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The Orangutan is a primate related to gorillas and chimpanzees. Its name means ‘old man of the forest’, referring to the bright red-orange color of its silky coat. It has a large, lugubrious face, with strong arms used for climbing and swinging in trees. The Orangutan is one of the few primates to live outside Africa.
The Orangutan lives in the trees of the rainforest and female Orangutans rarely touch the ground. At night, females and young males sleep in a nest of branches placed in a tree; however, older males are heavier and sleep on the ground. Orangutans do not live in groups, as do other primates, they prefer to live alone. Females sometimes live with their adult offspring; however, adult males often have territories that they defend vociferously against other males.
During the day, Orangutans leave their nests to look for food. Nuts, eggs, and leaves form the bulk of an Orangutan’s diet, along with the occasional addition of insects. They drink the water that collects on the leaves of trees, and hydrate themselves further by eating vast amounts of fruit.
A male Orangutan will mate with several females over their lifetime. Orangutans have no particular mating season. Females can give birth at any time of the year. They have only a single young Orangutan every three to six years. Females will not mate again until her baby is at least three years old. Her young will stay with her until she has another child to care for. Because of this, they usually give birth no more than two to three times during their life span.
The world’s population of wild Orangutans is found exclusively in the rainforests of the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. It is estimated that approximately 10,000 to 15,000 Orangutans can be found on the island of Borneo and another 7,000 to 12,000 on the island of Sumatra.
Orangutans are classified as an endangered species. This means that if actions are not taken to counteract threats to their survival, Orangutans are at risk of extinction in the near future. Experts estimate that this could perhaps happen within the next 10-20 years. The two biggest threats these shy creatures face are habitat loss and being poach by humans.
Scientists estimate that the Orangutan habitat has decreased by more than eighty percent in the last twenty years. Timber cutting, oil drilling, and rubber and rice plantations destroy vast tracts of land that Orangutans live on, or destroy resources that they need to survive.
Poaching poses a real threat to the survival of wild Orangutans. People in Borneo and Sumatra often eat Orangutan meat, kill Orangutans that they consider pests, or keep them as pets.
Tourism has contributed to one of the most reprehensible reasons for the declining numbers of Orangutans. The sale to tourists of ape skulls as a fake headhunter artifact is big business in Borneo, despite strict laws.
Hollywood and the Far East has been instrumental in creating a demand for pet Orangutans. Taiwan, during the period of 1987 through 1990 was the collector of approximately 2000 smuggled young Orangutans. The private market was willing to pay $20,000 for an individual ape.
The people of Borneo and Sumatra are poor, and the high price for young Orangutans is too tempting to pass up, so they often capture Orangutans to sell. Young Orangutan without their mothers are much more tractable, so their hunting method consists of finding a female with young, killing her, and taking the young orangutan to market.
Increases in industries have led to an easier way of smuggling a large number of juvenile Orangutans. It is estimated that less than half of a percent of those smuggled out are detected at the borders. It is also estimated that seventy-five percent of the juvenile orangutans die en route to their destination, many of them because they refuse to eat or are given spoiled or inappropriate kinds of food.
To make it even worse, forest fires are frequently burning in Borneo and Sumatra. In March of 2000, the Indonesian government declared the forest fires in Borneo and Sumatra a national disaster. Over 1,200 hot spots have been reported on the two islands. Most of the fires are set deliberately and it is believed that it is the holders of large forest concessions who are responsible. The areas burned include areas that support Orangutans, so they are likely to suffer severely.
There are many Orangutans kept in captivity in zoos, where they breed and have young, slowly. It is estimated that there are approximately 900 Orangutan living in captivity in some 200 different collections with the largest numbers being found in Western Europe, where 303 Orangutans are kept in 68 zoos. The runner up for the most Orangutans is the USA with approximately 268 apes in 64 different locations.
Right now, all the efforts that are being used to combat extinction for the Orangutan can’t change the main cause of their declining numbers-human avarice. Until more stringent laws are passed, and are actually enforced, the fate of the Orangutan hangs in the balance.
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