Tapanuli Orangutan

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News: As per a new report, deadly floods and landslides in Indonesia’s Sumatra last year wiped out at least 7% of the total population of the critically endangered Tapanuli Orangutan.

About Tapanuli Orangutan

Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis)
Source: DTE
AspectDetails 
About
  • The Tapanuli Orangutan is a species of orangutan found on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia.
  • They are one of three known species of orangutan, alongside the Sumatran orangutan and the Bornean orangutan.
Scientific name
  • Their scientific name is Pongo tapanuliensis.
Habitat
  • They live in tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests.
DistributionThey are endemic to North Sumatra, Indonesia and are only found in the Batang Toru Ecosystem within North Sumatra.
Appearance
  • They resemble Sumatran orangutans in body build and fur colour.
  • Their hair is frizzier than that of other orangutans, with smaller heads, and flatter and wider faces.
  • Dominant males have prominent moustaches and large flat cheek pads, known as flanges, covered in downy hair.
  • Both male and female Tapanuli orangutans have beards.
  • Males are larger than females.
Diet
  • They are omnivores and have a unique diet that contains unusual items like caterpillars and conifer cones.
  • They also consume fruits such as figs, mangoes, lychees, durian, and other plants.
Behaviour
  • They are exclusively arboreal species and spend most of their time high up in the trees.
  • They lead a solitary life and can be seen in pairs only when a mother is raising her young.
  • They are active during the day, moving slowly in search of food through the trees.
  • At night, they build a nest for sleeping up high in the canopy out of folded branches. 
  • They communicate with various sounds. 
Threats
  • They face severe survival threats due to rapid habitat fragmentation, flooding, and human development.
Conservation status
  • They were described as a distinct species in 2017.
  • IUCN: Critically endangered
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