O RANGUTANS & P ALM O IL
Orangutans
As the largest Asian primates, the males
orangutans stand about four and a half feet
tall and can weigh up to 300lbs. Females
are only half as big as males. They are the
largest tree-dwelling animal. Their hair is
typically reddish-brown, instead of the
brown or black hair typical of chimpanzees
and gorillas. At night, they bend branches
into nest platforms to support themselves
while they sleep. When a baby orangutan
is born, it is extremely helpless much like a
human baby. They can't walk and need
constant care from the mother. Orangutans
stay with their mother until they are around
eight years old. In this time the mother
teaches the child to walk and what food is
good to eat. She also teaches it what areas
of the rainforest to stay out of. After the
orangutan leaves the mother it takes
another five to six years to fully
mature. Orangutans live in the tropical
rainforests of South-east Asia. They are
only found on 2 islands in the whole world;
the Asian islands of Sumatra and
Borneo. Orangutans have no tail and have
very long arms. They can live for over 60
years and are extremely intelligent like
humans and other primates. They have
been known to use tools, make sounds of
laughter when being tickled, and even learn
sign language. The name "orangutan" is
derived from the Malay and Indonesian
words orang meaning "person" and hutan
meaning "forest", thus "person of the
forest".
IMPORTANT VOCABULARY:
Limiting Factors
Field Study
Resources
Habitat Destruction
Primary Forest
Secondary Forest
Endangered Species
Sustainable
Biodiversity
Introduced Species
Non-native species
Islands of Borneo and Sumatra
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Studying Orangutans
Scientists work very hard to study orangutans. In
order to get accurate information about
orangutans, scientists must conduct what we call
field studies. A field study is a term used to
explain the scientific study of free-living wild
animals in which the subjects are observed in their
natural habitat, without changing, harming, or
altering the setting or behavior of the animals.
Field studies are much different than laboratory
experiments because there are many things that
you cannot control in a field study the way you
could in a lab. This can involve countless hours
and possibly years of work hiking through the
rainforest counting and observing the orangutans.
Because orangutans are endangered, it is
important to try and get an accurate population
count. Counting animals in the wild can be very
difficult because they move and hide. Sometimes
scientists use a mark and recapture technique
where they go out and capture as many of the
animals as possible and mark them somehow.
Maybe they tag them and then let them go. That
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Human Impact
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, have placed the
orangutan in danger of extinction. Therefore,
Orangutans are considered to be an endangered
species which means that there are not very many of
them left in the world. If nothing is done to prevent
their extinction, scientists estimate that they will be
gone within the next 10 years. One of the main
reasons is because their habitats and forests they
live in are being destroyed so we can grow oil palm
trees and put palm oil in our food. Oil palm trees are
a great crop for humans because they grow fast and
produce lots of fruit that can be turned into oil. If
you read the labels of many common food items,
you will see palm oil listed as an ingredient.
Unfortunately, oil palm trees grow best in tropical
environments like the islands of South-east Asia
where the orangutans live. Ironically, oil palm trees
way if they are recaptured the next time they go
are not native to Asia. They are actually a species of
out, they know not to count them. After repeating
palm tree from Africa, but people have introduced
the process multiple times throughout an area, the
oil palm trees to Asia in order to make more and
scientists can use a mathematical equation to
more palm oil. Now palm oil plantations are taking
estimate how many total there are in the
over large areas where there used to be forest for
population. Another method is to pick a specific
the orangutans to live in. When an animal’s habitat
measurable section of land, called a quadrant, and
is destroyed in any way, it is called habitat
count the animals found in that section and then
destruction. Since their homes are being destroyed,
multiply it by the total amount of land area.
the orangutans are limited as to where they can live
Calculating the population density is also
and find food. This often puts them in competition
important because it can tell you how many
with humans for resources. In this case, limiting
animals live in a specific area. When you know
factors that are causing the population of
these things about the population of an animal,
orangutans to decline are lack of habitat, food,
then you are better able to help it. If you know,
for instance that a species is found mostly in only
one area of the forest you might be able to protect
that one area even if the rest is torn down for
human use.
shelter, and other resources due to human activity
and competition for the same resources.
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Page 3
What is being done?
Scientists are working hard trying to find solutions to help the orangutans. One possible solution that
could help the orangutans is to provide protected areas of the rainforest that cannot be cut down and
used for growing palm oil. While protected areas usually help endangered species, this could be tricky as
much of the forest has already been cut down and it takes time for the forest to regrow and often once it
does regrow, it has changed in some ways. This process is known as succession and can be explained as
the process plant life goes through as it takes over a region. Old forests that have been around for a long
time are called primary forests and research has shown that orangutans prefer this type of forest. Once
the forest has been burned or cut down and has regrown or is in the process of reestablishing plant life, it
is called secondary forest and is less ideal for the orangutans. This has been a problem that scientists
have been studying for some time. The good news is that there are now signs that the orangutans are
adapting to live in the secondary forests and protecting them will help the orangutans. Another solution
that is being researched is to make the production of palm oil more sustainable. Sustainable methods
refer to a way of doing something without using up all of the natural resources so that you can continue
to use these methods for a long time without causing further harm. For this reason, there are
organizations out there helping to make the process of farming oil palms more sustainable. Often oil
palm plantations are put right in the center of a large area of forest and therefore sustainable farming
involves allowing a path through the palm oil plantations so that the orangutans can easily travel from
one side to the other. And because the orangutans are passing through the plantations, it is important
that the palm oil plantations be careful not to use any chemicals that could harm the orangutans.
Research has shown that these sustainable methods can help save the orangutans, and oil palm farmers
can now get certified if they use sustainable farming methods. However, it tends to be a little more
expensive to use sustainable farming methods so not everyone is using the sustainable methods. In the
end, it may come down to supply and demand. If people choose to buy only the products with
sustainable palm oil, then the farmers will be more likely to use the sustainable methods that help the
orangutans. Do you read the labels of your foods to know whether or not they contain palm oil and if the
palm oil is farmed in a sustainable manner?
Reading Comprehension Questions:
1. What does Orangutan mean?
2. Where are Orangutans found?
3. What is a field study?
4. How are field studies different from research done in a lab?
5. Why is understanding population size important when studying endangered species?
6. Why are orangutans extra susceptible to extinction?
7. List 2 things that threaten orangutans.
8. What is an unintended consequence of farming & using a lot if oil palms?
9. Why are oil palm trees considered an introduced species?
10. Name some limiting factors that are keeping the population of orangutans from growing.
11. What are 2 things that can be done to help the orangutans?
12. What are 2 main things that determine if palm oil is sustainable?