Orangutans

The lowland forest habitats of Asia's only great ape are quickly disappearing. The are being cut down for timber or burned to make way for oil palm plantations and other agricultural developments.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

naturepl.com/Anup Shah / WWF

Key facts

Species

Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii), Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus)

Location

Sumatra (Indonesia), Borneo (Malaysia and Indonesia)

Status

Endangered to Critically Endangered

SPECIES NEWS
Kingpin behind bars for poaching chimps
Wildlife trafficker that poached 500 endangered chimpanzees has been imprisoned.
26 Aug 2013 0 comments

Victims of logging and fire

Orangutans share a preference with humans for fertile alluvial plains and lowland valleys a habitat once rich in tropical forests but now being replaced with logging and agricultural concessions.

Each of the two orangutan species is found only on the island from which it derives its name: Sumatra or Borneo. With numbers having fallen drastically over the past century and human pressures increasing, orangutans may be lost from the wild forever within a few decades. More on the Sumatran orangutan More on the Bornean orangutan

Physical description
The orangutan is the world's largest tree-climbing mammal. The animals have a characteristic ape-like shape, shaggy reddish fur and grasping hands and feet. Their long armsvery long arms that can reach as much as 2 meters in length. Orangutans's legs are relatively short and weak, but their hands and arms are powerful. There are 2 different types of adult male orangutan: "flanged" & "unflanged". Flanged males have a long coat of dark hair on their back, a facial disk, flanges and a throat sac used for long calls". The unflanged male looks like an adult female. Both reproduce and an unflanged male can change to a flanged male for reasons that are not yet fully understood. Orangutans are the only primate in which this biological phenomenon occurs. Size: 1.25-1.5m in length; females weigh 30-50kg, males weigh 50-90kg Colour: Reddish brown

The 'man of the forest'

Orangutans live in primary and secondary forests. Although they can occur up to 1,500 meters above sea level, most are found in lowland areas and prefer forests in river valleys or floodplains. Orangutans travel about by moving from one tree to another, and usually avoid climbing down to the ground - although there are differences between the two species. When on the ground, they move on "all fours", with clenched fists placed on the ground. Orangutans make a nest of vegetation to sleep in at night, and rest in smaller nets during the day to rest. Social structure Adult orangutans are generally solitary, although temporary aggregations are occasionally formed. The large home ranges of males overlap with the ranges of several adult females. Adult males are generally hostile to one another, although they do not display territoriality. Life cycle Orangutans usually give birth to a single young, or occasionally twins. After weaning at about 3.5 years of age, young individuals become gradually independent of their mother after she gives birth to a second young.

Orangutan females first reproduce at around 10-15 years of age, depending on the species/subspecies. Females give birth probably not more than once every 5 years, and the interbirth interval can be as long as 10 years. The long time taken to reach sexual maturity, the long interbirth periods, and the fact that orangutans normally give birth to just a single young mean that orangutans have an extremely low reproductive rate. This makes orangutan populations highly vulnerable to excessive mortality, and means that populations take a long time to recover from population declines. Diet About 60% of the orangutan's diet includes fruit (e.g. durians, jackfruit, lychees, mangosteens, mangoes and figs), while the rest comprises of young leaves and shoots, insects, soil, tree bark, woody lianas, and occasionally eggs and small vertebrates. They obtain water not only from fruit, but also from tree holes.

Population & distribution

Previous population & distribution Pleistocene fossil records in southern China, northern Vietnam, Lao PDR, and Java indicate that the genus once had a wide distribution in Southeast Asia. Orangutans are now only found on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra, with populations on each island belonging to separate species. A century ago there were probably more than 230,000 orangutans worldwide. Current population & distribution Both orangutan species have experienced sharp population declines over the past few decades. Their dense forest homes make it difficult to precisely determine population sizes, however the Bornean orangutan is estimated to number about 41,000 individuals, while the Sumatran orangutan is estimated to number about 7,500 individuals.

More on the Sumatran orangutan More on the Bornean orangutan

Flanged male Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus)

David Lawson / WWF-UK

PRIORITY PLACES

Borneo Sumatra

HABITAT
Major habitat type Tropical and Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests Biogeographic realm Indo-Malayan Range States Indonesia, Malaysia Ecological Region Borneo Lowland and Montane Forests, Kinabalu Montane Shrublands, Sundaland Rivers and Swamps

 Alain Compost / WWF-Canon

What are the main threats?

Habitat loss Habitat destruction and fragmentation is by far the greatest threat to orangutans. Huge tracts of forest have been cleared throughout the their range, through legal and illegal logging and forest conversion for oil palm plantations and other agriculture. Fires related to these activities also pose a serious threat to both orangutans and their habitat. Today, more than 50% of orangutans are found outside of protected areas, in forests under management by timber, palm oil and mining companies. Hunting & illegal trade Orangutans are an easy target for hunters, being large and slow targets. The animals are killed for food in some areas, or in retaliation when they move into agricultural areas and destroy crops. This occurs more in times of environmental stress when orangutans can't find the food they need in the forest. Females in particular are most often hunted. When caught with offspring, the young are often kept as pets. This pet trade is a major problem. It is thought that for each orangutan reaching Taiwan,

as many as 3-5 additional animals die in the process. Recent enforcement of the law in Taiwan has reduced the importation of orangutans, but the trade remains a threat in Indonesia where there is still demand for orangutans as pets. There is also trade in orangutan skulls in Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo).

More on threats to Sumatran orangutans More on threats to Bornean orangutans More on habitat loss and degradation More on wildlife trade

Alain COMPOST / WWF-Canon

Chris R. Shepherd - TRAFFIC Southeast Asia

WHAT IS WWF DOING?

WWF has been working on orangutan conservation since the 1970s, in partnership with both international and local groups including research institutions, universities, government institutions and local communities. This work is guided by a specific Species Action Plan for orangutans, and includes:

Conserving orangutan habitat: We are working in both Borneo and Sumatra to secure well-managed protected areas and wider forest landscapes connected by corridors. Promoting sustainable forestry and agriculture: Our work on sustainable production of commodities including forest products and palm oil also contributes towards the protection and conservation of major orangutan habitats on the islands, as well as to mitigating human-orangutan conflict. Halting the pet trade. We work with TRAFFIC (the wildlife trade monitoring network) to help governments enforce restrictions on the trade in live animals and orangutan products. We also help to rescue orangutans from traders. Many are taken to refuges where they can recover and be rehabilitated, and are eventually released back into the wild. More on our orangutan work in Borneo More on our orangutan work in Sumatra

HOPE FOR AN ORPHANED ORANGUTAN

The story of baby Baim

PRIORITY SPECIES
As a great ape, orangutans are a WWFpriority species. WWF treats priority species as one of the most ecologically, economically and/or culturally important species on our planet. As such, we are working to ensure orangutans can live and thrive in their natural habitats.

You can help

Adopt an orangutan through WWF-UK or WWF-US and support our work to protect orangutans (international adoptions possible) Buy sustainable wood, paper and palm oil. By purchasing certified sustainable palm oil and FSC-certified forest products, consumers, retailers, traders, and manufacturers help protect orangutan habitat by limiting illegal logging and forest conversion to oil palm plantations. Spread the word! Click on the button to share this information with others via email or your favourite social networking service.

The orangutans are the two exclusively Asian species of extant great apes. Native to Indonesia and Malaysia, orangutans are currently found in only the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra. Classified in the genus Pongo, orangutans were

considered to be one species. However, since 1996, they have been divided into two species: the Bornean orangutan (P. pygmaeus) and the Sumatran orangutan (P. abelii). In addition, the Bornean species is divided into three subspecies. The orangutans are also the only surviving species of the subfamily Ponginae, which also included several other species, such as Gigantopithecus, the largest known primate. Both species had their genomes sequenced and they appear to have diverged around 400,000 years ago. Orangutans diverged from the rest of the great apes 15.7 to 19.3 million years ago (mya). Orangutans are the most arboreal of the great apes and spend most of their time in trees. Their hair is typically reddish-brown, instead of the brown or black hair typical of chimpanzees and gorillas. Males and females differ in size and appearance. Dominant adult males have distinctive cheek pads and produce long calls that attract females and intimidate rivals. Younger males do not have these characteristics and resemble adult females. Orangutans are the most solitary of the great apes, with social bonds occurring primarily between mothers and their dependent offspring, who stay together for the first two years. Fruit is the most important component of an orangutan's diet; however, the apes will also eat vegetation, bark, honey, insects and even bird eggs. They can live over 30 years in both the wild and captivity. Orangutans are among the most intelligent primates; they use a variety of sophisticated tools and construct elaborate sleeping nests each night from branches and foliage. The apes have been extensively studied for their learning abilities. There may even be distinctive cultures within populations. Field studies of the apes were pioneered by primatologist Birut Galdikas. Both orangutan species are considered to be Endangered, with the Sumatran orangutan being Critically Endangered. Human activities have caused severe declines in the populations and ranges of both species. Threats to wild orangutan populations include poaching, habitat destruction, and the illegalpet trade. Several conservation and rehabilitation organisations are dedicated to the survival of orangutans in the wild.