How one orangutan braved new bridge to unite his split community

When a road was built through the forest where orangutans lived in Sumatra, Indonesia, it split the Sumatran orangutan community in two and raised fears that inbreeding could lead to health consequences and possible extinction.

Conservation groups Sumatran Orangutan Society (SOS) and Tangguh Hutan Khatulistiwa, with help from the government, built a canopy bridge in the hope that orangutan communities would use it to cross between the two banks of the forest.

However, the bridge remained unused for two years, until an orangutan braved the crossing and reached the other side.

Helen Buckland, chief executive of SOS, told the BBC how this exciting and long-awaited crossing could significantly change the situation for primates.

Video Emaan Warraich.