Endangered: Orangutan

Found in the rain forests of Sumatra and Borneo, the orangutan is thought to be well known for their intelligence. They spend most of their time in trees. Now found primarily in Southwest Asian islands, there are only about 20,000 found in the wild today.

A lot of what has contributed to the destruction of this animal would have to be a combination of forest fires, the logging industry, and agricultural development. Palm oil plantations have taken the place of many of the orangutans natural habitat. Many of them are killed by farmers to keep them out of the palm hearts. Many baby orangutans are sold on the black market. A lot of the time the mother of the poached baby is killed by the hunters, to eliminate one more reproducing mother. As a result of this, it may be years before the baby will reproduce, once released back into the wild. The skulls of the dead orangutans are sold for souvenirs, illegally.

It is known that the orangutan is a highly intelligent animal. They use tools, are computer savvy, problem solvers and also have wonderful parenting qualities. Adult males weigh about 200-260 pounds, can reach to be 5'9" in height and is four times stronger then an adult male human. Females weigh about 100 and reach 4'2". They are extremely territorial and solitary. Seeing them quarrel is not anything out of the ordinary. A lot of time immature males will try to mate with any female. They succeed only to other immature females.

You can find the orangutan high in trees even while they sleep. They make themselves a nest and sleep in branches. For the most part they are very solitary, well the males are more so then the females. Really, the only time that they come together is to mate. The baby orangutan will stay with his mother until he is about six to seven years old. The next time you head off to the market to purchase some palm oil, think of the orangutan. The palm tree is a major part of it's habitat. How about that beautiful skirt made from rayon? Rayon is also found in their habitat. In just seven years, the orangutan population has decreased from 12,000 to about 6,500. That was in the year 2000, so it has definitely declined since then. Most of the reason for that problem would be forest fires.

There are measures being taken in the attempt to save the orangutan. A lot of the babies who are confiscated by rescuers through the black market, are trained in natural habitat, so they can be place back into the wild. Some of the things that they learn are how to climb, swing, and get food. Chances are if there is a clean bill of health and the orangutan can fend for itself, it will reproduce when introduced back into the wild.

This creature is definitely worth saving. If you want to learn more or want to help in any way please visit here.