The document summarizes threats facing orangutans and conservation efforts. It describes the two species, their habitat loss mainly due to deforestation, and other threats like hunting and the pet trade. While conservation work is occurring, strong protection of forests and enforcement of laws is still needed to prevent orangutans from becoming extinct in the wild within 25 years.

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Wyatt Hilyard
M. Glenn
ANTH 333
February 17, 2012
Orangutan Conservation Profile
(San Diego Zoo)
The orangutan is among humans' closer primate relatives, under the family Hominidae. The
common name comes from the Malay words “orang” (person) and “(h)utan” (forest) (Orangutan Facts).
Why, then are the two species of these “people of the forest” listed on the IUCN Red List of
Endangered Species as “Endangered” and “Critically Endangered?” This paper will explore the various
factors that threaten the existence of the only great ape species in Asia.
Orangutans are quite visually distinct from other apes. Their long orange or reddish fur, long

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arms, and large cheek pads (in males) are iconic. Orangutans are extremely sexually dimorphic, with
males having the potential to be twice the size and weight of females. The average weight and height of
males is 192 lbs and 3.18 ft., with females measuring an average of 81.6 lbs and 2.56 ft. (Cawthon
Lang). However, males can grow to be 220 lbs, and females 110 lbs (San Diego Zoo). Both sexes have
cheek pads, a hanging throat sac, and beard/mustache. The general difference is that males have larger
versions of all three features, which explains their potential for doubling in size. Orangutans' arms are
about twice as long as both their torso and their legs, aiding in brachiating through peat swamp forest
and dipterocarp forest (Cawthon Lang).
(Great Ape Trust)
There are two species of orangutan, Bornean (Pongo pygmaeus) and Sumatran (Pongo abelii).
According to the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species, P. pygmaeus is “Endangered.” There are three
sub-species of orangutan, all three of which live on Borneo; P. p. pygmaeus (Northwest Borneo), P. p.
wurmbii:(Central Borneo), and P. p. morio (Northeast Borneo). From 1986-1994, the listing of the
Bornean orangutan was “Endangered.” It was moved down to “Vulnerable” in 1996, and back up to
“Endangered” in 2000 where it has remained. The IUCN, as of 2003, estimates that the population is
between 45,000 and 69,000 individuals in the wild, and is decreasing. The decline of Bornean
orangutans over the last 60 years is estimated at 50%. Most wild populations live outside protected
areas, and are subjected to deforestation due to timber or agricultural uses (IUCN).
The Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) is much more at risk; it is listed as “Critically

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Endangered” on the IUCN Red List. They estimate that only 7,300 individuals exist in the wild. The
Sumatran orangutan is almost completely arboreal. This means deforestation affects them even more
than their Bornean counterparts, who dwell on the ground more often and seem to be more adaptable.
Both species are primarily herbivores and frugivores; they consume over 500 plant species, and fruit
makes up over 60% of their diet (IUCN). Their diet also consists of leaves, bark, flowers, and insects.
Occasionally, a Sumatran orangutan will catch and eat a slow loris, but meat is not very common in the
diet of either species. “Orangutans are best described as 'gardeners' of the forest... they play a vital role
in seed dispersal, especially for large seeds that are not dispersed by smaller animals” (IUCN).
When visualizing orangutans in the wild, the average person probably envisions them swinging
through the trees, socializing and play-fighting with one another. This is not necessarily true; more than
95% of the ape's daily routine revolves around resting and feeding (Cawthon Lang). They may indeed
use an arboreal route to get from place to place, or rest while hanging from a branch, but they do not
allocate as much time for playing and fooling around as, say, chimpanzees. Early on in field study,
orangutans were thought to be solitary animals, but it is now believed that males are solitary while
females and their offspring are more social. Males spend 91% of their daily routine alone, and do not
participate in rearing their young (San Diego Zoo).
The IUCN lists six major factors of endangerment: habitat loss due to agriculture, fires (man-
made and natural), habitat exploitation and illegal logging, habitat fragmentation, hunting, and the pet
trade. All of these human influences are added on top of natural predation. Sumatran orangutans are
preyed upon by big cats and crocodiles, which also helps to explain their arboreal lifestyle. Bornean
orangutans do not have the same predators and can spend more time on the ground (Cawthon Lang).
Habitat destruction, through agriculture, logging, and palm tree oil production, has the largest
effect on orangutans. Between 1985 and 1997, 24% of total forest area (15.5 million hectares) was
destroyed in Sumatra and Kalimantan. In the lowlands, where orangutans are primarily found, the

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amount of forest lost is over 60%. It is estimated that only 12% of the island is still suitable for the
species (IUCN). There is existing law for logging rights, but loggers simply do not comply. For the
most part, logging continues until all usable timber has been harvested, instead of honoring the
mandated 30- or 40-year rest period (Cawthon Lang). Because of these practices, both the trees that
provide shelter and the trees that provide food are being cut down with wild abandon. The bush meat
trade, poaching, and the use of body parts in traditional medicine are also widely spread direct killers of
orangutans (IUCN).
Palm oil is used in many products (cooking, cosmetics, mechanics, bio-diesel, etc.), and the
processes by which the industry collects the palm oil are incredibly destructive. About 85% of palm oil
is grown in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Papua New Guinea (Orangutan Conservancy). Between 1984 and
2003, the Bornean land on which palm oil was produced grew from 2,000 km² to 27,000 km², and most
of this land was previously used by orangutans (IUCN). They cannot live on the plantations, so they
must either find another area to occupy or end up dieing out completely in that region of the country.
There is conservation work being done to address most areas of orangutan endangerment (San
Diego Zoo) which is why it takes so long for populations to return to their original numbers after a
setback, if they even have the resources for that to be feasible. Researchers estimate that wild
orangutans could be extinct in as short a time as 25 years, (Orangutan Conservancy) and that will
indeed happen if current practices continue.
There has been fairly a strong “protect the rainforest” kind of environmental awareness
campaign ramping up for the past couple decades. People are becoming more aware of where various
ingredients for products are coming from, and some of that awareness results in steps being taken to
change or reduce the impact of these processes. One such area that has gotten a fair amount of press is
palm oil production. Orangutan Conservancy published a news article about a group of Girl Scouts who
are trying to make Kellogg's, who manufactures the famous cookies, transition to sustainable palm oil

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practices (and reduce use of the oil in its whole product line) by 2015. If these changes go through, it
will not only positively affect the orangutans, but local animal and plant species as a whole.
Habitat destruction must be stopped, or at least drastically decreased, for long-term orangutan
survival to be realistic. Sufficient funding and resources must be allocated to national parks and
reserves in order to uphold the law. The fines and consequences themselves should be raised. Cawthon
Lang suggests rescinding the licenses of, or heavily fining, logging companies that do not comply with
approved logging practices in protected areas. She suggests that saw mills could be a point of review
for illegal timber-obtaining practices. A program could be put in place to certify “orangutan-friendly”
lumber, which would be sold at a higher cost, benefiting both the environment and logging companies
(Cawthon Lang). Another suggestion of hers is to hand the duty of guarding protected areas to the
communities surrounding them. I am not entirely convinced of the effectiveness of such a program (she
points out a potential weakness due to corruption at higher levels) but it would create jobs in the
community. The ranges of protection must be increased, in addition to better protecting those that
already are.
The bush meat trade and pet trade are similar in their scope of damages; they both deal in the
collection of orangutans. As deforestation increases, food and shelter becomes scarcer, so orangutans
explore other areas. In doing so, they have essentially become agricultural pests (Cawthon Lang).
People have no problem killing or capturing an orangutan when they approach the problem from this
angle. The solution, again, boils down to funding and increased law enforcement. Along with fines,
rehabilitation is a common treatment for the pet trade, and is widely seen as a good thing. Some centers
have been criticized for questionable rehabilitation practices, though, which makes the public less
supportive of this solution. Quarantining new arrivals, routine medical checks, and various ethical
reforms have been put in place to address this issue (Cawthon Lang).
Orangutans are fascinating to humans because we see so many similarities to ourselves. The

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fact the word comes from the Malay for “person of the forest” exemplifies this. Before international
industry disrupted practices, locals would not kill orangutans because they saw the apes as being a
fellow person who lived in the trees and did not want to go to work or become a slave (Orangutan
Conservancy). The fact is, they are great apes, the only ones to live outside of Africa, and are one step
away from only existing in captivity. There are many factors that need to be addressed, and many
solutions include law enforcement, but as Cawthon Lang notes,“transitioning from a corrupt, nepotistic
government is certainly no easy task and one that will take efforts from multiple organizations and
concerned individuals.” If we want orangutans to exist in the wild for more than 25 more years, we
need to drastically change the way things are done. It is possible, but will take effort from all parties
involved.

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Works Cited
Cawthon Lang KA. Primate Factsheets: Orangutan (Pongo) Taxonomy, Morphology, & Ecology .
June 13, 2005. Web. February 10, 2012.
<http://pin.primate.wisc.edu/factsheets/entry/orangutan>.
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
Enforcement Efforts on the Conservation of Orangutan in Indonesia. Web. February 10, 2012.
<http://www.cites.org/common/com/SC/57/E57-30A2.pdf>.
Great Ape Trust. Orangutans. Web. February 10, 2012. <http://www.greatapetrust.org/great-
apes/orangutans/>.
International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Pongo abelii. 2008. Web.
February 10, 2012. <http://www.iucnredlist.org/apps/redlist/details/39780/0>.
International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Pongo pygmaeus. 2008. Web.
February 10, 2012. <http://www.iucnredlist.org/apps/redlist/details/17975/0>.
Orangutan Conservancy. Orangutan News Update: Concerned for Orangutans in Indonesia, US Girl
Scouts Lobby for Sustainable Palm Oil. February 10, 2012. Web. February 10, 2012.
<http://www.orangutan.com/orangutan-news-update-concerned-for-orangutans-in-indonesia-us-
girl-scouts-lobby-for-sustainable-palm-oil/>.
Orangutan Conservancy. Orangutan Facts. Web. February 10, 2012.
<http://www.orangutan.com/orangutans/orangutan-facts/>.
Orangutan Conservancy. Threats to Orangutans. Web. February 10, 2012.
<http://www.orangutan.com/threats-to-orangutans/>.
Orangutan Foundation International. Dr. Biruté Mary Galdikas Bio. Web. February 10, 2012.
<http://www.orangutan.org/dr-galdikas-bio>.
San Diego Zoo. Orangutan Fact Sheet. July 2003. Web. February 10, 2012.
<http://library.sandiegozoo.org/factsheets/orangutan/orangutan.htm>.
San Diego Zoo. Orangutan Distribution Map. July 2003. Web. February 10, 2012.
<http://library.sandiegozoo.org/factsheets/orangutan/map.htm>.
Susmianto, Adi. Letter to Willem Wijnstekers. September 29, 2006. Web. February 10, 2012.
<http://www.cites.org/common/prog/ape/ID_response.pdf>.