The rare albino orangutan that was rescued from captivity in Indonesia has finally been given a name. A conservation group has announced that the orangutan will be named "Alba" after choosing from the suggestions from the public.
Was the five-year-old albino orangutan named after Hollywood actress Jessica Alba? In an article published by Phys, the name "Alba" was chosen as it could be translated to "dawn" in Spanish and "white" in Latin.
The Borneo Orangutan Survival (BOS) Foundation said that the chosen name for the albino orangutan carries a significance. They said that the name "Alba" could mean a new dawn will come for other endangered animals. The group is known to care for the critically endangered ape, as said in their statement.
Last week, the BOS foundation launched a project that would aim to get the female Bornean albino orangutan a name from the public. They said that they have received thousands of suggestions from people around the world before deciding to use the name "Alba". The foundation also said that it is their first time in its 25-years of establishment that they have taken an albino orangutan.
"Alba," the white-haired, blue-eyed animal, was rescued in the Indonesian part of Borneo island last month from the villagers who had been keeping the albino orangutan in a cage. The Jakarta Post has reported that Alba is in a poor condition after being rescued but was now having a great recovery as she gained about 4.5 kilograms already for the past fortnight.
Currently, the albino orangutan is in the rehabilitation center of BOS, which is also shared by almost 500 orangutans. The foundation also said that they are surveying Alba's condition of being an albino before deciding on her future welfare.
Jamartin Sihite, the CEO of the BOS Foundation, said that they cannot simply put the albino orangutan back in the wild without having a thorough examination of her condition. "We can't simply place Alba in a forest area, nor in a sanctuary, without thoroughly examining all possibilities," he said.
