Andre Yoskowitz
1 Jan 2012 22:33
Orangutans at the Milwaukee County Zoo have apparently been using iPads since May and could eventually use the tablets to video-call other apes at other zoos.
Conservationist Richard Zimmerman of the charity Orangutan Outreach says the next step is to give the tablets Wi-Fi access, allowing the apes to watch their primate buddies in other zoos.
The orangutans have been using simple apps like "Doodle Buddy" to draw. Says Zimmerman: "What we really want to do is to allow the orangutans to really play - to do paintings, to watch videos, to do almost as a human child would do with basic curiosity."
Zoo keepers are looking to create reinforced tablets so the apes can have free reign with the tablets without the need for human intervention. The animals love watching bright videos and images, says Zimmerman (BBC) and are especially happy when they recognize the people in the images or see other orangutans.
Continues Zimmerman: "They love moving images. They love bright things. They like to be entertained! They love new things, so one of the first things we're going to do to incorporate that is make sure the facilities have wi-fi capabilities so that the orangutans can actually have access to unlimited information - of course with the keepers guiding them."
Into the future, the group wants to have reinforced tablets created so the apes can use the tablets and throw them around without worrying about destroying $500 tablets within seconds. As of now, the average life span of an iPad without human help is just 15 seconds.