Let's take a look at those factors below. Impacts on watersheds Many of Borneo's major rivers originate in the Heart of Borneo. As one of our closest living relatives, the orangutan is a highly intelligent, sentient being. As predominantly frugivorous, or fruit-eating animals, they are important seed dispersers as the seeds are passed through their waste. While orangutans may be found in numerous habitat types across Borneo, they all have one thing in common: their importance to the natural world, and to humans. The rainforest also play a major part in three of the biggest issues of our time: loss of biodiversity, the climate crisis and prevention of future pandemics. Sumatran, Tapanuli and Bornean orangutans are killed at a high rate for many reasons, the most common being the trade of meat or because farmers believe they are a threat to their crops. Orangutan infants are vulnerable because females are predominantly solitary (Galdikas 1984 ), which reduces the possibility of protection from conspecifics and facilitates female harassment by males (van Schaik and Kappeler 1997 ). Orangutan facts. When fruit is scarce, they eat the inner bark of trees, leaves and other vegetation. . This means that it is incredibly difficult for orangutans to bounce back if large numbers are lost due to hunting, forest fires or deforestation. By dispersing seeds in the forest, orangutans play a major role in forest regeneration and plant species diversity. The word orangutan means "person of the forest" in Malay. . The males are larger than the females, a fact which is common among the great apes. The Bornean orangutan is a critically endangered species of great ape. This is only one of the most interesting orangutan facts! Orang-utans are known as gardeners of the forest. They are large, but have graceful movements to swing from tree to tree in an arboreal lifestyle due to their long . The complexities of many ecosystems still escape researchers to a degree, but we do know that if we protect these ecosystems, allowing them to function regularly, they return the favour. This usually occurs when orangutans can't find the food they need in the forest. The two major reasons why Orangutans populations are in sharp decline are (1) Destruction, degradation and fragmentation of their habitats, and (2) Hunting. I'm sorry if I can't answer you very specificly, but - 1. the diversity of species is important to keep up on this planet, it's an important aspect of evolution . The rainforest in Borneo protects against future pandemics When we protect the rainforest, we protect the wild orangutan. 2) These magnificent mammals measure 1.2m to 1.5m tall and weigh up to 100kg.And they have one seriously big arm span - some males can stretch their arms 2m from fingertip to fingertip! People are still hunting them. Such prolonged association between mother and offspring is rare among mammals. They play a vital role in seed dispersal and in maintaining the health of the forest ecosystem, which is important for people and a host of other animals, including tigers, Asian elephants and Sumatran rhinos. Orangutans are dynamic forces During the first eight years of a young orangutan's life, its mother is its constant . They are diurnal animals just like other apes and have a lifespan of about 30-40 years in the wild. BORNEO ORANGUTAN SURVIVAL (BOS) FOUNDATION. Tanjung Puting was first made famous by the long-term orangutan research carried out by Dr Birut Mary Galdikas at Camp Leakey, in the north of the park, which became one of the island's foremost rehabilitation centres. Probably only humans have a more intensive relationship with their mothers. Flanged bornean orangutan male. The main reason for using orangutans as an umbrella species is their habitat size requirements. World Wildlife Fund - The leading organization in wildlife conservation and endangered species. This means that some human-impacted forest segments are more important than others for orangutan conservation. In times of great abundance of food . We rely on durian trees for food and the forest for . There are several factors that play a role in falling orangutan numbers. From a religious point of view, orangutans are one of the many creations of God and we should cherish them as such. 1) Orangutans are red-haired apes that live in the tropical rainforests of Sumatra and Borneo in southeast Asia. Protected areas provide critical safe havens for orangutans. The Bornean orangutan is a critically endangered species of great ape. Why orangutans are so important Orangutans are known as gardeners of the forest, because they help spread seeds around. Orangutan Gallery According to expert anthropologists, the study of orangutans is key to understanding the process of human evolution. Their habitat consists of the lowland rainforests and tropical, swamp, and mountain forests on the island of Borneo. There are over 15 000 different species of plants to be found in the Bornean rainforest. In females, the flanges are mostly composed of muscle. Orangutans are one of our closest relatives sharing almost 97% of our genetic code. The females weigh about 85 pounds and are about 3 feet tall. A forest canopy is very good at filtering all the long-wavelength red and orange light out. Bornean orangutans are the biggest tree-dwelling mammals. Experts are still debating this question. . Sumatran, Tapanuli and Bornean orangutans are killed at a high rate for many reasons, the most common being the trade of meat or because farmers believe they are a threat to their crops. Photo: Terry Sunderland/CIFOR. Bornean Orangutan conservation status in 2022. In the past twenty years, the Bornean orangutans' habitat has been reduced to about 45% of its original size. Its facial color ranges from red to pink to black. Why are the forests of Borneo so environmentally important? As a consequence, orangs in the dense forest have a very low contrast to their surroundings. Deforestation: Orangutans live in tropical forests and river valleys on a few islands in southeast Asia. Over the past 16 years, nearly 150,000 animals have been lost. Removing them from the food web would increase the amount of herbivores, like peccaries. And when they are the threat doesn't make it across to other perpetrators. They can descend and cross large canopy gaps on the ground, but this wastes energy and exposes them to predators. Mother orangutans have the most intense relationship with their young of any non-human mammal. Because of the roaming behavior of foraging orangutans, each individual needs a large amount of space. The average male Bornean orangutans have a size of 0.97 meters which equals 3.2 feet; the females have a size of 0.78 meters which is the same as 2.6 feet while an average male Sumatran orangutan has a size of 1.37 meters which is the same as 4.5 feet; the average size of females 3.58 feet which is same as 1.09 meters. You are unhappy about this. Many of these forests have been destroyed to make room for palm plantations. The Sumatran males have smaller features relative to Bornean orangutans, and both males and females develop a ginger-colored beard and a diamond- shaped face. Male Bornean Orangutans have those signature cheek pads that make us look very handsome and intimidating, and females are much smaller in size. Organizations worldwide are working to conserve Bornean orangutan habitat both for the betterment of the animals themselves and for surrounding biodiversity. Why are orangutan killed? Orangutans are important dispersal agents of fruit seeds, either by passing seeds through their digestive tract or by carrying and discarding seeds as they move through the trees, thus playing a key role in forest ecology and regeneration. More about Biodiversity, Climate and Pandemics Factors like wildlife trade. Orangutans have the most intense mother-child relationship. An important characteristic of the Bornean orangutan is their eyes which allow them to have binocular vision and detect what is around them. Everyone's problem: In Borneo, human-orangutan conflict occurs in both remote forested locations and more populated areas. You know how it works - they eat fruit from the trees, the seeds come out the other end, the forest spreads. The 600,000-hectare park is home to around 6,900 orangutans, the single largest population in the world. Studies indicate that Bornean orangutans may"grow up" faster than Sumatran orangutans and may become independent from their mothers at an earlier age. Food is often scarce in the rain forest and that is why the orangutan is very independent unlike most primates. Because they exhibit high social tolerance, orangutans are quite adaptable to living together when food is plentiful and when there is adequate housing space, such as at the Smithsonian's National Zoo. For medicinal purposes, Bornean orangutans chew on the leaves of a local plant (Dracaena cantleyi), same as the indigenous people do, to produce a soapy lather that they spread on their skin for relief of joint and muscle inflammation. is to spread awareness about why it is . Orangutans are the largest tree-dwelling (arboreal) animals on earth. Capable of forming intimate personal bonds and experiencing emotions, such as grief over the loss of a loved one, orangutans are closer to humans than most realize. . Orangutans are very slow to reproduce, with gaps of between 6.1 and 7.7 years between children for Bornean orangutans, and 8.2 to 9.3 years for Sumatran orangutans. This woman of Lithuanian heritage has grown to become one of the greatest scientists and primatologists of the 20th century. Bornean orangutans are highly sexually dimorphic and have several features that differ between males and females. Borneans are the largest of the three species. We're critically endangered because of deforestation and habitat loss for new roads and pulp and palm oil plantations, and the illegal pet trade. . You know how it works - they eat fruit from the trees, the seeds come out . One of only two species of orangutans, the Bornean is the largest of the two. By. The annual killing of 2 to 3% of individuals within any given population will lead to its extinction in a few decades. Drawing, Simon Mustoe. Jalan Kumbang . WWF has developed scientifically rigorous assessment tools and plans to manage orangutan landscapes. These beautiful creatures, along with Sumatran orangutans, belong to the only genus of the great apes found in Asia. They feature a diamond shape face and a coat that is a dark . They are about 1.4 m (4.5 ft) long, and their average weight is about 80 kg (75 lb). How Bornean Orangutans Help Us Economically For 4+ million people in Sumatra, the rainforest is an extremely important support system, providing clean water and food. Orangutans are an easy target for hunters because they're large and slow targets. Orangutans are both cultivators and consumers of forest fruits and contribute to the structure and stability of tropical rainforests. WHY ARE THEY IMPORTANT. 1-1.4 m. The Bornean orangutan is the world's largest mammal that lives in a tree and is also one of the world's greatest apes. . The height of a adult males is about 1.2-1.4 m long, and that of females is about 1.0-1.20 m. Copy. Bornean orangutans are primates endemic to the tropical rainforests of Borneo. See answer (1) Best Answer. They are killed for food or in retaliation when they move into agricultural areas and destroy crops. Bornean orangutans' natural instinct is to eat oftenand a lot. This image taken by the Carnegie Airborne Observatory's Light Detection and Ranging . It is the largest protected area in Central Kalimantan and one of the most important sanctuaries for wild orangutans on Borneo. . That's why WWF-Australia has been collaborating with the local community and government partners to restore the degraded peatlands of Sebangau National Park, in Indonesian Borneo. (3) Due to human industry Palm oil production plays the biggest hand in the disappearance of the orangutan, as it is literally eating up the rain forests of Borneo & Sumatra. Orang-utans are known as gardeners of the forest. An orangutan will spend most of his/her time moving through the forest searching the canopy (where 90% of their diet is found) for food sources. This habitat destruction is one of the main causes of the critically endangered. Out of the reasons related to conflict, the most common was killing orangutans out of fear or in an act of self defence. Tadzio Mac Gregor, Contributor. In the undercanopy, being orange is roughly the same as bei. Their hands and feet are scoop-like . Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts Saving orangutans helps save many other species that live in the same forest, like tigers, elephants, rhinos, gibbons, sun bears, and countless other less charismatic but ecologically important . They will also opportunistically eat bird eggs and small mammals, such as slow loris and rats. Fun Facts for Kids 'Orangutan' has the meaning 'person of the forest' in Indonesian and Malaysian. Out of the reasons related to conflict, the most common was killing orangutans out of fear or in an act of self defence. 2009a ). Their long arms are useful for reaching fruits and swinging from branch to branch. Studies show that Bornean orangutans can survive in logged forests if the impact of logging is reduced through selective logging, keeping fruit trees intact, and controlling hunting. Physical Characteristics Voigt and the team estimated that the total population of Bornean orangutans fell from about 300,000 to 150,000 individuals between 1999 and 2015. . Their habitat consists of the lowland rainforests and tropical, swamp, and mountain forests on the island of Borneo. Orangutans spread out to get enough to eat throughout the year. Why are orangutan killed? The Bornean orangutan ( Pongo pygmaeus) is now critically endangered, with populations in sharp decline due to habitat destruction and illegal hunting, the IUCN declared last week. People are still forcing them to move out or die. Females are hunted most often. Orangutans also hang upside-down from branches for long periods. Males have relatively larger canines and premolars. Birut Mary Galdikas has spent more than 40 years living and studying the behaviour of orangutans inside the once pristine rainforest of Borneo, Indonesia. In fact, due to their essential role in seed dispersal, they are called "gardeners of the forest". They are diurnal and build sleeping nests out of plant material high up in the trees. Bornean orangutans have a vital role to play in seed dispersal, especially for larger seeds which smaller animals are not able to disperse. Bornean. Bornean Orangutans are protected by all these laws in an attempt to keep them safe, however, they are being disregarded. Sumatran, Tapanuli and Bornean orangutans are killed at a high rate for many reasons, the most common being the trade of meat or because farmers believe they are a threat to their crops. Without them, the forest could not support the entire community, Jaguars are a keystone species because they too shape their ecosystem as top or apex predators. Adult males are about 170 pounds and close to 5 feet tall. Because of orangutans' size, they require strong branches to move laterally through the forest canopy. There are three (possibly even four) subspecies of Bornean orangutan: Pongo pygmaeus morio, Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus, and Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii. BOGOR, IndonesiaA 90 kilogram full-grown male orangutan is sitting in your garden, eating mangoes stolen from your mango tree. They enjoy swinging from one tree branch to another; a habit which is known as "brachiating.". Why is the orangutan important? Bornean orangutans have either brown, red, gray, orange, or black hair and skin. The Bornean orangutan has darker skin and hair, and the males have larger, fleshier cheek (flange) pads, a larger laryngeal sac and a more square-shaped face. Press J to jump to the feed.