Ah Meng
Encyclopedia
Ah Meng (Chinese: 阿明) was a female Sumatran Orangutan
and a tourism icon of Singapore
. She was smuggled from Indonesia and kept illegally as a domestic pet before being recovered by a veterinarian in 1971. She was then eleven years old and was given a home at the Singapore Zoo
.
Ah Meng was the head of her small clan, which lives in a large enclosure with about twenty other orangutans. She had five children and became a grandmother in 1990.
She belonged to the Sumatran Orangutan species, a rarer breed of orangutan now critically endangered due to illegal logging and poaching. There are about only 7,500 Sumatran Orangutans left in the wild in the rainforest
s of Sumatra
, Indonesia
. Ah Meng died on 8 February 2008.
.
Due to her early years being raised by a family, Ah Meng was more approachable by humans than other primates in her clan. Due to her interactive nature, she was the first to host the Zoo's 'Breakfast With Ah Meng' programme, whereby visitors would eat their morning meal and then have a photograph taken with the orangutan. By allowing visitors to interact closely with Ah Meng and other orangutans, the Singapore Zoo aims to raise public awareness of the importance of preserving the orangutan's natural habitat as well as of other environmental issues.
In 1992, the Singapore Tourism Promotion Board
conferred Ah Meng a "Special Tourism Ambassador" award in recognition of her contribution to tourism in Singapore. She was the first non-human recipient of the award. She received a certificate and a stack of bananas.
As she aged, her public appearances became less frequent for fear of subjecting her to stress.
On 10 February 2008, a high-profile memorial service
for Ah Meng was held before a crowd of 4000 visitors at the Singapore Zoo.
As a tribute to her, the next orangutan born at the Singapore Zoo will be named Ah Meng Junior. A durian
tree will be planted at her grave because durian was her favourite fruit. A life-sized bronze statue forged in her image was also unveiled.
Sumatran Orangutan
The Sumatran orangutan is one of the two species of orangutans. Found only on the island of Sumatra, in Indonesia, it is rarer and smaller than the Bornean orangutan. The Sumatran orangutan grows to about tall and in males...
and a tourism icon of Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. She was smuggled from Indonesia and kept illegally as a domestic pet before being recovered by a veterinarian in 1971. She was then eleven years old and was given a home at the Singapore Zoo
Singapore Zoo
The Singapore Zoo , formerly known as the Singapore Zoological Gardens and commonly known locally as the Mandai Zoo, occupies 28 hectares of land on the margins of Upper Seletar Reservoir within Singapore's heavily forested central catchment area. The zoo was built at a cost of S$9m granted by...
.
Ah Meng was the head of her small clan, which lives in a large enclosure with about twenty other orangutans. She had five children and became a grandmother in 1990.
She belonged to the Sumatran Orangutan species, a rarer breed of orangutan now critically endangered due to illegal logging and poaching. There are about only 7,500 Sumatran Orangutans left in the wild in the rainforest
Rainforest
Rainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with definitions based on a minimum normal annual rainfall of 1750-2000 mm...
s of Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. Ah Meng died on 8 February 2008.
Celebrity life
Ah Meng was the poster girl of the Singapore Zoo. Pictures of her have been used in Singapore's tourism advertisements worldwide. She has also been featured in over 30 travel films and more than 300 articles. Some of the foreign dignitaries and celebrities that visited Ah Meng included Prince Philip and Michael JacksonMichael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
.
Due to her early years being raised by a family, Ah Meng was more approachable by humans than other primates in her clan. Due to her interactive nature, she was the first to host the Zoo's 'Breakfast With Ah Meng' programme, whereby visitors would eat their morning meal and then have a photograph taken with the orangutan. By allowing visitors to interact closely with Ah Meng and other orangutans, the Singapore Zoo aims to raise public awareness of the importance of preserving the orangutan's natural habitat as well as of other environmental issues.
In 1992, the Singapore Tourism Promotion Board
Singapore Tourism Board
The Singapore Tourism Board is a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Singapore, tasked to promote the country's tourism industry.-History:...
conferred Ah Meng a "Special Tourism Ambassador" award in recognition of her contribution to tourism in Singapore. She was the first non-human recipient of the award. She received a certificate and a stack of bananas.
As she aged, her public appearances became less frequent for fear of subjecting her to stress.
Incidents
- In March 1982, during the shooting of a promotional video at MacRitchie ReservoirMacRitchie ReservoirMacRitchie Reservoir is Singapore's oldest reservoir. The reservoir was completed in 1868 by impounding water from an earth embankment, and was then known as the Impounding Reservoir or Thomson Reservoir....
, Ah Meng climbed a tree and stayed there for three nights. On her way down, she fell seven stories and broke her right arm.
- In March 1992, Ah Meng attacked a research student who spent much time with Ah Meng's long-time keeper, Alagappasamy Chellaiyah. Though some individuals claim this was done out of "jealousy," human observers need to be very cautious of the emotions they attribute to animal behavior; this incident was not incited by the feeling of jealousy people are accustomed to.
Death
Ah Meng died on 8 February 2008 due to old age. She was 48 years old, or 95 orangutan years, and is survived by two sons, Hsing Hsing and Satria, and three daughters, Medan, Hong Bao, and Sayang, as well as six grandchildren.On 10 February 2008, a high-profile memorial service
Funeral
A funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, sanctifying, or remembering the life of a person who has died. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from interment itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honor...
for Ah Meng was held before a crowd of 4000 visitors at the Singapore Zoo.
As a tribute to her, the next orangutan born at the Singapore Zoo will be named Ah Meng Junior. A durian
Durian
The durian is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio and the Malvaceae family . Widely known and revered in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, unique odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk...
tree will be planted at her grave because durian was her favourite fruit. A life-sized bronze statue forged in her image was also unveiled.