Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY
Volume 29, Issue 4, Pages 1059-1064Publisher
SPRINGER
DOI: 10.1007/s10764-008-9266-5
Keywords
Commelina; fur-rubbing; orangutan self-medication
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Orangutans exhibit fur-rubbing possibly for medicinal use. I hypothesize that they use a species of Commelina, an uncommon herb in the peat-swamp forests of Central Kalimantan, Borneo, as either an antibacterial or anti-inflammatory agent. In Central Kalimantan, local indigenous people use the same species as an external medication to treat their arms after a stroke, for muscular pain, and for sore bones and swellings. Thus, the possible convergence of human and orangutan use of Commelina may indicate that orangutans are using it for a similar purpose.
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