SUBMISSION: Mina The Gentle by Mike Talladen

ENDANGERED: Fine Art & Photography Contest 2018 Submission A famous orangutan in norther Sumatra Mina is known for being aggressive. Mina is nothing more than a gentle mother caring for her son and the victim of one too many close encounters with irresponsible guides and tourists attempting to get a closer look. She was rescued from illegal captivity and eventually re-released into the Gunung Leuser ecosystem and has since been attacked over 10 times by machete for being "aggressive." I feel her sons timidness and her watchful eye are a good representation of the fragility of Indonesia's rainforests. Losing their homes to oil palm and paper pulp plantations hunted for illegal pets and killed for no reason Sumatran orangutans are now critically endangered with their forests shrinking more every day. More ENDANGERED: Art4Apes submissions on | Facebook a4a.news/fb | Instagram a4a.news/in | Twitter a4a.news/tw