2 orangutans outsmart Indy zoo enclosure

Orangutans' curiosity and intelligence are part of what makes these animals so appealing to humans.

But these traits are also what makes it challenging for zoos to design exhibits that will contain the great apes.

Tuesday morning, two orangutans at the Indianapolis Zoo escaped their holding area. Staff discovered the break immediately and returned the orangutans, said Carla Knapp, public relations specialist for the zoo. The animals didn't reach public space or even any areas where keepers work.

But the break-out exposed a vulnerability in the design of the $26 million International Orangutan Center.

And that's why zoo officials decided to let the orangutans have two months to explore their new digs before opening it to the public in late May, Knapp said. This gives the eight orangutans time to find any ways to breach their limits, while giving zoo staff time to figure out how to prevent them from doing so.

"Orangutans, they're very clever and curious, and we took all of that into consideration when we were designing the exhibit," she said. "They're just really clever, and we know that they're that clever."

Rocky, a 9-year-old male, and Knobi, his adoptive mother, left the enclosure together. The escapees damaged an internal camera during the incident.

Knapp said she did not know how the animals got out of their "primary containment" area or how staff learned of the escape, which happened around 10:30 a.m.

Most of the visitors to the zoo were in the dolphin theater and were asked to remain there until the incident was resolved, which took about 20 to 30 minutes, she said.

Zoo lore abounds with stories of orangutans' abilities to figure out ways to go beyond their boundaries.

The Omaha Zoo had an orangutan who one morning greeted zoo staff from outside his exhibit. At first, the humans considered his escape to be a fluke.

But then the keepers realized that he could escape through the air vents and pick a lock to make it to the other side.

The San Diego Zoo had a male orangutan named Ken Allen who was "a legend" for his escape-artist ways, said Christina Simmons, public relations manager with that zoo.

Ken Allen would leave his enclosure, but never go far, Simmons said. Zoo staff began to suspect that he escaped not to get away but to get closer to humans. He had been hand-reared by humans, so, unlike zoo animals who want to stay as far away from humans, he was comfortable around our species.

"Zoo exhibits are built on the premise that the animals don't want to be with the humans, but when you have a very intelligent animal that's used to humans, you will discover that they will work on things to see about getting out where the people are," Simmons said.

Rocky, who started his life in the entertainment industry, was raised by humans. He did not live with other orangutans until he was 3½ years old.

Unlike many other species, orangutans are "subtle" problem solvers, Simmons said. Instead of actively working at a problem — such as how to get out of an enclosure — they tend to think through a solution and then act, not giving humans any indication of their plans.

So giving the orangutans ample time to adjust and test their new exhibit home was "brilliant," Simmons said. The San Diego Zoo at one point brought in an orangutan to test out a new enclosure for Ken Allen, to see if he could figure out escape routes that had failed to occur to the humans who designed the exhibit.

The National Zoo in Washington has had its share of attempted escapes. That facility features the O line, a system of towers and cables by which the zoo's orangutan residents can travel. The system has an electrical barrier to ensure that the orangutans do not climb down.

When the zoo was testing the new feature 20 years ago, an adult male went to a tower and received a shock on his hand and foot. He climbed down the tower and was sedated and then returned to his cage.

That male never returned to the O line.

And he's not likely to do so now — at least not at the National Zoo.

That orangutan, Azy, now lives at the Indianapolis Zoo.

Call Star reporter Shari Rudavsky at (317) 444-6354. Follow her on Twitter: @srudavsky.