Orangutans and Road Safety: Monkey See, Monkey Do?

Bam is an eight-year-old orangutan with a very important job. He encourages children to wear helmets while cycling.

Orangutang e1319533556552 Orangutans and Road Safety: Monkey See, Monkey Do? picture

Recruited by the government of Thailand at his home at the Dusit Zoo in Bangkok, Bam cycles around town spreading the important message of bike safety and accident prevention.

He delights onlookers by sprinkling a bit of “monkey business dust” in the air during the process.

Thailand has a very high mortality rate from road accidents. Last year, the daily average was 559 cases, totaling 616 injuries and 52 fatalities.

Bam dons a bright yellow or blue shirt and his smiling panda hat every time he hits the road.

He always wears a helmet too, but apparently one of his two orangutan biker friends forgot it for the photo shoot above.

He rides his favorite blue bike, equipped with training wheels, through a crowd of rapt onlookers. Bam may be an unusual role model, but he is an effective one.

This campaign is new and Thai officials will be watching it closely to see how effectively Bam influences children about bike safety.

“It’s not often you see an orangutan on a bike, but Bam could inspire children to take care,” replied one observer.

Go, Bam! But don’t bam. Leave “bamming” for one famous chef named Emeril Lagasse, who does it safely.

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MDeeDubroff

M Dee Dubroff is the penname of this freelance writer and former teacher originally from Brooklyn, New York. A writer of ghostly and horror fiction, she has branched out into the world of humorous non fiction writing and maintains eight web sites covering a wide variety of topics. She also…
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RedApes
RedApes

This is absolutely shameful! Orangutans are not clowns. They should not be 'performing' like this to amuse people. It is cruel and sad. These beautiful creatures are critically endangered in the wild because of rapid deforestation and the expansion of palm oil plantations into their rainforest home. If nothing is done to protect them, they could be extinct in just a few years. They should NOT be exploited like this! Visit the Orangutan Outreach website to learn more and help them: http://redapes.org Reach out and save the orangutans! Don't exploit them!