The Newly Discovered And Nearly Extinct Tapanuli Orangutan Species

This orangutan skull has large upper teeth and a shallow face, which differs from the two previously known species. (Credit: Matthew G. Nowak)

Up to today, there were two known Orangutan species, both critically endangered. There are about 4,000 more Sumatran orangutans (Pongo abelii) than Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) currently living in the Indonesian rainforest. A new orangutan family member, the Tapanuli orangutans (Pongo tapanuliensis), was described in a paper published Thursday in Current Biology. And with less than 800 individuals, that makes... Continue Reading →

November 2, 2017

Orangutans Cooling Off

August 21, 2011

Orangutan Behavior during the Rehabilitation Process

By Kristin Abt A recent article "Fostering Appropriate Behavior in Rehabilitant Orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus)" published online in the International Journal of Primatology discusses research on the behavior of rehabilitant orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus and P. abelii) at the Orangutan Care and Quarantine Centre in Pangkalan Bun, Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo). Much past research has focused on postrelease behavior... Continue Reading →

February 25, 2011

Orangutan Genome Sequenced

The orangutan genome has been sequenced and published in today's Nature. The paper, "Comparative and demographic analysis of orang-utan genomes," is open access for you to read for yourself. I'll be highlighting some of the high points in this post. Devin Locke, a structural geneticist at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri,... Continue Reading →

January 26, 2011

Orangutans: Geographic Variation in Behavioral Ecology and Conservation

New volume is the first to offer a site-by-site comparison of data recording similarities, differences in orangutan populations Des Moines, Iowa – January 29, 2009 – Great Ape Trust of Iowa scientist Dr. Serge Wich and three other internationally respected orangutan experts have edited a book set for release in the United States next month... Continue Reading →

February 24, 2009

Orangutans Are Shockingly Closer To Extinction

Anthropology.net blogger German Dziebel sent me this link about the dim future of orangutans in Indonesia, Brunei, and Malaysia. Afarensis has also covered this news. The results of a new survey of orangutan populations have been published in the journal Oryx. I don't have access to the early advance view of the paper, but one... Continue Reading →

July 7, 2008

Orangutan from Borneo photographed using a spear tool to fish

Tool use among orangutans was first documented by Carel van Schaik. In 1994, Carel observed orangutans developing tools to help themselves eat, while conducting field work in Gunung Leuser National Park, in the northwest Sumatra. Specifically the orangutans were using sticks to pry open pulpy fruits that have "Plexiglas needles" capable of delivering a painful... Continue Reading →

April 29, 2008

Nakalipithecus nakayamai, a Miocene Ape from Kenya

The collective understanding of Miocene African primate evolution, especially ape evolution, is generally unfounded. Why? Because the fossil record is spotty, there are only a handful of primates from the Miocene. The Miocene lasted from 23.8 to 5.3 million years ago, and a lot of interesting things happened in the ape lineage during that time.... Continue Reading →

November 17, 2007

A New African Miocene Ape: Nakalipithecus nakayamai

In August, 2007 Gen Suwa and crew reported on a new Ethiopian Miocene Ape, Chororapithecus abyssinicus. And today, Kenyan and Japanese paleoanthropologists have published their study of a fragment of a mandible and 11 teeth, dating back to between 9.8 and 9.88 million years, which was found 2005. The fossils were unearthed in volcanic mud... Continue Reading →

November 13, 2007

Human & Non-Human Ape Social Cognition Compared: Humans Have Evolved Specialized Skills

The web seemed to have exploded with news covering this hot-off-the-press open access Science paper, "Humans Have Evolved Specialized Skills of Social Cognition: The Cultural Intelligence Hypothesis." Before I jump into the paper, here are some news sources wrote about this paper: Higher Social Skills Are Distinctly Human, Toddler And Ape Study Reveals - ScienceDaily... Continue Reading →

September 7, 2007

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