Meet these Malaysian tribal women saving gibbons from hairy situations
Refusing to be cooped up at home, the Semai from the country’s first all-female ranger unit are saving these endangered animals
Drawn to gibbons since she was a child, Sunnyda, also known as Cidot, said of their melodic calls: “Their voices are so powerful, as they overpowered the sound of the river.”
Malaysia is home to five species of gibbons, all of which are listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, primarily due to habitat loss, hunting and the illegal pet trade.
The ranger unit is an initiative led by the Gibbon Conservation Society in Pahang state on the Malaysian peninsula.
Many of the seven women in training never imagined themselves working in conservation.
The Semai, who live in Pahang, are an ethnic indigenous group that is among the poorest and most vulnerable communities in Malaysia.
They often have limited access to resources including healthcare, education and jobs, with traditional views often confining women to domestic roles.