Orangutan means "person of the forest" in the Malay language.
Distribution and Habitat
Orangutans live on the Indonesian island of Sumatra and both
Malaysian and Indonesian Borneo. Habitats range from peat
swamp forests near sea level to mountainous forests. Orangutans are found in all levels of the forest.
Physical Characteristics
Orangutans have long, sparse, orangish or reddish hair all
over their bodies. They have large jaws, flattened noses,
and concave faces. Their arms are much longer than their legs.
Their thumbs and big toes are proportionally shorter than
their other digits. Adult females are
about half the size of males. Adult males usually have large
cheek pads, deep chests, large throat sacs, beards, and body
hair that is much longer than females. These features make
the males look larger, and perhaps more threatening, when
defending themselves.
Life Span
Orangutans have lived as long as 60 years in zoos.
Diet
In the wild: Orangutans are mainly fruit eaters. They also
eat leaves, bark, soil, insects, and bird eggs. In Sumatra,
some have been observed eating meat.
In zoos: Orangutans eat commercial biscuits, apples, oranges, bananas, green beans, carrots, and other vegetables. They have boiled beef once a week and baked fish occasionally. Forage foods include browse, sunflower seeds, peanuts, popcorn, and herbivore chow.
Locomotion
Orangutans can swing hand over hand (brachiation), but they
normally move cautiously through large trees by climbing and
walking. They usually use all four limbs to move on the ground.
Reproduction
A single infant is born after 233 to 265 days of gestation.
Sexual maturity is about eight years for females in the wild,
later for males. Young are weaned at three to five years of
age.
Conservation Status
Orangutans are endangered.
Their habitat is being destroyed and fragmented into isolated pockets for legal and illegal logging and agriculture. Also, fires have destroyed much of their habitat.
