Among the leafless trees, already vulnerable orangutans cling on. Authorities and local groups are now carrying out risky rescue operations for animals suffering from smoke inhalation and burns.
An orangutan was rescued high up in a tree in an area where the ground had been cleared.
The haze was quite dense in the area because there was a fire nearby, Handi Nasoka, an official with a local nature conservation authority, said on Friday.
Indonesia regularly battles fires during the dry season, but this year they have grown more intense, partly due to the record-breaking El Niño weather phenomenon. Slash-and-burn farming and the drying out of peatlands have also made the landscape increasingly vulnerable to fires.
