1 and August 31, 2025. These fires have resulted in the loss or displacement of orangutan habitat. When the smoke rises, orangutans scatter, aimlessly. “If the forest is managed by the community, the orangutans are safe. Because we guard it not for pay, but because we live here,” Sumari emphasized.
That afternoon, the sun slowly set. From behind the dense galam trees, an orange figure appeared, gently swaying. The heron stood still, bowing its head in an unspoken gesture of respect. “He’s not an animal. He’s a neighbor,” he said quietly. In an increasingly noisy world, it’s not advanced technology that will save the forest. A sense of brotherhood between humans and other creatures, who both desire to live peacefully in their homes, is key.
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References
Field interview with the Buntoi Village Forest Ranger Team, 2024. ↩
IUCN Red List, Pongo pygmaeus Assessment, 2023. ↩
WWF Indonesia, “The Role of Orangutans as Seed Dispersers,” 2022. ↩
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