Orangutan
Asia
The orangutan is an ape whose name means "person of the forest." It's one of the animals most like humans, and it's smart enough to make and use tools. It spends almost its whole life in the trees and builds a new nest to sleep in every night.
Quick facts
- Habitat
- It lives in the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra.
- Diet
- It eats fruit, leaves, insects, and bark.
- Size and weight
- Height 1.1–1.4m, weight 50–90kg.
- Lifespan
- 35–45 years
- Conservation status
- Critically Endangered
- Fun facts
- An orangutan holds a big leaf over its head like an umbrella to stay dry in the rain!
Adult males grow wide cheek pads on both sides of their face.
Learn more
The genius red-haired ape that tends the forest
The amazing secrets of the orangutan, the forest neighbor most like humans
- A massive size — a large ape, standing 1.1–1.4m tall and weighing 50–90kg.
- Asia's ape — found only in the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra in Indonesia.
- Remarkable intelligence — an incredibly smart animal, sharing 97% of its DNA with humans.
Perfectly evolved for life in the trees
The orangutan's unique body structure
- 2m-long arms — with arms spanning up to 2m, it swings easily between trees like on a trapeze.
- Red fur — it has striking reddish-brown fur that stands out beautifully against the green rainforest.
- Broad cheek pads — mature males develop round, wide cheek pads on either side of the face.
Remarkable intelligence in using nature
A brilliant inventor and clever doctor of the forest
- A natural umbrella — when sudden rain falls, it holds a large leaf over its head to stay dry.
- Self-medication — recent research has observed it chewing medicinal leaves and applying them to wounds to treat them.
- A new bed every day — every night, it bends and weaves branches together to build itself a fresh, cushioned nest.
- Tool use — it uses branches like tools to reach and retrieve food out of arm's reach.
Stable genes that have lasted 15 million years
Orangutan DNA holds the mysteries of evolution intact
- Remarkable stability — the orangutan genome has stayed extremely stable for the past 15 million years.
- Fewer mutations — it has far fewer "Alu" elements — DNA sequences that reshape genetic structure — than humans, so its genome changes slowly.
- Strong resilience — with a very slow metabolism, it can endure climate change or food shortages relatively well.
A "gardener of the forest" that grows the rainforest
The orangutan's special mealtime enriches the forest
- A varied diet — it loves sweet fruit most, but also eats leaves, insects, and bark.
- Spreading seeds — as it roams the forest, the seeds in its droppings grow into new plants.
- Ecosystem cycling — it plays a key role in helping plants spread further and keeping the forest healthy and regenerating.
Learning forest survival skills from mom
The longest, closest parenting period of any ape
- 8 years of care — baby orangutans stay closely attached to their mother, being cared for, for as long as 8–9 years.
- Observation and learning — they learn how to survive by watching their mother find food and build nests.
- An independent life — once the parenting period ends and they mature, they mostly live solitary lives roaming the forest.