Orangutans – Indonesian Endemic Primates on The Edge of Extinctionby Dyah Reza Lestari | 19-05-2018 01:40 |
---|
![]() Orangutans are animals belong to the group of primates and one of the great apes in the world. The term "Orangutan" is derived from the Malay languages, 'orang' which means 'person' and 'utan' which means 'forest'. Thus, Orangutan means "person of the forest". Orangutans are known as umbrella species because Orangutans have an important role in maintaining the diversity of the species on the Earth, maintaining the ecosystem, and playing a major role in regenerating forest and the diversity of wild plant species in the forest. Orangutans have big bodies, large necks, long and powerful arms, short and bent legs, and no tail. Orangutans have a standing height of 1.25 - 1.5 meters. The orangutan body is covered with brownish red hair. They have large heads with high mouth positions. The weight of male Orangutans is about 50-90 kg, while female Orangutans may weigh approximately 30-50 kg. Orangutans eat tree bark, foliage, flowers, and also some types of insects and fruits. They can move quickly from one tree to another tree by swinging on tree branches. The unique fact about Orangutan is they have closest kinship with human because Orangutans share 96.4% of humans' DNA. Orangutans are the only large apes species in Asia and found only on the island of Borneo and Sumatra, Indonesia. The Orangutan includes two sub-species, namely Sumatran Orangutans (Pongo abelii) and Bornean Orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus). At a glance, the morphology of Bornean Orangutans and Sumatran Orangutans look very similar. Nonetheless, these two species can be distinguished by their fur color. In general, Sumatran Orangutans (Pongo abelii) have more pale color, soft, and more dense fur. On the other side, Bornean Orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) have reddish-brown fur color, especially when they have grown up. Sumatran Orangutans' fur also tend to be thicker than Bornean Orangutans. In addition, the third species of Orangutan was announced in November 2017. With no more than 800 individuals, the Tapanuli Orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis) is the most endangered of all great apes with no more than 800 individuals in existence. Orangutans are legally protected by national law, based on Law No. 5 of 1990 on the Conservation of Biological Natural Resources and Ecosystems and PP No. 7 of 1999 on the Preservation of Plant and Animal Species. Besides that, at the international level, Orangutans listed in the Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), a convention that regulates the trade of species in the world. That means, Orangutans can't be traded. Nowadays, Orangutans' population is precipitously declined. International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies both species of Orangutans as Critically Endangered. Orangutans are threatened by extinction due to habitat loss and hunting. The habitats of Orangutans are fast disappearing under the chainsaw to make way for oil palm plantations and other agricultural plantations. Illegal logging inside protected areas and unsustainable logging in concessions where Orangutans live remains a major threat to their survival. This activity makes many Orangutans lose their homes and cause population decline too. Today, more than 50% of Orangutans are found outside protected areas in forests under management by timber, palm oil, and mining companies. Moreover, Orangutans are an easy target for hunters because they're large and slow targets. They're killed for food or in retaliation when they move into agricultural areas and destroy crops. This usually occurs when Orangutans can't find the food they need in the forest. It's tragically sad to know that Orangutans are on the brink of extinction. The government and several organizations have established so many programs to conserve Orangutans to prevent the declining of the Orangutans' population. The first important thing is to safeguard and preserve forest as their habitat because Orangutans prefer to live in the wild nature rather than in captivity or in the zoo. The other thing is educating people to generate awareness of the importance of protecting Orangutans at the earlier age should also be done in a fun and understandable way, so the public will know that Orangutans play a very important role in the forest ecosystem. These two ways are really important to maintain the existence of Orangutans. Don't let our future generation only get to see these magnificent creatures through images. Let's save Orangutan! Sources : Images : |