Jane Goodall slams orang-utan conditions at city zoo
Primatologist says city's captive orang-utans are 'not in a good situation'
A conservationist famed for groundbreaking research on primates has expressed concern over the treatment of orang-utans in Hong Kong's zoo.
Dr Jane Goodall, the primatologist who first observed that chimpanzees make and use tools and have complex emotional needs, said the family of orang-utans at the Zoological and Botanical Gardens "were not in a good situation".
She added that "large animals in small cages with nothing to do are not happy animals".
The 80-year-old was speaking on a visit to Hong Kong to promote her Roots and Shoots initiative, a project aimed at raising awareness of conservation issues among young people in 138 countries.
But Goodall said she wouldn't go to see the animals herself.
"I don't want to go and see them," said Goodall, whose methods scientists once criticised when she gave names instead of numbers to the chimpanzees she observed.
"I have enough nightmares without having to go there and see for myself," she said. "Sometimes I wish I didn't know all the things I do. It keeps me up at night."