It’s taken me a few days to write this, as I’ve really struggled to find words that do justice and convey just the right amount of reverence to our grand old lady of Perth Zoo, Puan.

It feels quite surreal to have said goodbye, we all know that life isn’t infinite, but for some reason Puan has always just seemed to be the one who might prove us wrong.

Puan was born in approximately 1956, and has passed away at the grand old age of 62. In saying this, Puan may have been older than what we thought, as she was wild born, so her age has been calculated via old stories, notes and dates long gone. In 2016 she was awarded a Guinness World Record for being the oldest living Sumatran orangutan in the world.

Puan is one of the more difficult members of our colony to write about - she’s not as outgoing as Sekara, as sweet as Utama or as placid as Dinar, but she certainly holds a special place in everyone’s hearts, and her legacy is quite simply incredible. There really aren’t words to describe Puan and the impact she has had on not only the breeding program at Perth Zoo, but also on the people who over the past 50-odd years have cared for her.

Camera Icon Perth Zoo's Puan arrived at Perth Zoo in 1968., Credit: Alex Asbury.

I can’t stress enough how incredible her legacy is. She’s a mother to 11 children (most wild orangutans reproduce 4 times in their lives), a grandmother, and a great grandmother. She has 54 descendants, 29 still living, and those descendants are spread across 5 European zoos, 3 in the United States, Singapore Zoo, Adelaide Zoo, Perth Zoo, and of course, Sumatra. Her genetics count for just under 10% of the global captive population.

Impressive statistics.

But the lady we know as Puan is so much more than statistics.

I’ve known Puan now for just under 18 years, and to be honest I’m just another keeper to her in a long line of people who’ve done their very best to care for her over the years. To look at Puan is to look into the eyes of an animal (and I find even saying ‘animal’ to feel slightly disrespectful) who has seen so much in her lifetime that the mind boggles. She was born in the jungles of Sumatra, and I can only imagine how she would have dealt with being taken from the wild and placed in captivity. To arrive at Perth Zoo from the Sultan of Jahore’s private zoo, in 1968, would have been quite the journey for her. She really has seen it all, from the jungles of the wild to the old exhibits here at Perth, to our now world class exhibits. It fascinates me as to the stories she could tell.

Camera Icon Puan has 54 descendants around the world. Credit: Alex Asbury

Puan was a ‘hands off’ individual. She was somewhat aloof, I remember being told early in my career – ‘Puan will decide when and if you may touch her’! When we weighed her we knew we had one chance and one chance only, if we weren’t on the ball and watching closely, she certainly wasn’t going to sit on those scales again. As Kylie Bullo once said to me – ‘Oh Puan, bless her, she never fails to make you feel unworthy’! If you weren’t quick with her dinner, or you kept her inside a minute longer than she deemed necessary, she would let you know by tapping her foot to make you hurry along. You always knew were you stood with Puan.

I chuckle when I think of the story of her and her young son Puluh, using a fallen banana tree to pay a visit to our male Hsing Hsing, and have a bit of fun! Puan (being the flirt that she was)!

Camera Icon Puan with her baby in 1974. Credit: The West Australian

I’ll never forget the day we gave her access to a giant fig tree to climb and nest in. Puan hadn’t been in a real tree for over 50 years at that stage, and to be honest my eyes were filled with tears watching her climbing. She was the only one who would nest in the tree itself, instead of taking branches back to the platforms to nest. Her instinct and her own mother’s teachings had never left her after all those years. She loved durian, and her eyes would light up when she was given one. Another reminder for her of life in the jungle all those years ago.

Over the years Puan’s eyelashes had greyed, her movement had slowed down and her mind had started to wander. But she remained the matriarch, the quiet, dignified lady she had always been. Puan demanded and deserved respect, and she certainly had it from all her keepers over the years. She was the founding female of the best breeding colony in the world. She was the invaluable teacher to our youngsters before they were released to Bukit Tigapuluh. The maker of the most amazing nests, and the lady who took no nonsense from her children over the years, but was also the most nurturing mother we had.

Puan taught me patience, she taught me that natural and wild instincts never disappear in captivity. She was in a zoo environment, but to the end she always maintained her independence. I feel so grateful to have been in her life, albeit to have been such a small part of her life. But to me she’ll always remain a big part of my life. Caring for Puan has been an absolute privilege, and I’ll always remain grateful to have been involved with such an important individual in Perth Zoo’s history. It’s my absolute wish for her to be remembered for the beautiful, independent lady that she was, and I think it’s an amazing legacy for her great grandson Nyaru to be out living his life in the jungles of Sumatra, where his great grandmother hailed from.

It won’t be the same in the orangutan corridor anymore. In the past 6 months we have had to say goodbye to two of the biggest presences in our colony, Hsing Hsing, and now Puan. But both of them live on in their children and children’s children.

Rest in peace Puan, may you climb happily in the jungles of the sky. Thank you for giving us your legacy, and I promise we’ll look after your family.