People are eating orangutans to extinction in Indonesia, a new study says. Assuming that males and females are killed in equal numbers, then between 375 and 1,550 female orangutans—or between 0.9 and 3.6 percent of Kalimantan's total female orangutan population—are killed annually.
In recent decades gorilla populations have been affected by habitat loss, disease and poaching. Subsequently all gorilla species are classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
While exact orangutan population counts are always a challenge – various estimates put current counts at between 50,000-65,000 orangutans left in the wild – we do know with certainty that 2,000 to 3,000 orangutans are killed every year.
Top 10 Extinct Animals
- Sabre-toothed Cat. Often called Sabre-toothed Tigers or Sabre-toothed Lions, they existed 55 million to 11,700 years ago.
- Woolly Mammoth. An enormous mammal, believed to be closely related to the modern-day elephant.
- Dodo.
- Great Auk.
- Stellers Sea Cow.
- Tasmanian Tiger.
- Passenger Pigeon.
- Pyrenean Ibex.
Sumatran, Tapanuli and Bornean orangutans are killed at a high rate for many reasons, the most common being the trade of meat or because farmers believe they are a threat to their crops. The poaching of orangutans is directly related to rates of deforestation.
Both species have experienced sharp population declines. A century ago there were probably more than 230,000 orangutans in total, but the Bornean orangutan is now estimated at about 104,700 based on updated geographic range (Endangered) and the Sumatran about 7,500 (Critically Endangered).
Orangutans are large, but in general they are quite gentle. Adult males can be aggressive, but for the most part they keep to themselves. They are uniquely arboreal – living their lives quietly up in the trees away from predators… and only descending to the forest floor when they must.
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. All three orangutan species are considered to be critically endangered.
Orangutans are found only in the rain forests of the Southeast Asian islands of Borneo and Sumatra. They spend nearly their entire lives in trees—swinging in tree tops and building nests for sleep. 2.
Borneo and Sumatra are the only places on Earth where tigers, rhinos, orangutans, and elephants live together. The forests are home to marvelous creatures like the proboscis monkey, sun bear, clouded leopard, and flying fox bat, and endangered animals like the Sumatran tiger, Sumatran rhino, and pygmy elephant.
The name "orangutan" (also written orang-utan, orang utan, orangutang, and ourang-outang) is derived from the Malay and Indonesian words orang, meaning "man", and hutan, meaning "forest", thus "man of the forest".
Their arms are longer than their bowed legs, and their hands much like human hands. Because orangutans spend most of their time in trees, their long arms, fingers and toes are quite useful as they swing from branch to branch. An orangutan's arm-span is longer that its height.
They use large leaves as umbrellas and shelters to protect themselves from the common rains. These cerebral primates forage for food during daylight hours. Most of their diet consists of fruit and leaves gathered from rain forest trees. They also eat bark, insects and, on rare occasions, meat.
How tall is an orangutan?
Sumatran orangutan: 1.4 m
Bornean orangutan: 1.2 – 1.4 m
Orangutans will be extinct from the planet within 10 years unless action is taken to preserve forests in Indonesia and Malaysia where they live, a conservation charity has warned.
Orangutan females only give birth about once every 8 years – the longest time between births of any mammal on earth. (This results in only 4 to 5 babies in her lifetime.)
Road development, illegal timber harvesting and unsustainable logging, mining and human encroachment also contribute to habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation. Today, more than 50% of orang-utans are found outside of protected areas in forests under management by timber, palm oil and mining companies.
Orangutans are found only in the rain forests of the Southeast Asian islands of Borneo and Sumatra. They spend nearly their entire lives in trees—swinging in tree tops and building nests for sleep.
What is happening to the orangutans of Borneo? A new study calculates that the island of Borneo lost nearly 150,000 orangutans in the period between 1999 and 2015, largely as a result of deforestation and killing. There were an estimated 104,700 of the critically endangered apes left as of 2012.
Orangutan females only give birth about once every 8 years – the longest time between births of any mammal on earth. (This results in only 4 to 5 babies in her lifetime.)
Orangutans are found only in the rain forests of the Southeast Asian islands of Borneo and Sumatra. They spend nearly their entire lives in trees—swinging in tree tops and building nests for sleep.
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, including tigers, Asian elephants and Sumatran rhinos. So by conserving the orangutan's habitat, we're also benefiting local communities and other species.
The largest remaining population is found in the forest around the Sabangau River, but this environment is at risk. Sumatran orangutan populations declined by 80% in 75 years. This species is now found only in the northern part of Sumatra, with most of the population inhabiting the Leuser Ecosystem.
Sumatran, Tapanuli and Bornean orangutans are killed at a high rate for many reasons, the most common being the trade of meat or because farmers believe they are a threat to their crops. The poaching of orangutans is directly related to rates of deforestation.
Deforestation and Habitat Loss. In 2012, the Sumatran elephant was changed from “Endangered” to “Critically Endangered” because half of its population has been lost in one generation—a decline that is largely due to habitat loss and as a result human-elephant conflict.
