Orangutan
The only great ape outside Africa — losing 25 football fields of forest every hour
No photo available for Orangutan
Population
Around 100,000 Bornean; around 14,000 Sumatran; around 800 Tapanuli (most endangered great ape)
Location
Borneo and Sumatra, Indonesia and Malaysia
Overview
Orangutans are the only great apes found in Asia and are the most arboreal of all great apes — spending virtually their entire lives in trees. Three species exist, including the recently described Tapanuli orangutan (2017), which is already the most endangered great ape on Earth with fewer than 800 individuals. All three are threatened by the same primary driver: palm oil plantation expansion.
Why they're at risk
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Deforestation for palm oil, pulp, and paper — Borneo and Sumatra have lost over half their forests in recent decades, much of it converted to plantation monoculture.
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Orangutans are killed as agricultural pests when they enter plantations in shrinking forest patches.
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Illegal capture for the pet trade — capturing an infant requires killing the mother.
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The Tapanuli orangutan's entire range overlaps with a proposed hydroelectric dam project.
Reasons for hope
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Orangutan rehabilitation and reintroduction centers have successfully released thousands of individuals back into protected forest.
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Satellite monitoring now tracks deforestation in real time, enabling faster enforcement responses.
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Some palm oil companies have made no-deforestation commitments under sustained consumer pressure.
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The discovery of the Tapanuli orangutan in 2017 has galvanized international attention to Sumatran forest conservation.