2)Orangutans

 

Orangutans are great apes native to the rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia. They are now found only in parts of Borneo and Sumatra, but during the Pleistocene they ranged throughout Southeast Asia and South China. 

Q)Why are they considered as 'endangered species'?

The destruction and degradation of the tropical rain forest, particularly lowland forest, in Borneo and Sumatra is the main reason orangutans are threatened with extinction.

This has been caused primarily by human activity (intense illegal logging, conversion of forest to palm oil plantations and timber estates, mining, clearing forest for settlements, and road construction) and also by large-scale fires facilitated by the El Nino weather phenomena. Additionally, the illegal animal trade has been a factor in the decline of wild orangutan populations. 

Finally, orangutans are occasionally hunted and eaten by some of the indigenous peoples of Borneo as well as migrant loggers and plantation workers who do not have dietary prohibitions against eating primate bushmeat.

Of all mammals, the orangutan has the longest birth interval, often giving birth on average, once every eight years.Some females may wait as long as a decade between births. In fact, this is one of the factors that make orangutans especially vulnerable to extinction; the other key factor is that females often don’t start breeding until the age of 17, which means that if a significant number of adult females are killed, then it can take decades for a population to recover.


 Q)Why do they need to be conserved?

They play a vital role in seed dispersal and in maintaining the health of the forest ecosystem, which is important for people and a host of other animals, including tigers, Asian elephants and Sumatran rhinos. So by conserving the orangutan's habitat, we're also benefiting local communities and other species.

Q)What are the challenges faced by them?
Unfortunately, there are many threats to the remaining wild populations of orangutans. Deforestation for the benefit of oil palm plantations, mining, infrastructure, illegal logging, forest and peat fires, illegal hunting, and illegal wildlife trade are just a few of the threats against the wild orangutans.

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