It’s been a great week at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. According to National Geographic, a Bornean orangutan was born at the zoo for the first time in 25 years. Both the mother, known as Batang, and baby are doing well.

In a perfect world, that would be the extent of this article. However, there is one thing that makes this species so incredibly important: they are critically endangered.

Native to Indonesia and Malaysia, orangutans are the world’s largest tree-climbing mammals, and their preservation has been of utmost importance to many involved in the zoo industry.

“Orangutans are known as gardeners of the forest,” explains The World Wildlife Fund. “They play a vital role in seed dispersal and in maintaining the health of the forest ecosystem, which is important for people and a host of other animals.” In other words, orangutans are a huge part of the foundation of the forests that they occupy, and benefit animals and humans alike by keeping the forest clean.

The same forests that orangutans live in and care for are being destroyed right before them. This loss of habitat is what has led to the critically endangered status the orangutans now hold. The World Wildlife Fund continues to explain that both Indonesia and Malaysia have some of the highest rates of deforestation in the world due to the global demand of palm oil, which can be found in abundance in these countries. Unfortunately, the palm oil demand has very little consideration for the fact that orangutans live in the very same trees that they are rapidly destroying.

Along with deforestation comes the threat of droughts and fires, as the forests that once stood tall and proud were the main preventative measure against these things.

As “the most intelligent species on the face of the earth,” we should be using our super extra smart brains to protect the species that live in the areas that contain certain materials we are interested in. Animals such as the orangutan should not even have to reach the critically endangered point.

The birth of this baby Bornean is so important to orangutans as a whole because of the fact that the number of them is so low. National Geographic states that “orangutans give birth about every eight years.” The length of time between births renders increasing orangutans numbers very difficult.

The National Zoo was so determined to bring a new baby orangutan into the world that they have gone to comparatively extreme measures.

“For the past three years, National Zoo staff have been training Batang to care for an infant,” National Geographic explains. “They’ve also trained female orangutans Bonnie and Iris to act as surrogate mothers in case Batang is unable to care for her baby.”

Good for you, National Zoo, for taking into consideration this beautiful species of gentle giants when so many others have turned a blind eye to their decreasing numbers. And welcome to the world, little wild one. You are such a gift to your species.