Hundreds of orangutans slaughtered in Indonesia

Villagers living on the Indonesian side of Borneo killed at least 750 endangered orangutans in a year, some to protect crops from being raided and others for their meat, a new survey shows. As a result, most of the remaining 50,000 to 60,000 apes live in scattered, degraded forests, putting them in frequent, and often deadly, conflict with humans. (AP)

In this Jan. 9, 2011 photo, a recently released orangutan swings on a tree at a release site in Tanjung Hanau, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Villagers living on the Indonesian side of Borneo killed at least 750 endangered orangutans over a yearlong period, some to protect crops from being raided and others for their meat, a new survey shows. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

A zookeeper feeds milk to Damai, a baby orangutan who was born on October 8, in Surabaya Zoo October 28, 2011. The zoo now has 16 orangutans. REUTERS/Sigit Pamungkas (INDONESIA - Tags: ANIMALS)

A zookeeper feeds milk to Damai, a baby orangutan who was born on October 8, in Surabaya Zoo October 28, 2011. The zoo now has 16 orangutans. REUTERS/Sigit Pamungkas (INDONESIA - Tags: ANIMALS)

Orangutans lie beside each other at a forest school for orangutans in Palangkaraya, central Kalimantan May 3, 2007. REUTERS/Hardi Baktiantoro

An activist of the Center for Orangutan Protection has his face painted as orangutan during a protest demanding improvement of orangutans' welfare by the government at Jakarta's Ragunan Zoo outside the governor's office in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2011. The activists said that the zoo did not provide decent living environment for their orangutans causing them to fall into depression. Orangutan populations in Indonesia's Borneo and Sumatra islands are facing severe threats from habitat loss, illegal logging, fires and poaching. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Activists of the Center for Orangutan Protection have their face painted as orangutan during a protest demanding improvement of orangutans' welfare by the government at Jakarta's Ragunan Zoo outside the governor's office in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2011. The activists said that the zoo did not provide decent living environment for their orangutans causing them to fall into depression. Orangutan populations in Indonesia's Borneo and Sumatra islands are facing severe threats from habitat loss, illegal logging, fires and poaching. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

A keeper feeds honey to orangutans recently confiscated from an illegal owner at a rehabilitation center in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Saturday, July 2, 2011. Orangutan populations in Indonesia's Borneo and Sumatra island are facing severe threats from habitat loss, illegal logging, fires and poaching. (AP Photo/Slamet Riyadi)

In this Monday, Jan. 10, 2011 photo, a juvenile orangutan plays at a care center where he learns the skills needed to survive in the wild in Pasir Panjang, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Hundreds of orangutans live at the rehabilitation center waiting to be released into the wild.

In this Monday, Jan. 10, 2011 photo, a juvenile orangutan peers from the slats of a wooden sleeping cage at a care center in Pasir Panjang, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Hundreds of orangutans live at the rehabilitation center waiting to be released into the wild. A half-century ago, more than three-quarters of Indonesia, a sprawling archipelagic nation spanning the width of the United States, was blanketed in plush tropical rainforest. But in the rush to supply the world with pulp, paper and, more recently palm oil _ used in everything from lipstick and soap to "clean-burning" fuel _ half those trees have been cleared. For the first time in years, scientist Birute Mary Galdikas has hopes of releasing them into the wild, thanks to a Hong Kong-based development company's plans to protect a 224,866-acre stretch of forest.