Page 68 - World of Animals - Issue #39

Saving orangutans

Gardeners of the forest

Take a trip into the treetops and discover
the amazing life history of the orangutan

Orangutans generally live alone but females can be seen with
their adorable babies clinging on as they swing through the
trees. The apes make lofty nests from leaves and branches and
sleep in the trees to avoid predators. Although not many are
large enough to take on a 90 kilogram (200 pound) ape, that’s
not to say that hungry big cats won't try.
Dominant male orangutans also live alone and keep loose

territory boundaries. These big boys have large, fleshy pouches

either side of their faces known as ‘flanges’ – but curiously

only some males develop this. Mature yet ‘un-flanged’ males
can develop into ‘flanged’ males too, but we still don’t know

exactly why or how!
Like the rest of their great ape cousins, these apes are
a clever and sensitive species, and social learning plays
a key part in orangutan education. Babies observe their
parents using tools, and adopt this for themselves. Ingenious
orangutans have been witnessed using sticks to rake food, dip
in honey, remove seeds from fruit, spear fish in the water and

test water depth. Some even use leaves as umbrellas, as cups
to drink water and as instruments to amplify their vocal
calls to warn off predators!
RIGHT
Baby orangutans
stay with their
mothers for
seven to eight
years, longer
than any other
mammal other
than humans

Bornean versus Sumatran

Bornean orangutan Sumatran orangutan
Bornean orangutan
The Bornean orangutan species has a broader face and a
shorter beard, and appears slightly darker in colour. This
species is more likely to descend from the trees than its
Sumatran cousins, and there are also three subspecies

classified by their locations, namely the Northwest,
Northeast and Central orangutans.
Sumatran orangutan
Sumatran orangutans have much longer, shaggier and
thinner hair that is a lighter orange than the deep hues
of the Bornean tribe, which serves as an adaptation to
the climate. As well as more elongated faces – Sumatran
orangutans are also thought to form closer social bonds,
whereas the Bornean variety are very solitary beasts.

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