The Tapanuli

Orangutan

 The Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo

tapanuliensis) is
a species of orangutan restricted to South
Tapanuli in the island of Sumatra in
Indonesia.
 Genetic comparisons show that Tapanuli
orangutans diverged from Sumatran
orangutans about 3.4 million years ago,
and became more isolated after the Lake
Toba eruption that occurred about 75,000
years ago.
 Tapanuli orangutans live in tropical and
subtropical moist broadleaf
forests located south of Lake Toba in
Sumatra. The entirety of the species is
found in an area of about 1,000 km2 at
elevations from 300 to 1,300 m.
 The loud, long-distance call or 'long call'
of male Tapanuli orangutans has a higher
maximum frequency than that of
Sumatran orangutans, and lasts much
 longer and has more pulses than that of
Bornean orangutans.
 Their diet is also unique, containing
unusual items
like caterpillars and conifer cones.
 As with other two orangutan species,
males are larger than females; males are
137 cm (54 in) in height and 70–90 kg
(150–200 lb) in weight, females are
110 cm (43 in) in height and 40–50 kg
(88–110 lb) in weight.
 With fewer than 800 individuals restricted
to an area of about
1,000 km2 (390 sq mi), the Tapanuli
orangutan is the rarest great ape.
 It is listed as critically endangered by
the International Union for Conservation
of Nature (IUCN) because
of hunting, conflict with humans,
the illegal wildlife trade, rampant habitat
destruction for small scale
agriculture, mining and a
proposed hydroelectric dam, in the area
with the highest density of orangutans,
which could impact up to 10% of its
already dwindling habitat and degrade
important wildlife corridors.