The Orangutan really is ‘King of the Swingers’ it is the world’s largest tree-dwelling animal and is superbly adapted for the high life.
The Malay word orangutan literally means “person of the forest.” These long-haired, orange coloured primates, found only in Sumatra and Borneo, are highly intelligent and are close relatives of humans.
The apes are well suited to their arboreal lifestyle with a male orangutan’s arm span stretching some two metres from fingertip to fingertip. This reach is considerably longer than his standing height of about 1.2 metres, in fact when orangutans do stand; their hands nearly touch the ground.
Because orangutans live in only a few places, and because they are so dependent upon trees, they are particularly susceptible to logging in these areas. Unfortunately, deforestation and other human activities, such as hunting and road building have placed the orangutan in danger of extinction.
Released February 21st, 2014
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